VETERAN CAR GUIDE appeared . To keep costs down , amateur engineers were encouraged to use second-hand materials , or to purchase components from the writer ’ s friend , David J . Smith , who had a workshop in the East End of London . The number of vehicles that were successfully completed , is unknown but four vehicles survive : a Benz-type two-seater , a steam dog cart , an 8hp tonneau , and a two-cylinder car of 1907 date .
Fiat Fiat ( Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino ) was incorporated in 1899 , and the first vehicles appeared that year , starting with a 3.5hp horizontal-mounted , twin cylinder engined vis à vis . Engine capacity increased to 6hp before the company launched a front-engined vehicle with an 8hp vertical , twincylinder power unit . By the end of 1901 , there was a four cylinder , 12 / 16hp model with a 3768cc engine , supplemented by a 4181cc 16 / 20hp version in 1903 . By this time Vincenzo Lancia was working as a driver , and he drove the Fiat entry in the ill-fated 1903 Paris to Madrid Race . The influence of Panhard was readily apparent with the Fiat output , but by 1904 when there was a 75hp motor car on offer , the marque had begun to focus on emulating Mercedes .
Fisson Louis Fisson was one of the first generation of motor manufacturers in France , operating from a workshop in the south of Paris . He built at least two distinct types , one closely resembling a Benz with a single cylinder vertical engine , and the other with a vertical two-cylinder engine of 2920cc at the front , driving through a four-speed gearbox and double chain drive . Whilst the engine was distinct from that of the Benz , the existence of left-hand drive , a pot-type surface carburettor , and two levers for selecting the gears , were all indicative of its heritage . A single car was exhibited at the Paris Salon in December 1898 .
Flint Made in Flint , Michigan , USA , by ABC Hardy . In 1902 , he began to make a two-seater , 8hp , single-cylinder roadster with left- or right-hand tiller steering for $ 850 . He made 52 of these but ceased in 1902 because he was unwilling to pay the Seldon patent fee .
Ford Henry Ford started the Ford Motor Company in Detroit , USA in 1903 . The first production car – the Model A – used a two-cylinder horizontally opposed 1645cc engine in a Runabout-type body and was initially assembled from parts supplied by Dodge Brothers and others . The model A was discontinued in October 1904 when 670 had been made , according to the company ’ s records . This model was replaced by three new ones : the larger-engined AC ; the C with the same engine and a bonnet and vertical radiator , and the Model B , which was a completely new car , with a front-mounted , vertical four-cylinder engine of 4646cc , developing 24hp . Unlike the smaller Fords , it had shaft drive and a side entrance tourer body . In 1904 , the company moved to a new factory and by 1905 300 employees were making 25 cars a day . By 1906 , it was making 100 cars a day .
Franklin The H . H . Franklin Manufacturing Company , located in Syracuse , New York , made motor cars between 1902 and 1934 . The first cars were designed by John Wilkinson . From the outset , air-cooled four-cylinder engines were preferred that were transversely mounted in a wooden chassis . Engines for 1903 and 1904 cars were of cast iron design including the base and cylinders . Aluminium was not used in the engine for these early cars . The early cars had a simple twospeed planetary transmission system and semi-elliptic suspension front and rear . There were 219 cars made in 1903 and only nine are currently known to exist . The bodies of the 1902 & 1903 cars were made by the John Leggett Carriage Company in Syracuse . The sides of the body have a swooped section that resembles a sleigh .
Gamage Aster Gamage ’ s of Holborn , London , was a famous department store . It offered cars and a wide range of motoring accessories for both vehicles and occupants between 1903 and 1904 . All the vehicles were sourced in from Lacoste et Battmann in Paris and were badged as ‘ Gamage ’ on arrival at the store . All vehicles had shaft drive and three-speed gearboxes , and there was a choice of De Dion Bouton or Aster single or twin cylinder engines .
1904 Fiat .
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