The Detroit entrepreneur STOUT SCARAB a car with twin-engines aircraft since 1935

The Detroit entrepreneur STOUT SCARAB a car with twin-engines aircraft since 1935

The earliest thinking behind the MPV (multi-purpose vehicle or multi-passenger vehicle) format as we recognize today can be traced back to 1935 and William Bushnell Stout’s Scarab.

This Detroit entrepreneur and inventor took his inspiration from airplanes. With his experience of designing an all-metal twin- engines aircraft, he decided to adapt the fuselage into a vehicle intended to be an office-on-wheels.

TATRA TYPE 77 with first air-cooled since 1934

TATRA TYPE 77 with first air-cooled since 1934

The Tatra 77 was a masterpiece of design and science in 1934, with its careful attention to streamlining detail and powerful V8 engine. 

It is incredible to think that, in 1934, just about the most futuristic car in the world hailed not from Germany or the US, but from Czechoslovakia. It was the centerpiece for the proud nation’s talents at the Berlin Auto Salon that year, and narrowly beat

Chrysler’s Airflow into production as the world’s first customer-ready, scientifically streamlined motor car.

The car came about thanks to the personal vision of Tatra’s widely admired Austrian chief engineer Hans Ledwinka.

It brought together his expertise in air-cooled engines and intelligent chassis design, with a newfound enthusiasm for aerodynamics.

PEUGEOT 402 ANDREAU “1940” one of six experimental Peugeots

PEUGEOT 402 ANDREAU “1940” one of six experimental Peugeots

N4X, one of six experimental Peugeots built to test the limits of streamlining for family cars in the near future—which, then, was the 1940s. 

It was extremely unusual for car manufacturers to exhibit “concept” or show cars in the 1930s, so the appearance of this astonishing looking Peugeot four-door sedan at the 1936 Paris Salon caused a stir.

It was presented as a vision of the family sedan of the near-future—1940 was the target—a risky strategy since it implied that the year-old sedan from which it was derived might soon be obsolete.

The 402 sedan itself was a sleek-looking car, with gracefully curved fenders, and headlamps concealed behind a waterfall- style radiator grille. But it wasn’t very aerodynamic.

German Rolls-Royces called: MAYBACH DS8 ZEPPELIN since 1907

German Rolls-Royces called: MAYBACH DS8 ZEPPELIN since 1907

Despite its gargantuan proportions, this Maybach Zeppelin with body designed by Paul Jaray and built by Spohn was cutting-edge stuff. 

Wilhelm Maybach partnered Gottlieb Daimler in designing some of the very earliest cars, but in 1907 he went into business with Daimler’s son Karl. Their specialty was building engines for Count Zeppelin’s airships. After the Treaty of Versailles (which banned German companies from making aero engines), Karl turned to producing car engines.

Customers proved elusive however, so in 1921, the retired Maybach built his own car.

They were acclaimed as “German Rolls-Royces.” In 1928, Maybach came up with the huge and impressive DS chassis, plus a magnificent V12 engine to power it. In 1930, it was renamed the Maybach Zeppelin in honor of the pioneering aviator, just before the ultimate edition, the DS8, was launched.

First TOYOTA AA 1937 the foundation stone for Toyota’s success

First TOYOTA AA 1937 the foundation stone for Toyota’s success

A Toyota AB, the convertible version of the AA model that was to lay the foundation stone for Toyota’s success. 

Japanese giant Toyota had an unsteady introduction to the car world. The company specialized in making textile looms until 1935, when a windfall on the sale of some patents persuaded Kiichiro Toyoda, son of the founder, to consider entering the car business.

It was no surprise that the three prototypes he built in May 1935 bore an uncanny resemblance to the Chrysler Airflow—the Toyoda Automatic Loom Works had bought one to take apart, and closely modeled the A-1 on it. They used Toyoda’s newly designed Type A six-cylinder engine in a ladder-type chassis, closely copied from Ford.

Yet, unusually for the time, it had pressed-steel disc wheels and a curved, one-piece windshield.

CITROËN TRACTION AVANT since 1934

CITROËN TRACTION AVANT since 1934

Traction Avant is the French for “front-wheel drive,” one of the many innovations first introduced by Citroën on this charismatic and long-running car range.

