Wheels to Wipers

Did you know that the first remains of a wheeled vehicle were found in a Royal Tomb in Mesopotamia, or that windscreen wipers were invented by a lady passenger travelling on an American street car?  Or the fact that many important concepts in bearing design emerged during the Greek and Roman periods (900-400 BC).  A thousand years later Leonardo da Vinci made a record of his engineering work which shows that he proposed lining plain bearings with a low friction metallic layer of copper and tin.  This idea still exists today.

When it comes to starting an internal combustion engine the early motorists used a starting handle.  This tool dates back to 100 BC when the Chinese used it to turn a grindstone to sharpen swords.  The electric starter was invented after a passing engineer died, after stopping to help a lady driver who had stalled her engine and was not strong enough to crank the engine.

This book contains a collection of fascinating articles on the history of British motoring and automobile engineering (first published in the British Made Car Club magazine).  Author Dr G. C. Sneed enlightens his readers with facts, figures and anecdotes about all things four-wheeled.  With all the relish of the committed enthusiast and the know-how of the confirmed expert, Sneed creates a compelling narrative on the evolution of man’s best friend - the car.