It wasn’t Henry Ford who invented the first car as most people think but a humble mechanic and his wife Karl Benz who was married to a genius wife. The very same couple who started Mercedes Benz Company. KIT was his vision to transform how humans travel which prompted him to conceptualize the motor car. Well the major input was from his wife of course.
Karl Benz was born in 1844. As an intelligent locomotive mechanic he was always obsessed with creating a horseless carriage. Inspired by others, he went on to research his objectives and ensured that he completed his education as well as gained job experience.
In his quest to make the automobile, he invented the gasoline-powered two-stroke piston engine that served as the base for all motor cars today. He also ended up parenting the battery speed regulation, clutch, gearshift, water radiator and spark plug: which pretty much covers all that a car needs today.
His inspiration and love for bicycles also prompted him to create the first ever automobile that generated its own power. He called it the Motorwagen and acquired the patent for it. By doing so he officially became the first ever car maker in the world.
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Karl Benz biggest support system was his wife Bertha Ringer. She was also his biggest critic and collaborator. When they first met she was from high society while he was just a mechanic. They faced the odds together where Bertha also saved Karl from going bankrupt by investing part of her own inheritance to start his new company which he called Benz and Co.
By this time the couple was married with 5 kids. Bertha was always his biggest advisor as he went through several phases of experimentation and work. Karl Benz was nervous and unconfident who suffered from depression. It was Bertha who kept him calm and stable.
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It was Berta who became the first person to drive a motorcar when she took out the motorwagen for a spin without telling Karl. It was August 5th 1988 when she drove to her mother’s house 106 km away. Taking her kids with her, they instead had to push the vehicle uphill several times. This was a day that was celebrated in Germany and still is today.
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As the couple who started Mercedes Benz, Bertha then went on to invent the brake pads when she added leather to the brakes. Bertha used the invention to promote the vehicle and even demonstrated how it could cover distances to become a practical mode of transportation. Her strategy paid off when people started investing and making orders. The success enabled the Benz to create the first flat engine, a concept still used in cars like Porsche and Subaru today.
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Karl then went on to create the world’s first truck whose internal combustion engine was modified to create the world’s first bus by Nepthener a motorbus company. Thus the world owes the concept of motor vehicles to Karl and bertha Benz. The collective and mind blowing vision changed the world which owes its wheels to Karl and Bertha Benz.
In the words of Karl Benz, “Only one person remained with me in the small ship of life when it seemed destined to sink. That was my wife. Bravely and resolutely she set the new sails of hope.” The legacy of Karl and Bertha Benz will always remain in history as the couple who started Mercedes Benz.
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