When first seen as the Citroën 7A in 1934, the four-door sedan was very modern. Its low-slung appearance came from having the entire drivetrain mounted ahead of the cabin. Engine power was through a three- speed manual gearbox in front of the engine with driveshafts to the front wheels.

BURNEY STREAMLINE 1930

BURNEY STREAMLINE 1930

Don’t be deceived by that radiator grille—it’s a fake. The Burney Streamline’s engine was in its tapering tail and, regrettably, prone to overheating 

Sir Dennistoun Burney was a respected defense inventor during World War I. He designed what was held to be the finest British airship of all, the R100.

But airships rapidly fell from favor after the fatal crash of the later, government sponsored R101 in 1930, which killed 48 people. Instead, Burney applied his expertise to motoring. He found backing for his Streamline Cars from his friend Stephen Courtauld, a textile magnate with an interest in technology. With “streamline” the 1930s buzzword equivalent of “digital” today, Courtauld was eager to own an airship-inspired car himself.

BLUEBIRD a long series of cars since 1931

BLUEBIRD a long series of cars since 1931

The appreciative crowd give an idea of the scale of the 1935 incarnation of Bluebird, which would set the world land speed record. 

luebird was not one single vehicle but a long series of cars and motor boats used to challenge world speed records. The 350bhp Sunbeam was just one of the early models.

Bluebird was the “lucky” name of Sir Malcolm Campbell (and later of his record breaking son, Donald), the descendant of a wealthy London diamond-dealing family who began his car-racing exploits in 1910.

AUTO UNION TYPE-C a key element of Germany’s quest for motor sport dominance since 1930

AUTO UNION TYPE-C a key element of Germany’s quest for motor sport dominance since 1930

After losing his job as technical director of German carmaker Steyr in 1930, the renowned Dr. Ferdinand Porsche finally decided to open his own car engineering consultancy. His timing was unfortunate because the world was reeling from economic recession, but between commissions, Porsche and his chief designer Karl Rabe weren’t idle.

CITROËN PETITE ROSALIE 1930

CITROËN PETITE ROSALIE 1930

These days, with rigorous prototype testing and computer-aided manufacturing, we take our cars’ reliability for granted. Carmakers have every confidence their products will last.

It was very different in the early 1930s, when human error meant that few cars—and roads—could be entirely depended upon. In thisenvironment, Citroën decided to prove the longevity of its products.

Its smart new 8CV Rosalie model made its debut at the 1932 Paris motor show, with an up-to- the-minute unitary-construction body and a 89ci (1,452cc) engine, advertised as “floating power.”

Citroën arrived at the Montlhéry race track in 1933 with a special 8CV. It was called “Petite Rosalie” thanks to its cut-down, skimpy two-seater body.

CHRYSLER AIRFLOW 1930

CHRYSLER AIRFLOW 1930

The Airflow today resembles a seminal example of motorized Art Deco. It wasan extremely adventurous car for Chrysler but, sadly, a disaster in sales terms.

Company founder Walter Chrysler had great faith in a team of consultant engineers nicknamed the “Three Musketeers”—Carl Breer, Fred Zeder, and Owen Skelton. It was Breer’s fascination with aerodynamics that led the trio to map out America’s first mainstream car with this science as its guiding principle. By 1930, they had tested over 50 different experimental models in awind tunnel constructed with input from aviation pioneer Orville Wright.

To improve ride and handling of what became the Airflow, they shifted the engine forward over the front wheels and positionedthe passenger seats within the wheelbase, for better weight distribution.

SPEEDING THROUGH THE WAR YEARS 1930-1949

SPEEDING THROUGH THE WAR YEARS 1930-1949

Throughout the 1930s, automobiles boomed on four distinct levels: at the bottom, “people’s cars” made motoring economical and affordable enough to attract impecunious newcomers; above that, the middle classes started to aspire to brands they thought best suited their status, and the manufacturers responded with a bewildering choice of products.

The handmade VAUXHALL KN in 1925

The handmade VAUXHALL KN in 1925

Before World War II, Vauxhall, still very much with us today as General Motors’

British subsidiary, was as eager as any maker of sports cars to prove its products on the racetrack. At the newly opened Brooklands circuit in Surrey, the company wanted to show that a relatively “ordinary” car could reach the magic figure of 161kph (100mph).

