Miguel Sánchez
1886 BENZ MOTORWAGEN TRICYCLE PHOTOS: MERCEDES-BENZ
Maybe you are thinking "Oh look, another piece of news about a classic Mercedes in La Escudería". Well yes, what happens? Do you think it's about something else about him as discreet as it is powerful W124 500E? Maybe you think that we are going to give you more information about that charming Mercedes Pagoda green convertible? Any more curiosity about the bravely M198 wit What will push the 300SL? Or ... Do you think we are going to scare the children again with the Hitler's "Black Bird"? None of that, today we are going to talk about what is considered the first car, the Benz Motorwagen tricycle from 1886.
Our protagonist belongs to a time when gasoline was something so strange that it was only sold in pharmacies. And it is that, although it had already been rehearsed with some "engines”For different types of carriages, those devices were not too far from a buggy with something that made it able to do without horses. With the Motorwagen, Benz was finally able to create a design where the chassis, engine and power train made up a single set equipped with an arrangement not seen to date.
In the past 2003 Mercedes-Benz built 100 exact copies for its exhibition in emblematic dealerships of the brand; However, after the years at last, the individual who wishes can be made with one of these replicas since Mercedes-Benz France auction this unit through Artcurial that on October 15 may reach between 90.000 and 110.000 euros. Sadly, it's legally impossible to get it out on the road (and we wonder why).
ONE CYLINDER AND LESS THAN ONE HORSE OF POWER
Okay, the numbers are not staggering. But think that thanks to this small big step, today you can enjoy not inconsiderable powers in most of the series cars. Built from a tubular chassis, on the structure prepared to carry two people an engine of so just one cylinder, able to deliver 0CV transferred to the asphalt thanks to a system of belts and chains. Of course, beware that it is a "sports" schedule of "all behind”;).
For the first time it was going from trying to equip a car with some mechanical gadget to doing something completely new! The car was born, although many continued to view with great surprise and distrust the three models that between 1885 and 1887 Karl Benz had developed which Emmet "Doc”Brown in his workshop.
THE GREAT JOURNEY OF THE BENZ MOTORWAGEN TRICYCLE
To give you perspective on what the emergence of the Motorwagen Trycicle could have meant at the end of the XNUMXth century, we are going to set you up with a Hispanic anecdote. Surely you remember the Carlists from the history books; yes, those mustachioed red berets who for decades climbed the mountains at least three times in the name of the "Tradition”. Well, not long before the appearance of the Motorwagen these destroyed trains when considering them “devil's mount".
We know that you may be raising an eyebrow as a sign of surprise, but remember that today, more than classics, we are talking about true antiques ... This is how things - and with exceptional gallantry, everything must be said - Karl Benz's wife -Bertha Benz- climbed the Trycicle with his two sons in order to perform a journey of more than 100 kilometers through the southwest of Germany.
The first car trip in history, and beware… In a car with a maximum speed of 16 kms / hour! Following this feat elegantly accomplished by a courageous and temperate Teutonic lady, the public began to view the Motorwagen Trycicle with greater credibility, thus paving the way for one of the most significant industries in human history.
With all these data ... We understand that about 90.000 euros for this 0CV replica seems crazy to you. But there is no denying that behind those irons and woods lies the foundational and amazing story of the early days of motorsport!
If you want to see a similar relic, and also in motion, we encourage you to read our article on the Ford Quadricycle Replica.
