A Profile of the Global Auto Industry

CHAPTER 2

History 1: The Rise of Oligopoly

The Early Years: Entrepreneurs and New Venture

The concept of automobility dates back centuries, figuring in the drawings of Roger Bacon in the 13th century and Leonardo da Vinci in the 16th. By the mid-19th century, various ventures produced vehicles that freed steam engines from their rails, albeit with little initial success outside of steam tractors and threshers. Meanwhile by the late 1800s streetcars transitioned from horse-drawn to electric, improving speed and lowering costs; the start of suburbanization predated motor vehicles. Finally came the carriage trade and the new-fangled development of bicycles. It was the German, Karl Benz, who in 1886 produced the first widely recognized car, which ...