Classic car with aircraft engines: SUNBEAM 350HP “BLUEBIRD”

Classic car with aircraft engines: SUNBEAM 350HP “BLUEBIRD”

The battle for the world land speed record entered an extraordinary phase in 1922 when aircraft engines became the favored method to push the boundaries of speed.

The 1,118ci (18,322cc), V12 Sunbeam Manitou engine saw active service in only one airplane before being used in powerboats. In 1920, however, an engine was installed in a Sunbeam chassis, to produce a car with record-breaking capabilities.

The result of marriage between car and motorcycle: SCHILOVSKI GYROCAR

The result of marriage between car and motorcycle: SCHILOVSKI GYROCAR

Recently described by Stephen Vokins of Britain’s National Motor Museum as “a fantastic answer to a question no-one had asked,” the Gyrocar was an attempt to marry car and motorcycle. To make up for the balance usually bestowed on a two- wheeler by its rider, the Gyrocar used a huge gyroscope to keep it upright—quite a task for the 2.7-ton five-seater contraption.

It was the brainchild of Russian aristocrat and lawyer Count Peter Schilovski, who contracted Britain’s Wolseley Tool & Motor Car Company to build it. Some 10 percent of the engine’s output was devoted to powering a dynamo and electric motor.

OPEL RAK 2 “ROCKET CAR”

OPEL RAK 2 “ROCKET CAR”

The response of most carmakers to plans for a rocket-powered car would have been frosty. But Fritz von Opel was fascinated by the theories of Max Valier, inventor and author of The Advance Into Space, and in 1927 agreed to help him create just such a vehicle.

The Opel company’s research department was assisted by rocket scientist Wilhelm Sander.

They produced the “Rakentenwagen” (or RAK 1), equipped with solid fuel rockets.

MONOTRACE

MONOTRACE

The Monotrace was nominally a two-wheeler “car,” although it had drop-down stabilizer wheels for stationary moments. 

A two-wheeled car was what the Monotrace purported to be, although, with its “stabilizer” wheels either side of its narrow, tandem two-seater body (to stop it falling over at traffic lights), it was hardly a claim that stands up.

The Monotrace was made between 1925 and 1928. Its single-cylinder, 31ci (510cc) engine was concealed in its tail, driving the rear-wheel via chains through a motorbike gearbox.

LANCIA LAMBDA

LANCIA LAMBDA

Hollywood actress Greta Garbo and friend take an exhilarating trip in a Lancia Lambda, one of the most advanced cars of the Flapper era. 

The concept of a new car “bristling” with the latest technology is often bandied about, but few new models carried as much all-round innovation at their debut as Lancia’s sporty Lambda. It broke new ground in its engine, its suspension, and its overall construction.

Vincenzo Lancia was inspired by shipbuilding principles for the Lambda concept.

HIGHAM-THOMAS “BABS” SPECIAL

HIGHAM-THOMAS “BABS” SPECIAL

“Babs” was, briefly, the fastest car on earth. The car lay buried in the sands at Pendine until it was dug up in 1969 and restored. 

John Godfrey Parry-Thomas was an outstanding engineer born in Wrexham, North Wales, in 1885. In 1917, he was appointed chief engineer of Leyland Motors Ltd. He patented electrical transmission systems, the Thomas piston, and designed an advanced luxury car, the Leyland Eight.

When plans to manufacture the Leyland Eight were axed, Thomas decided to set up as an independent. In 1923, he established his own small factory at Brooklands circuit, in Surrey, where he already enjoyed a growing reputation as a racing driver.

FORD MODEL T

FORD MODEL T

The Model T always boasted a high-ground clearance among its sturdy attributes, making it well-suited to the state of roads in 1920s America. 

Henry Ford had one ultimate aim for his Ford Motor Company: he wanted to make a rugged car of a standard design that could be built in high numbers at low prices.

Out of this policy came the Model T, and a revolution in 20th-century manufacturing.

Extensive use of vanadium and heat-treated steel made the car light but sturdy (hence its nickname “Tin Lizzie”), with 10.5in (27cm) of road clearance, and hefty suspension to cope with rough roads.

