Car History. 14. Karl Benz's First Gasoline Engine and the Emergence of Henry Ford

 Despite business misfortunes, Benz strove to invent a new engine, and in 1878 he focused on securing new patents to earn more profit.

Since he did not have enough money to hire workers, Benz’s wife, Bertha, diligently assisted in engine research. Even under difficult financial circumstances, Benz continued to search for investors while pursuing his studies with Bertha Ringer’s devoted help. When Benz brought home depleted batteries each night after research, Bertha would recharge them overnight by running her sewing machine.

With his wife’s dedicated support, he concentrated his efforts on developing a high-performance two-stroke engine, and on December 31, 1878, New Year’s Eve, he completed a high-output two-stroke gas engine. That engine was patented in 1879. Soon, with Bertha’s help and his genius, Benz achieved other groundbreaking inventions to power his high-output two-stroke gas engine. He obtained patents for a speed control system, a battery-powered spark ignition method, the spark plug, the carburetor, the clutch, the gear shift, and the water radiator.

After developing the gas engine with only Bertha’s support, Benz took a step further and began working on a gasoline engine powered by petroleum. Thus, Benz steadily achieved progress step by step, even under harsh circumstances. And one year later, on December 31, 1879, New Year’s Eve, Benz finally made history.

Benz, who was highly skilled in gas engines, was now researching an engine using the new fuel petroleum. Because the ignition points of gas and petroleum were different, research on the petroleum engine was slow. As the last day of 1879 approached, Benz had theoretically perfected a petroleum engine, but strangely, it would not operate. Benz could not identify the reason. Then, during dinner on December 31, 1879, Bertha suddenly said to Benz:

“Dear, let’s try starting the petroleum engine now. I have a strange feeling—it will surely work this time.”

Benz ignored her words. After countless attempts, the engine had never started. But Bertha was persistent. At her continued insistence, Benz reluctantly went to the workshop. Hoping for a miracle, Benz bent down, gripped the crank handle, and turned it with all his might. Yet after several tries, the engine still refused to start. Benz was ready to give up, but Bertha looked at him with eyes that silently pleaded, “Just once more.”

Seeing that loving gaze, Benz thought, “Alright, I’ll keep going until she tells me to stop.” He gripped the handle tightly and turned it with all his strength. Then, with a “pfft, pfft, pfft…” sound, the engine finally began to run. It was a miracle. Benz and Bertha looked at each other in astonishment, then embraced and shed tears of joy.

Although Daimler and Benz both worked on gasoline engines and automobiles around the same time, with each often taking the lead in turn, Benz’s gasoline engine of 1879 is widely recognized as the world’s first gasoline engine and automobile.

(Due to the lack of records from the time Benz was developing the gasoline engine, much information is missing. If anyone has related data, I would be grateful if you could share it. ^^)

On the late evening of December 31, 1879, when the engine that would be called the “first gasoline engine” started running in Benz’s workshop, people in Detroit, USA, were busy preparing for New Year’s celebrations. At that time, Detroit was developing as a heavy industry city, filled with steam car factories, engine factories, and machine works.

One such factory was the Dry Dock Engine Works. Inside its workshop, a cheap kerosene lamp dimly lit the dark interior, and a boy was cleaning the factory floor after the senior engineers had finished their work. Ashes from the furnace used to generate steam were piled on the floor, and oil stains covered the walls and machinery.

The boy swept the ashes with a large broom and wiped the oil from the walls and machines with a rag. Outside, people noisily celebrated the coming New Year, but the boy breathed in the cold air of the factory as he worked alone.

As he cleaned, the boy recalled the steam car he had seen with his father in Detroit in 1876.

“Ford, you may want to join the festivities with others, but now is not the time. You finally got a job at the steam car company you admired. Now it’s time to chase your dream. For now, you may only be sweeping floors and running errands for engineers in this modest factory, but soon you will learn the skills to build your own automobile.”

This boy was none other than Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947), the future founder of Ford Motor Company. In the 100-year history of the automobile, there have been more than 4,000 companies producing countless cars, but only three have sold more than 10 million units: Volkswagen Beetle, Toyota Corolla, and the Ford Model T.

Volkswagen Beetle

Toyota Corolla

Ford Model T

Ford, who managed to sell more than 10 million cars, had a business philosophy: “I will make it possible for everyone to afford a car.” At the time, while other companies focused only on luxurious, expensive cars that yielded high profits, Ford developed affordable and durable cars for ordinary citizens. To match the massive sales numbers, he also established a mass production system that replaced the traditional handcrafting of cars, laying the foundation for modern industrial mass production and leaving a significant mark in automotive history.

