Got Funny

Although the first vehicle to move under its own power (for which there is documentation) was built by M. Brezin in 1769, it really wasn’t until the end of the 19th century that a flurry of automobile-building activity took off.

Karl Daimler was one of the earliest pioneers, who, together with William Steinway (the piano manufacturer) built petrol engines to power various kinds of vehicles and boats. Not well known is the fact that Steinway actually owned the Daimler Company.

Interesting sidenote – Karl Benz never actually met Gottlieb Daimler…

In 1893, the Duyrea brothers built the first gasoline car in America. A modified horse buggy, it only ran for around 3 months before being mothballed for the next 25 years! Maybe it wasn’t much good!

As these early automobiles were appearing, so to were the first ride on cars, which were essentially much smaller (human-powered) versions of the real thing. As you’d expect, they were VERY pricey, and only for the very wealthy.

These early days of automobile development also saw the birth of the very first pedal ride on cars. Of course, just like the automobiles themselves, these were very expensive and only for the very wealthy. Most were modeled on the real cars around at the time

Ride on cars became increasingly more popular in the 1920s and 1930s, as more and better automobiles came on the scene. World War 11 put an end to ride on car production in the 1940′s, with all metal needed to satisfy the demands of the war.

Although most ride on cars in the 60s were made of metal, the rise of plastics swiftly started to take over, with nearly all being made of plastic by the 70s.

Around these times, the cars were still made largely of metal, but the 60s, with plastics fast dominating manufacturing, really marked the end for these more traditional ride on cars. In the 70′s the plastic ride on car was introduced and the traditional steel pedal cars pretty much faded away.

What also happened with the advent of plastics was that, unfortunately, the new designs weren’t replicas of the original automobiles any more. Shame.

So, what next?

There are still some outfits manufacturing old fashioned ride on cars but they can be very pricey. But there’s loads more choice these days, with ride on jeeps, trains, plains, fire engines, as well as the standard ride on cars.

So, with ride on cars cheaper than they’ve ever been, why don’t you just go ahead and treat your kids to one today?

Be Sociable, Share!

•