... No matter what some history books are telling you, the French didn't invent the automobile. Yes, I know, a French dude by the name of Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot was experimenting in the late 1700s with a steam-powered vehicle - the so-called Fardier à vapeur - for the French army. Later on, another peer of his named Amédée Bollée, actually built a whole range of steam-powered vehicles in the 1870s, still about a decade before Karl Benz's and Gottlieb Daimler's inventions.
There are two fundamental flaws in thinking that those were the first automobiles. First of all, if a so-called "car" has an excruciatingly low top speed or it has to constantly stop in order to be refueled with coal, wood or any other flammable material and its range is worse than that of a cart pulled by a donkey with arthritis, then it's not exactly an automobile, is it? I mean, where is the actual mobility of it?
Second of all, Cugnot wasn't even the first to build a self-propelled vehicle. That title is more fitting to a certain Ferdinand Verbiest, who was a Flemish Jesuit missionary in China during the Qing dynasty, in the seventeenth century. Apparently, he designed and built a steam-powered (here we go again) four-wheeled toy for the Chinese Kangxi Emperor as early as 1672.
I think most of you will agree with me, neither one of these vehicles - as innovative for their times as they were - could be considered a modern automobile. That title still remains in the Germans' backyard.
As a matter of fact, the same could be said about popularizing the automobile (the French didn't do it, ed). The first "mass-produced" French automobiles were made by Panhard et Levassor, in 1890, which is pretty early, right? Well, guess what kind of engines were they using? If you guessed "Daimler engines used under license", you win the prize. So the Germans actually helped the French popularize their own automobiles.
Mkay, how about automobile safety or practical solutions for reducing costs and adding reliability? Well, the safety bit is shared between Mercedes-Benz and Volvo. So, no matter how many models with five EuroNCAP stars Renault might have, they still didn't introduce half as many safety innovations during the years as the aforementioned two. Cost reduction and reliability? Well, the automotive "Just in Time" concept was pretty much introduced by Toyota, while one of the most reliable car brands in history is Honda.
How about automotive design avangarde? Umm, I guess almost everyone agrees that the "automotive design prize for the most beautiful cars in the world" belongs 100% on Italian turf, no matter how many convex and concave shapes Renault and Citroën have brought to the table in recent years.
So, what did the French brought for the automotive industry anyway? I'll tell you what, innovation. They have been the true revolutionaries of the car world ever since the 1930s, when models like the Peugeot 402 BL Éclipse Décapotable (world's first retractable hardtop convertible) or the Citroën Traction Avant were making history. Things didn't stop after World War Two, with again Citroën leading the way in the technology department and Renault following them.
Then, the 1970s happened, and France's number one automotive technology leader went bankrupt and got sold to one of its rivals. Goodbye never-before-seen cars, hello French numbness when it comes to groundbreaking models!
Anyway, long story short, this year's Frankfurt Motor Show was host to a tidal wave of green and/or fuel efficient vehicles, with the spotlight appearing to show mostly... French car makes. Renault brought not one but four electric concept cars that are almost ready for mass production, Peugeot brought the BB1 city car concept and a couple of hybrids, while Citroën unveiled a green concept with a design harking back to the innovative 2CV and an entire fleet of hybrids and electric cars soon-to-be on the road.
My question to you guys is, will the three French car makers lead the way into a new era of greener cars in the near future – hence their recent fleet of electric and hybrid concepts which look near production – or will they miss the train again and lose the game to the Germans and the Japanese?
There are two fundamental flaws in thinking that those were the first automobiles. First of all, if a so-called "car" has an excruciatingly low top speed or it has to constantly stop in order to be refueled with coal, wood or any other flammable material and its range is worse than that of a cart pulled by a donkey with arthritis, then it's not exactly an automobile, is it? I mean, where is the actual mobility of it?
Second of all, Cugnot wasn't even the first to build a self-propelled vehicle. That title is more fitting to a certain Ferdinand Verbiest, who was a Flemish Jesuit missionary in China during the Qing dynasty, in the seventeenth century. Apparently, he designed and built a steam-powered (here we go again) four-wheeled toy for the Chinese Kangxi Emperor as early as 1672.
I think most of you will agree with me, neither one of these vehicles - as innovative for their times as they were - could be considered a modern automobile. That title still remains in the Germans' backyard.
As a matter of fact, the same could be said about popularizing the automobile (the French didn't do it, ed). The first "mass-produced" French automobiles were made by Panhard et Levassor, in 1890, which is pretty early, right? Well, guess what kind of engines were they using? If you guessed "Daimler engines used under license", you win the prize. So the Germans actually helped the French popularize their own automobiles.
Mkay, how about automobile safety or practical solutions for reducing costs and adding reliability? Well, the safety bit is shared between Mercedes-Benz and Volvo. So, no matter how many models with five EuroNCAP stars Renault might have, they still didn't introduce half as many safety innovations during the years as the aforementioned two. Cost reduction and reliability? Well, the automotive "Just in Time" concept was pretty much introduced by Toyota, while one of the most reliable car brands in history is Honda.
How about automotive design avangarde? Umm, I guess almost everyone agrees that the "automotive design prize for the most beautiful cars in the world" belongs 100% on Italian turf, no matter how many convex and concave shapes Renault and Citroën have brought to the table in recent years.
So, what did the French brought for the automotive industry anyway? I'll tell you what, innovation. They have been the true revolutionaries of the car world ever since the 1930s, when models like the Peugeot 402 BL Éclipse Décapotable (world's first retractable hardtop convertible) or the Citroën Traction Avant were making history. Things didn't stop after World War Two, with again Citroën leading the way in the technology department and Renault following them.
Then, the 1970s happened, and France's number one automotive technology leader went bankrupt and got sold to one of its rivals. Goodbye never-before-seen cars, hello French numbness when it comes to groundbreaking models!
Anyway, long story short, this year's Frankfurt Motor Show was host to a tidal wave of green and/or fuel efficient vehicles, with the spotlight appearing to show mostly... French car makes. Renault brought not one but four electric concept cars that are almost ready for mass production, Peugeot brought the BB1 city car concept and a couple of hybrids, while Citroën unveiled a green concept with a design harking back to the innovative 2CV and an entire fleet of hybrids and electric cars soon-to-be on the road.
My question to you guys is, will the three French car makers lead the way into a new era of greener cars in the near future – hence their recent fleet of electric and hybrid concepts which look near production – or will they miss the train again and lose the game to the Germans and the Japanese?
Google News