The Life of the Automobile is the first comprehensive world history of the car. The automobile has arguably shaped the modern era more profoundly than any other human invention, and author Steven Parissien examines the impact, development, and significance of the automobile over its turbulent and colorful 130-year history. Readers learn the grand and turbulent history of the motor car, from its earliest appearance in the 1880s—as little more than a powered quadricycle—and the innovations of the early pioneer carmakers. The author examines the advances of the interwar era, the Golden Age of the 1950s, and the iconic years of the 1960s to the decades of doubt and uncertainty following the oil crisis of 1973, the global mergers of the 1990s, the bailouts of the early twenty-first century, and the emergence of the electric car. This is not just a story of horsepower and performance but a tale of extraordinary people: of intuitive carmakers such as Karl Benz, Sir Henry Royce, Giovanni Agnelli (Fiat), André Citroën, and Louis Renault; of exceptionally gifted designers such as the eccentric, Ohio-born Chris Bangle (BMW); and of visionary industrialists such as Henry Ford, Ferdinand Porsche (the Volkswagen Beetle), and Gene Bordinat (the Ford Mustang), among numerous other game changers. Above all, this comprehensive history demonstrates how the epic story of the car mirrors the history of the modern era, from the brave hopes and soaring ambitions of the early twentieth century to the cynicism and ecological concerns of a century later. Bringing to life the flamboyant entrepreneurs, shrewd businessmen, and gifted engineers that worked behind the scenes to bring us horsepower and performance, The Life of the Automobile is a globe-spanning account of the auto industry that is sure to rev the engines of entrepreneurs and gearheads alike.

Now revised and updated, this book tells the story of how the automobile transformed American life and how automotive design and technology have changed over time. It details cars' inception as a mechanical curiosity and later a plaything for the wealthy; racing and the promotion of the industry; Henry Ford and the advent of mass production; market competition during the 1920s; the development of roads and accompanying highway culture; the effects of the Great Depression and World War II; the automotive Golden Age of the 1950s; oil crises and the turbulent 1970s; the decline and then resurgence of the Big Three; and how American car culture has been represented in film, music and literature. Updated notes and a select bibliography serve as valuable resources to those interested in automotive history.

Aimed at children aged six and over, this book recounts the fascinating story of the car, from the first disastrous design ideas to the streamlined models of today. The 'Young Reading' series is designed to encourage independent reading and covers a range of subject matter.

How the Automobile Changed History examines the automobile's start as a motorized carriage, how it works, and its evolution into the world's principal method of transportation with significant cultural, industrial, and environmental influences. Features include essential facts, a glossary, selected bibliography, websites, source notes, and an index, plus a timeline and maps, charts, and diagrams. Aligned to Common Core Standards and correlated to state standards. Essential Library is an imprint of Abdo Publishing, a division of ABDO.

“ So far as I know, there is no book in circulation that tells, in concise form, the story of the mechanical and commercial evolution of the automobile, mirrors its sudden leap into popular use, and shows how it has demonstrated, in a most amazing way, the power of money to make money, describes its benefits to the world, and forecasts the future possibilities of the automobile industry as an investment. This book, the "Story of the Automobile," shows the struggle of man for one hundred and fifty years to devise a means of propelling a vehicle without animal power. It describes the various stages of the evolution of the idea of motive force other than animal power, in France, England, Germany and the United States, and its triumphant culmination in a successful horseless vehicle. And it makes clear how, when the automobile became of practical use, its successful commercialization became most profitable in the shortest period of time of that of any product of man's ingenuity supplying an article to meet human wants.” H. L. BARBER. Wheaton, Ill., April 2,1917.

Capturing the determination and thrill of an era when technology made anything seem possible, this work tells the story of the death-defying New York-to-Paris Auto Race held in 1908. Photos.