Automobiles are vehicles that use an internal combustion engine to propel themselves on roads. They are usually four-wheeled and can carry passengers and luggage.
The earliest automobiles were horse-drawn carriages fitted with engines, and the first automobile production occurred in the late nineteenth century. Germans Nikolaus Otto and Gottlieb Daimler built gasoline-powered cars, but it was Henry Ford who popularized the automobile by using mass production techniques to produce his Model T. Automobiles have profoundly changed modern life and society. They enable people to travel long distances quickly and independently. Industries, jobs, and communities have sprung up around automobile manufacturing, fuel production, and road infrastructure. Automobiles have also given their owners a great deal of freedom of movement, but this mobility comes with its own set of problems. Automobiles promote sprawl (straggling, low-density urban development that degrades landscapes), cause traffic congestion, and emit a significant amount of air pollution.
Automobiles have become the most widely used form of transportation in the world. They are designed to run on a variety of fuels, including gasoline, diesel, natural gas, and electricity.
Thousands of individual parts make up the modern automobile. The various components are arranged into several semi-independent systems with specific design functions, analogous to the human body. The most important system is the engine, which uses a volatile fuel to burn in cylinders and turn pistons that drive the wheels of the car. The wheels are supported by a system of suspension that varies according to whether the car is front-wheel or rear-wheel driven.
A chassis and body, which are similar to the skeleton of the human body, provide support for the other systems and provide safety, comfort, and protection from the elements for the passengers. Depending on the type of car, other essential systems include steering, braking, and lighting. A variety of electrical equipment and service devices are also installed, some of which is controlled by a computer.
The engine and other vital systems are powered by an electric motor or an internal combustion engine. Most automobiles use gasoline, but some are powered by steam, electricity, or battery power. Electric vehicles can go at high speeds, but they have a short range and require lengthy recharging periods. Steam engines can reach high speeds but cannot accelerate as fast as a gasoline-powered automobile, while the internal combustion engine is very efficient at both acceleration and top speed.
The main advantage of an automobile is its ability to take you to your destination more quickly than walking or taking a bus. It can also carry more luggage than a bicycle or a backpack and go places that other wheeled forms of transportation cannot. Having your own automobile also opens up work opportunities and social options that would not be possible if you had to rely on public transportation. However, driving an automobile can be dangerous if you are a reckless driver or you do not follow the rules of the road.