Portal:Cars

The Cars Portal

The Ford Model T, produced from 1908 to 1927, is widely credited with being the first mass-affordable automobile, and it remains one of the best-selling cars of all time.

A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, seat 1–8 people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people rather than cargo. There are over 1.6 billion cars in use worldwide as of 2025^[update].

In 1769 the French inventor Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot built the first steam-powered road vehicle, a large three-wheeled dray to carry artillery pieces at walking pace. In 1808 the Swiss inventor François Isaac de Rivaz designed and constructed the first internal-combustion-powered automobile; range was limited to tens of metres by the gaseous fuel held in a large balloon. Until the late nineteenth century the only source of mechanical power for long-distance travel by land was coal in a steam engine. A notable early example of a personal steam carriage was that made in 1840 by Frank Hills of Deptford, near London. This cruised at 26 km/h (16 mph) and was used for day trips, including one of 206 km (128 miles).^{: 149–150}

The modern car—a practical, marketable automobile for everyday use—was invented in 1886, when the German inventor Carl Benz patented his Benz Patent-Motorwagen. By the end of the nineteenth century, Benz was selling 500 a year of later versions of this. Commercial cars became widely available during the 20th century. The 1901 Oldsmobile Curved Dash and the 1908 Ford Model T, both American cars, are widely considered the first mass-produced and mass-affordable cars, respectively. Cars were rapidly adopted in the US, where they replaced horse-drawn carriages. In Europe and other parts of the world, demand for automobiles did not increase until after World War II. In the 21st century, car usage is still increasing rapidly, especially in China, India, and other newly industrialised countries. (Full article...)

Refresh with new selections below (purge)

Recognized content - show another

Entries here consist of Good and Featured articles, which meet a core set of high editorial standards.

Reynolds headquarters in Dayton, Ohio

The Reynolds and Reynolds Company is a private corporation based in Dayton, Ohio, United States. Its primary business is providing business forms, management software and professional services to car dealerships. Its software is used to manage sales logistics at dealerships. It also produces forms used in medicine and insurance.

Reynolds and Reynolds was founded in 1866 as a printer of standardized business forms. It began developing and marketing digital products in the 1960s. This was followed by a major downsizing of the printing division and subsequent advancements in its software products. By the 1980s, Reynolds and Reynolds had won contracts with all of the Big Three automotive manufacturers, as well as some insurance businesses. The company went public in 1961, but was re-formed as a private company in 2006, when it was merged with Universal Computer Systems, resulting in a culture clash between the two companies. (Full article...)

List of recognized articles

Selected article - show another

Buick dealership in Springfield, Oregon

Buick (/ˈbjuːɪk/; BYOO-ik) is a division of the American automobile manufacturer, General Motors (GM). Started by automotive pioneer David Dunbar Buick in 1899, it was among the first American automobile brands and was the company that established General Motors in 1908. Before the establishment of General Motors, GM founder William C. Durant had served as Buick's general manager and major investor. With the demise of Oldsmobile in 2004, Buick became the oldest surviving American automobile brand.

GM positions Buick as a premium automobile brand in its portfolio, above the mainstream Chevrolet brand and below the luxury Cadillac division, although many vehicles share underlying platforms. In North America, Buick vehicles are typically sold alongside GMC vehicles, another premium marque, at multi-brand dealerships. (Full article...)

List of selected articles

edit

Selected picture of the day

1928 Model A Ford

Selected biography - show another

Porsche in 1940

Ferdinand Porsche (3 September 1875 – 30 January 1951) was an Austrian-German automotive engineer and founder of the Porsche AG. He is best known for creating the first gasoline-electric hybrid vehicle (Lohner-Porsche), the Volkswagen Beetle, the Auto Union racing cars, the Mercedes-Benz SS/SSK, and several other important developments and Porsche automobiles.

An important contributor to the war effort of Nazi Germany during World War II, Porsche was involved in the production of advanced tanks such as the VK 45.01 (P), the Elefant (initially called "Ferdinand") self-propelled gun, and the Panzer VIII Maus super-heavy tank, as well as other weapon systems, including the V-1 flying bomb. Porsche was a member of the Nazi Party and an honorary Oberführer of the Allgemeine SS. He was a recipient of the German National Prize for Art and Science, the SS-Ehrenring and the War Merit Cross. (Full article...)

List of selected biographies

More biography articles

edit

On this day October 27

1927 – Production of the Ford Model A begins at the River Rouge Plant

2006 – Production of the Ford Taurus ends with the final car sold to Chick-fil-A founder, Truett Cathy

2006 – Albrecht von Goertz, designer of the BMW 507, Datsun 240Z, Toyota 2000GT, and Montblanc pen, dies

edit

Did you know...

...that the racing version of the Dauer 962 Le Mans, winner of 1994 24 Hours of Le Mans, is a roadcar converted from a Porsche 962 racecar, which dominated Le Mans, Group C and IMSA during the 1980s?
...that the 25 Millionth VW Golf rolled off the production line in Wolfsburg in March 2007? The first Golf started production in 1974, 33 years later the 1.4 litre TSI version became the 25 Millionth car.
...that the 2011 Ford Crown Victoria was the last car to offer a cassette tape player as an option?
...that the first production turbocharged cars were General Motors' A-body 1962 Chevrolet Corvair and Oldsmobile F-85?
...that Jeep introduced the 1993 Grand Cherokee and 2007 Wrangler in the same way — by driving them through a plate glass window?
...that a small number of Renault 20s, badged as Dacia 2000, were made in the 1980s by Dacia in Romania for Romanian communist dignitaries of that time?
...that the Autobianchi Primula was the Fiat's first automobile with the front-wheel drive, transverse engine setup and rack and pinion steering?
...that the Plymouth Sundance is a liftback, even though the outside appearance might suggest that it is a sedan?
...that the name Volvo really means 'I Roll?' That's how Volvo rolls.

edit

Selected quote of the day

We could remain independent while we had a fighting chance. Emissions and new Japanese competition showed us we didn't.

