Automobiles, or cars. Automobile
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- Engine and Related Parts
- Development of the Automobile Industry
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 The Automobile
It is hard for anyone today to imagine what life was like before there were automobiles, or cars. Automobiles have made it easy for people to travel within a city or across a continent. They have also influenced where people live. People once had to live near their jobs, but now they can live farther away and drive to work.   Yet automobiles have brought problems as well. Tens of thousands of people are killed or injured each year in traffic accidents. Cities are often congested with huge traffic jams. And gasoline is a limited resource that pollutes the atmosphere when burned as fuel.
Types of Automobiles
Automobile bodies have come in many different types. In early days most cars were open, without a fixed top. Now, aside from convertibles, most cars are closed. The most common styles include coupes and sedans. A coupe is a two-door car with a small back seat. A sedan usually has four doors and seats four to six people. Sedans with a lift-up rear door are called hatchbacks. Sports cars are built low to the ground and usually have no back seat. Station wagons have extra carrying capacity. By the end of the 20th century, however, they had been mostly replaced by minivans and sport utility vehicles (SUVs).
Parts of an Automobile
All automobiles have certain basic parts. The body of an automobile is the outer shell that encloses the vehicle's mechanical parts and its passengers. Most auto bodies are made of steel, but some are made of strong plastics or fiberglass. The body is attached to the chassis. This consists of a frame that holds all the other major parts of the automobile together. Those other parts include the engine, a steering system, brakes, and the wheels.
How Automobiles Work A driver operates a car by pressing on pedals to make it go and stop and by turning the steering wheel to guide where the car goes. The pedals and steering wheel work because they are part of a larger system.
Engine and Related Parts Other Mechanical Parts Once a car is moving it is important to be able to make it stop. When a driver presses the brake pedal, pistons force fluid through small, flexible pipes to brakes at each wheel that stop the vehicle.
History
The first true automobile was a machine that had three wheels and was powered by steam. It was built by Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot of France in 1769. It was heavy and moved very slowly. Many manufacturers produced steam-driven automobiles during the late 1890s and early 1900s. A disadvantage of steam was that water had to be brought to a boil before the car could go.
Gas Engines Automobile_Industry'>Development of the Automobile Industry
Henry Ford made his first automobile in Detroit in 1896. Ford introduced the assembly line in 1913. This made it easy to produce many cars very quickly. Assembly-line workers stay in one place and do only a single task as the parts pass by on a conveyor. Ford soon sold millions of cars. The Model T version was especially popular. Several other companies were established at this time as well.
Innovations In the period after World War I (1914–18), automobiles became easier to operate and more comfortable. Steel bodies and heaters became common.
After World War II (1939–45) automakers began using power steering, power brakes, and automatic controls for windows and seats. Air conditioning also became available.
In the late 1950s, European compact cars like the Volkswagen Beetle caused a sensation. Automakers in the United States built their own compact cars starting in 1959.
The Problem of Oil
Automobiles also cause widespread air pollution. As gasoline is burned it produces harmful gases. New types of gasoline and catalytic converters helped ease the problem. Even so, some scientists blame these gases for a problem called global warming. The scientists and others became more concerned in the 1990s. Many drivers replaced their passenger cars with SUVs. Such automobiles use large amounts of gas and produce more of the harmful gases. By the 21st century some automakers had created vehicles that combined gasoline and electric power.
Safety Automobile safety is a continuing issue. Early cars were very dangerous to ride in. Since then automobile manufacturers have worked to create safer cars. They installed such devices as seatbelts and air bags to protect riders in a crash. They have also tried to improve the way cars are built and the materials used to build cars so that the cars will survive a crash better.Directory: file -> view view -> Western Europe after wwii view -> Author study: paul fleischman view -> Qpa1 7ela study Guide view -> Arctic Oil/Gas Neg view -> November 1970 Approximately 150,000-500,000 deaths Bhola Cyclone Bangladesh view -> Grade Level: 6 Unit of Study: Caribbean glce view -> Citation: Duffield, Katy view -> Table of Contents Lesson # view -> Chinese Wind Energy Disad Download 47.01 Kb. Share with your friends:
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