First Long-distance Auto Trip – August 5, 1888 – a wonderful story

 

First Long-distance Auto Trip – August 5, 1888 – a wonderful story

History ^ | 8/5/2012 | Bertha Benz

Posted on Sunday, August 05, 2012 6:44:25 AM by PieterCasparzen

In 1886, Dr Carl Benz invented the automobile in Mannheim (Reich Patent No. 37435) – but nobody wanted to buy it.

But when Bertha Benz, his wife, went with her 13- and 15-year-old sons on a long-distance trip in 1888 from Mannheim to Pforzheim and back – without her husband’s knowledge – to prove that the horseless coach was absolutely suitable for daily use, it became a huge success with almost a billion drivers worldwide today!