—Sir John Egan, explaining the sale of Jaguar Cars to Ford

Topics

General images

The following are images from various car-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8A (from History of the automobile)
Image 2A Chevrolet Suburban extended-length SUV weighs 3,300 kilograms (7,200 lb) (gross weight). (from Car)
Image 3Percentage-of-total-sales figures for electric, plug-in hybrid, and hybrid vehicles approximately quadrupled from 2020 to 2026. (from History of the automobile)
Image 41987 Renault Espace (from History of the automobile)
Image 5The first automobile in Japan, a French Panhard-Levassor, in 1898 (from History of the automobile)
Image 6Panel for fuses and circuit breakers (from Car)
Image 7The German Flocken Elektrowagen of 1888, perhaps the first electric car in the world (from History of the automobile)
Image 81946 GAZ-M20 Pobeda, one of the first mass-produced cars with a pontoon design (from History of the automobile)
Image 9A Stanley Steamer racecar in 1903. In 1906, a similar Stanley Rocket set the world land speed record at 205.5 km/h (127.7 mph) at Daytona Beach Road Course. (from History of the automobile)
Image 10Rolls-Royce Phantom III (from History of the automobile)
Image 11Fiat 4 HP, the first car model produced by Italian manufacturer Fiat in 1899 (from History of the automobile)
Image 12A robotic Volkswagen Passat shown at Stanford University is a driverless car. (from Car)
Image 131926 Bugatti Type 35 (from History of the automobile)
Image 14The Vélib' in Paris, France, is the largest bikesharing system outside China. (from Car)
Image 15The weight of the low battery stabilises the car. This is a dual-motor, four-wheel-drive layout, but many cars only have one motor. (from Car)
Image 161982 Toyota Camry (from History of the automobile)
Image 17Ford Motor Company automobile assembly line in the 1920s (from Car)
Image 18The Selden Road-Engine (from History of the automobile)
Image 19Car exhaust gas is one type of pollution
Image 20In the Ford Model T the left-side hand lever sets the rear wheel parking brakes and puts the transmission in neutral. The lever to the right controls the throttle. The lever on the left of the steering column is for ignition timing. The left foot pedal changes the two forward gears while the centre pedal controls reverse. The right pedal is the brake. (from Car)
Image 211974 Citroën DS (from History of the automobile)
Image 22The Ford Model T (foreground) and Volkswagen Beetle (background) are among the most mass-produced car models in history. (from History of the automobile)
Image 23The Präsident automobile (from History of the automobile)
Image 24The first practical car, Carl Benz's Patent-Motorwagen Nr. 2 of 1886 (image from 1888) (from Car)
Image 25A Tesla Model Y electric car, the world's best-selling electric car, and the best selling nameplate in 2023. (from History of the automobile)
Image 26Carl Benz, the inventor of the modern car (from Car)
Image 27The Flocken Elektrowagen was the first four-wheeled electric car (from Car)
Image 28Cugnot's 1771 fardier à vapeur, as preserved at the Musée des Arts et Métiers, Paris (from Car)
Image 29A car being assembled in a factory (from Car)
Image 30The second Marcus car of 1888 (from History of the automobile)
Image 31Steam machine of Verbiest, in 1678 (Ferdinand Verbiest) (from Car)
Image 32Carl Benz, creator of the Benz Patent-Motorwagen, considered by many as the first modern car. (from History of the automobile)
Image 331924 Doble Model E (from History of the automobile)
Image 34Ransom E. Olds founded Olds Motor Vehicle Company (Oldsmobile) in 1897. (from Car)
Image 351955 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible (from History of the automobile)
Image 36Road congestion is an issue in many major cities (pictured is Chang'an Avenue in Beijing). (from Car)
Image 37Frank Hills' steam carriage, 1840 (from Car)
Image 38Result of a serious car collision (from Car)
Image 39The Toyota Corolla is the world's bestselling nameplate. (from History of the automobile)
Image 40Model-T Ford car parked near the Geelong Art Gallery at its launch in Australia in 1915 (from History of the automobile)
Image 41The first production car: 1888 Benz Patent-Motorwagen Model 2 on loan from Science Museum, London to Automuseum Dr Carl Benz, Ladenburg, 2014 (from Car)
Image 421929 Alfa Romeo 6C (from History of the automobile)
Image 43Audi A4 daytime running lights (from Car)
Image 44A replica of Richard Trevithick's 1801 road locomotive 'Puffing Devil' (from History of the automobile)
Image 451929 Austin Seven (from History of the automobile)
Image 46Volkswagen Beetle (from History of the automobile)
Image 472011 Nissan Leaf electric car (from Car)
Image 481959 Morris Mini-Minor (from History of the automobile)
Image 49Cugnot's steam wagon, the second (1771) version (from History of the automobile)