FIAT S76 300HP

FIAT S76 300HP

With one of the most enormous conventional car engines of all time, seeing over the towering hood of the Fiat S76 was a challenge to drivers. 

The quest for ultimate speed has led to some bizarre-looking machines—none more so than Fiat’s elephantine S76. Built in 1911, it tried to wrest the land speed record away from Germany’s “Blitzen Benz.”

The Italian engineers reckoned there could be no substitute for engine capacity, as demonstrated by the Benz’s 1,281ci (21,000cc).

They came up with a monumental overhead- valve engine of 1,730ci (28,353cc)that produced its 300bhp at 1,800rpm, yet still employed just four cylinders. The engine was so tall the driver had to almost peer around the edge of the hood, but to aid aerodynamics, it was extremely narrow.

BUGATTI TYPE 41 “ROYALE”

BUGATTI TYPE 41 “ROYALE”

The gargantuan hood of the Bugatti Royale is shown to best effect here, as are the gigantic alloy wheels; this is the Coupé Napoleon body. 

The 1926 Bugatti Type 41 was Ettore Bugatti’s vainglorious attempt to sell his cars to emperors and kings. The lofty Italian-born carmaker called it “La Royale”.

The car had a 779ci (12,763cc) straight-eight engine, with three-valves- per-cylinder, but just a single carburetor. It had a wheelbase of 14ft (4.3m), longer than a complete

Subaru Impreza, and its overall length was longer than any factory-built limousine today at 21ft (6.4m).

BENTLEY 4.5 LITER “BLOWER”

BENTLEY 4.5 LITER “BLOWER”

The “Blower” Bentley, with its supercharger prominent at the front of the car, was the epitome of vintage British racers. 

The great Walter Owen Bentley of Bentley Motors rather disapproved of his most famous car, the 268ci (4,398cc) “Blower” Bentley. In the great tradition of steam (Bentley served his apprenticeship at the Great Northern Railway’s Doncaster works), he preferred to gain power by increasing engine capacity.

“WO” had every right to be concerned, because, as he said, the Blower Bentley “proved endlessly unreliable, bringing the Bentley marque into disrepute.” Even today, some enthusiasts question the reliability and efficiency of the enormous supercharger.

AUSTIN SEVEN

AUSTIN SEVEN

Conceived as a “real car in miniature,” the Austin Seven offered four cylinders and four seats; the automotive foundation for BMW.

Herbert Austin quit Wolseley in 1905 to set up his own company, called Austin, and by the early 1920s it was one of Britain’s most important carmakers with 22,000 employees. But it was not all plain sailing.

The company struggled after World War I, as the inevitable financial downturn bit hard, and Austin’s stately 20hp models suffered when tax penalties were levied on them in Britain’s “Motor Car Act” of 1920.

ALFA ROMEO 40-60HP AERODINAMICA

ALFA ROMEO 40-60HP AERODINAMICA

The profile of the Castagna-built Aerodinamica body was truly astounding for 1914, although the stout, old-fashioned chassis is clearly visible. 

The Italian count Mario Ricotti turned out to be quite a visionary. His idea that popular cars of the future would be highly aerodynamic “one box” people carriers was extraordinarily prescient.

When Count Ricotti commissioned this stunning machine from the Italian coachbuilder Carrozzeria Castagna, he was said to be in awe of the fashionable airships of that period.

FIRST LAUNCHING OF ROLLS-ROYCE “SILVER GHOST” 1906

FIRST LAUNCHING OF ROLLS-ROYCE “SILVER GHOST” 1906

The new Rolls-Royce 40/50hp chassis was launched at London’s Olympia Motor Show in 1906. It was designed by Henry Royce to meet the demand from Edwardian motorists for a car to carry the epitome of luxurious coachwork.

Thought to be the 12th built, the very chassis on display was fitted with elegant silver-painted “Roi-des-Belges” touring coachwork and silver-plated brightwork by coachbuilder Barker & Co.

OLDSMOBILE “CURVED DASH”

OLDSMOBILE “CURVED DASH”

An affordable price and mechanical simplicity endeared the Oldsmobile to America; you can see the “curved dash” that gave the car its nickname. 

Two important things held back car sales in their earliest days. One, obviously, was price: these new toys were prohibitively expensive for most. The other was mistrust—people often felt happier traveling by horse, and many were only just getting to grips with the idea of the bicycle.