Transforming the automobile from a luxury item for the wealthy into a necessity for the masses, Ford won the greatest love of the American people since automobiles first appeared on American roads. Founder Henry Ford’s strict consumer-centered philosophy continued to shape Ford’s identity into the company it is today.

Henry Ford in 1888

Henry Ford was born on July 30, 1863, on a farm surrounded by woods about 10 miles west of Detroit, Michigan, later annexed as Dearborn. He was the eldest of five children born to William Ford and Mary Litgot Ford of Dutch descent. Henry Ford was two years younger than William Durant, his future rival, and 12 years older than Alfred Pritchard Sloan, Jr.

William Ford, Henry’s father, like most Irish immigrants, had fled Ireland in 1847 during the Great Famine. Having emigrated in the 1830s, William Ford benefited from the help of two uncles who had become wealthy landowners around Dearborn. By the time Henry was born, William had established one of the largest and most profitable farms in the region.

As the eldest of six children, Henry Ford had to help with farm work and did not even finish elementary school. But he disliked farming. Instead, he loved tinkering with machinery and tools, especially clocks. Before he turned 10, he could disassemble and reassemble the clock his father had given him as a gift. He repaired broken clocks for neighbors, earning him the nickname “Clock Doctor.”

In 1876, at age 13, Henry’s mother, Mary Litgot Ford, died at 37 after suffering complications following a stillbirth. She had always been his strongest supporter and moral guide. Henry later said that his success was thanks to the values instilled by his mother. She had taught him:

“The less you like a task, the more it requires courage, patience, and self-discipline.”

“Work so well that no one would want to hire anyone else in your place.”

“In life, you’ll often have to do things you dislike. The tasks may be hard, unpleasant, or painful, but you must do them. You may pity others, but never yourself.”

Her death was a great shock to young Henry, and he longed to leave Dearborn. His father insisted he become a farmer, which drove them further apart. Henry spent much time alone in his room, disassembling and reassembling clocks to understand their workings. Shortly after his mother’s death, Henry accompanied his father to Detroit, where he saw a steam car for the first time. From then on, steam cars consumed his thoughts.

At 16, in 1879, he defied his father’s opposition and secretly left home for Detroit, filled with the noise of machine shops. After a year of hardship, he managed to find employment at the Dry Dock Engine Works. At that time, his duties were limited to errands, assistance, and cleaning. The pay was low, but Ford endured the hardships to learn engine technology. On the last day of 1879, he was once again cleaning the factory as usual, studying the machines with his eyes.

Later, Ford found work as a machinist apprentice at the James Flower & Bros. Machine Shop in Detroit, where he learned mechanical engineering. He also read engine-related magazines to study developments in engine technology while waiting for his chance. Meanwhile, his father eventually discovered that Henry was living with an aunt he had long wanted to move in with.

In 1880, in France, one of the most important discoveries for the automobile was made by Jacques and Pierre Curie. Observant readers will recognize Pierre Curie as the husband of Marie Curie, who later discovered radioactive elements.

The Curies

They discovered the piezoelectric effect, which later found applications in various fields. One critical device that utilized the piezoelectric effect was the injector, which mixes fuel with air and injects it into the cylinder. This component remains one of the most important in modern automobiles.

At the time of its discovery, the piezoelectric effect had no immediate automotive applications, but it later became as crucial to the diesel engine as a pinch hitter hitting home runs every time at bat.

Piezo injector

Early diesel engines used mechanical fuel injection systems, but these suffered from poor fuel atomization, leading to incomplete combustion. Incomplete combustion released black smoke from exhaust pipes, causing pollution and stricter regulations in many countries.

As a solution, electronic injection systems were introduced to minimize incomplete combustion. However, electronics alone could not fully eliminate diesel smoke. The ultimate breakthrough was the application of the piezoelectric effect in the piezo injector, which could precisely mix fuel and air.

The principle of the piezo injector is that a crystal blocks the fuel passage inside a needle-like injector. When electricity is applied to the crystal, its size changes, creating a gap through which fuel can pass. The fuel is then sprayed like a mist through the nozzle. By controlling the timing of the electric current, the amount and duration of fuel injection can be precisely managed. Because the crystal reacts extremely quickly, piezo injectors can deliver far more accurate fuel supply than mechanical or electromagnetic injectors.

As a result, diesel engines equipped with piezo injectors produced 15–20% fewer emissions, reduced engine noise by about 3 dB, and cut fuel consumption by up to 3%. Thus, the third-generation common rail diesel engine, using piezo injectors, came to be regarded as both economical and environmentally friendly.