Karl Benz officially unveils the Benz Patent-Motorwagen, the first purpose-built automobile.

The Benz Patent-Motorwagen, unveiled in 1885 and patented in 1886 by Karl Benz, is widely recognized as the first true automobile powered by an internal combustion engine. Unlike earlier self-propelled vehicles that relied on steam or electricity, the Motorwagen used a single-cylinder four-stroke engine running on gasoline. It had a displacement of 954 cc and produced around 0.75 horsepower, which allowed it to reach speeds up to 16 km/h (10 mph). What made the Motorwagen groundbreaking wasn’t just the engine—it was that the entire vehicle was purpose-built around it, rather than modifying an existing carriage.

Structurally, the Motorwagen featured a lightweight tubular steel frame, wire-spoked wheels, and solid rubber tires. It had a rear-mounted engine and a simple belt-driven transmission system that drove the rear wheels. The steering was controlled by a tiller, and braking was achieved using a leather shoe pressing against the rear wheels. Benz designed the vehicle to be both compact and practical, though by today’s standards it was quite rudimentary. Still, its elegant simplicity marked the beginning of modern automotive engineering. The car was powered by a gravity-fed fuel system and had an open crankcase, which required frequent maintenance and a careful operator.

A particularly important moment in the Motorwagen’s legacy came in 1888, when Bertha Benz, Karl’s wife, undertook the first long-distance journey in an automobile—over 100 kilometers from Mannheim to Pforzheim—without notifying her husband. This bold move proved the vehicle’s practical potential and directly contributed to improvements such as better brakes and additional gears. Today, the Benz Patent-Motorwagen holds a special place in history as the birth of the modern car, not just because of its technical firsts, but because it marked a cultural and technological shift in how people would move through the world.