The Olds Motor Works of Detroit, Michigan, however, sought to tackle both these issues. Founded by Ransom E. Olds, the company came up with a small car in 1901 for just $650—still expensive, but within many people’s grasp. Lights, mudguards, and a hood were fitted at extra cost. They called it the Oldsmobile.

UNVEIL MERCEDES 60HP 1901

UNVEIL MERCEDES 60HP 1901

This imposing and commodious body on a Mercedes 60hp chassis might have been used by a large, wealthy family, or as a hotel limousine. 

Before the new generation of Mercedes was unveiled in 1901, cars had come in a bewildering plethora of configurations—many of them related to the horse-drawn coach. In 1886, Gottlieb Daimler built the world’s first four-wheeled car by adapting such an item.

In 1898–99, Daimler and his colleague Wilhelm Maybach, also built a racing machine—the 28hp Canstatt-Daimler— that was typically short and top-heavy.

THE FIRST HIT OF LOHNER-PORSCHE 1900

THE FIRST HIT OF LOHNER-PORSCHE 1900

The Porsche name first hit the headlines in 1900, when a groundbreaking new vehicle was unveiled at the World Exhibition in Paris. The 24-year-old Austrian-born engineer Ferdinand Porsche was already showing his brilliance, in this case with electric power.

LANCHESTER the first-ever, all-British gasoline car

LANCHESTER the first-ever, all-British gasoline car

The first-ever, all-British gasoline car took to the road in Birmingham in December 1895, when Frederick Lanchester fired up his prototype and eased it forward those first, historic feet.

Fred had designed the whole thing from scratch, including the centrally located single-cylinder engine. It had a three-speed gearbox, and was steered by an upright tiller. Its cantilever spring suspension and torsionally stiff chassis gave—for the times—an astounding ride. It could also do 15mph (24kph)—highly illegal at a time when cars were governed at 4mph (6kph) with an escort.

JENATZY “LA JAMAIS CONTENTE”

JENATZY “LA JAMAIS CONTENTE”

With its wheelhub-mounted electric motors, the Lohner-Porsche offered four-wheel drive, and the first gas-electric hybrid drive system. 

You can probably blame the French count Gaston de Chasseloup-Laubat for our global obsession with covering ground as quickly as possible. In 1898, he drove his rickety Jeantaud electric car on a stretch of road near Paris, and was thrilled when timekeepers confirmed that he had reached a speed of 39.24mph (63.15kph).

As no one had been officially timed driving an automobile at quite such a gallop, he established the first “world land speed record.” Records of course, are there to be broken, and throughout 1899, the count saw fierce rivalry from Camille Jenatzy.

FIRST HOUR OF FORD “QUADRICYCLE”

FIRST HOUR OF FORD “QUADRICYCLE”

The irascible, bearded Jenatzy on board his rocket-like record car, a shining early example of an advanced electric car. 

The neighbors might not have realized it, but there was something of a “Eureka!” moment at 58 Bagley Avenue, Detroit in the early hours of June 4, 1896. At about 4am, Henry Ford’s first car clattered into life and set off on its maiden journey along the city’s dark and deserted streets. He was led by his friend Jim Bishop, riding a bicycle.

The tiny four-wheeled, single-seater contraption—the “Quadricycle”—was the result of considerable effort for Ford, then chief engineer of the Edison Illuminating Company. He built his first engine in 1893, and had spent every spare hour building a car for it ever since.

INVENTED OF BENZ MOTORWAGEN

INVENTED OF BENZ MOTORWAGEN

Many automotive pioneers helped to shape the modern car, only Karl Benz actually “invented” it. His “Motorwagen” was made official in 1886, after his patents were registered. However, his spindly three-wheeler, with its single-cylinder, four-stroke internal gas combustion engine, spluttered into life on the roads of Mannheim, Germany, the previous year.

By a stroke of coincidence, Canstatt engineer Gottlieb Daimler had also designed a “high-speed” internal combustion powerplant in 1885. His motor ran on gas, but he chose to install it in a primitive motorcycle for demonstrations.

Many years later, in 1926, the Daimler and Benz companies merged to form Mercedes-Benz. Yet there is no record of