American Automobile Industry

The history of the American automobile industry
• The early years
The automobile in America evolved from the horse-powered buggy and initial efforts consisted of attaching an engine to an existing buggy. The first American automobiles were developed in the 1890s. The American automobile market began its early years with hundreds of auto makers and a variety of technologies. Internal combustion engines, battery-powered electric engines, and steam engines were used. Electric cars were popular in cities, where the short range of their batteries were less of a concern, and charging stations were available. Steam cars were also initially popular, despite the long starting time in cold weather. Gasoline powered internal combustion engines were initially deemed too unreliable, noisy, dirty, hard to start, and difficult to shift. The popularity of steam and electric cars lasted for about the first decade of the 1900s, after which the gasoline powered cars predominated due to the invention of the electric starter in 1911 and the lower production costs of gasoline powered cars.