• 1896: Henry Ford drives his first automobile

    From JAB@21:1/5 to All on Tue Oct 17 05:48:34 2023
    Henry Ford's Quadricycle

    In 1896, the founder of Ford Motor Company built his first car and
    took it for a spin on the streets of Detroit
    ...
    ...
    Apart from the motor, wheels, axles and steering tiller, the vehicle
    was constructed of wood, and weighed only 500 pounds, without fuel. It
    had a buggy-like seat and ran on bicycle-size wheels with pneumatic
    tires. Ford's "horseless carriage" had two speeds - 10 and 20 miles
    per hour selected by twin drive belts. It had a neutral gear but no
    reverse. Gear changes were made by a clutch lever mounted on the floor
    to the right of the driver. Final drive was by a single chain. There
    were no brakes, but Ford included a doorbell as a horn. During the two
    days before his invention was finished, Ford hardly slept at all.
    Finally, in the early morning hours of June 4, 1896, the vehicle was
    ready.

    As Ford prepared for his first ride, he realized the completed
    Quadricycle was wider than the garage door. With an axe, he broke out
    frame and bricks to widen the opening and rolled the vehicle out into
    the alley. With his wife and a helper, Jim Bishop, anxiously watching,
    Ford put the clutch in neutral and spun the flywheel. The motor came
    to life! Ford drove the Quadricycle slowly along nearby Detroit
    streets, with Bishop on a bicycle ahead of him and a few curious
    passers-by staring incredulously. A spring actuating one of the
    "ignitors" failed during the short run, but it was quickly repaired,
    and the two men returned triumphantly to the Ford home, got a few
    hours of rest and then reported for work at Edison.


    https://corporate.ford.com/articles/history/henry-fords-greatest-innovation-the-quadricycle.html

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