Automobiles (or automobiles) are motor vehicles used to transport passengers and goods. They usually have four wheels and an internal combustion engine powered by petroleum, a liquid fossil fuel. An automobile has become a significant mode of transportation in many parts of the world, and has transformed society by facilitating personal mobility and economic development. Cars can vary widely in design and size, and are often equipped with a range of features for comfort and safety.
The automotive industry has given millions of people worldwide the freedom to move about at will without having to rely on friends or public transportation, and it has made travel to work easier. It has created new jobs for those who build or repair cars, and also for those who own gas stations, motels, restaurants and other services for travelers. However, automobiles have also brought harm to the environment. They pollute the air, use up scarce parking space in cities, and cause millions of deaths in traffic accidents.
Cars are complicated machines that use a variety of systems to power the car, control and steer it, and make it comfortable for passengers. The heart of every car is its engine, which generates the power to turn the wheels and produce electricity for lights.
Until the late 19th century, almost all cars were horse-powered or operated by steam or battery power. In 1870 Siegfried Marcus, a German working in Vienna, built the first gasoline-powered vehicle, a crude handcart with no seats or steering and a two-stroke engine.
In the United States, Henry Ford revolutionized car production in the early 1920s with his innovative moving assembly line, where workers performed one task each and car parts passed on a conveyor belt. By the time he closed his Highland Park, Michigan, plant in 1927, Ford had sold 15 million Model Ts.
The popularity of the automobile created a consumer goods-oriented culture in twentieth century America and made it one of the top buyers for steel, oil and other industrial raw materials. It also boosted the economies of cities that depended on it for shoppers, and of rural communities where automobiles opened up access to jobs and services.
Today, most of the major automakers in the world are located in China, where demand has been growing fast. However, in the postwar era engineering became subordinate to the questionable aesthetics of nonfunctional styling and questions emerged about the environmental costs of ‘gas guzzling’ cars that polluted the environment and drained dwindling world oil reserves.
The future of the automobile may see a gradual shift to computerized, self-driving vehicles that will drive themselves on highways and other roads with little human intervention. Some manufacturers are already testing prototypes that use sensors to detect other cars and pedestrians, and will also monitor road conditions. The cars will be able to slow or stop automatically when an accident is imminent. They could even communicate with each other using wireless technology. In addition, they might be able to avoid obstacles like speed bumps and railroad tracks.