TECHNOLOGICAL TRENDS

THEIR IMPACT ON SOCIETY & CULTURE

THE AUTOMOBILE

DATELINE

STATUS OF THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY 1806 Franois Isaac de Rivaz (from Switzerland) makes the first
internal combustion engine. The engine runs on mixture of hydrogen and oxygen.

DIRECT IMPACT The automotive industry is still at a nascent stage in this era with the maximum output of any factory being not more than 30 vehicles. It was yet to have the ground breaking impact it would have in the next century. In the absence of the assembly line system, engineers and craftsmen would customize each part for every vehicle made.

SECONDARY OR INDIRECT IMPACT No other invention or innovation has touched as many aspects of our society as the automobile. It allowed Americans for the first time to actually utilize the freedom granted them in the constitution. They could travel wherever they pleased whenever they pleased. The automobile allowed people to set their own schedule, and have the freedom to leave for work when they wanted at the risk of being late, not when the train left. America s entire lifestyle changed with the coming of the automobile. Cities were no longer the only place to find urban comforts. People were able to live in nice, comfortable communities, instead of right next to loud, dirty factories

1807 The first vehicle with internal combustion engine from

Franois Isaac de Rivaz is built but it is not very successful.

1860 Thomas Rickett one of the steam car builders in Britain starts
making cars.

1877 George Selden from USA makes first American internal

combustion engine car.

1885 Karl Benz builds an automobile powered by an Otto gasoline

engine and patents it.

1893 Karl Benz introduces first four wheeled vehicle powered by four-stroke engines of his own design. 1895 About 30 vehicles had been built by Daimler and Maybach. 1895 George Selden gets the United States patent (U.S. Patent
549,160 ) for a two-stroke automobile engine. This hinders car development in the United States.

1896 Karl Benz designs first internal combustion flat engine. 1897 Harry J. Lawson founds Daimler Motor Company in Britain
and starts making cars.

1897 Rudolf Diesel builds the first Diesel Engine in car history.

STATUS OF THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY 1902 New model DMG automobile is produced and named
Mercedes.

DIRECT IMPACT

SECONDARY OR INDIRECT IMPACT

As larger plants and factories required large work forces, Profession based residential colonies were set up around the factories to minimise commutes Assembly line production became synonymous with the automotive industry. As a worker would do the same job through out the day, it lead to boredom, monotony, etc The automobile became a sign of status for young men and ladies in the 1920s. The impact of the automobile on courtship and mating is an area that is frequently studied. The car gave the housewife independence and liberated her from the confines of her house so that she could move out and work. The car was no longer a hallmark of the rich. It was accessible and affordable for the masses. This revolutionized every facet of a common man s life. His perception of distance has completely changed Shopping malls sprang up everywhere, serving everything from French fries to wedding gowns. They were located at a distance from the residential areas. People would come once a week and will fill the boot with supplies

1902 Ransom Olds starts production-line manufacturing of more

affordable cars in his Oldsmobile factory.

1902-03 Maybach quits DMG and opens his own business. 1910 Internal combustion engines achieve dominance over steam
powered vehicles.

Before 1900, only a very small amount of petroleum was converted into gasoline. With the arrival of the gasoline automobile, it helped to increase the amount of crude oil supply through the opening of new oil fields in Texas.

1914 Henry Ford expands and improves the Ransom Olds

production-line manufacturing. Ford car comes off the line every three minutes.

1914 Ford drops all colors but black because it is the only color
(made in Japan) that dries fast enough.

The widespread popularity of Model-T created pressure for the federal government to become more directly involved in road development which resulted in the Federal-Aid Highway Program

1914 Ford factory worker can buy a Model T with four months' pay. 1921 Citroen was the first European manufacturer to adopt
production-line manufacturing.

1920 More than 1 car per 13

people

1923- The first shopping 1925 Citroen, Renault and Peugeot produce 550.000 cars, other
car companies can not compete. mall comes into existence

1930- More than 1 car per 5

people

1930 250 car companies that did not have production-line

manufacturing disappeared by this year.

1933- The first drive in

movie theatre comes into existence

1940 Only 17 car manufacturers were left in USA due to the great
depression.

STATUS OF THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY Post 1949 Incredible Boost to the automotive industry in general,
with new fangled designs being accepted world wide. The focus was on artful and innovative designs.

DIRECT IMPACT
The automobile had an impact on the manufacturing of war type products. "Automobile firms in addition to produces trucks, made shells, guns, recoil mechanisms, gun carriages, tractors, and aircraft engines. The amount of wages was doubled in factories. The rubber industry got a big boost from the tyre sales in the automotive industry

SECONDARY OR INDIRECT IMPACT

People trying to get out of the congestion of the city fled in droves to the suburbs. They commuted to their places of work, which have come to part of daily life. Neighborhoods are being built without sidewalks because people no longer walk anywhere they drive. People are less likely to be out walking in their neighborhoods and stop to talk to other out walking. Neighbors are becoming more like strangers. In the absence of pedestrians natural surveillance of streets, which used to take place stopped as a result of which crime graphs soared in all major US cities in the 60s and 70s. Automobiles soon produced problems of congestion and parking.

1950s Car manufacturers begin to target the middle income

group with their variety. It saw the introduction of mini-cars which specifivcally catered to them like the Japanese Keicar.

1960s It was during the sixties that the use of steel unibodies
came to be used extensively by the European car industry. The newer models also experimented with alternate materials suitable for the body like fiberglass

1960s The 1960s also saw the emergence of pony cars and
muscle cars in America, where performance of vehicles mattered the most. The Ford Mustang was another popular car of this period

1950 More than 1 car per

family

1955- The first Disneyland

comes into existence

1970s The 1970s also was a period of major changes for the
American Automobile industry due to the 1973 oil crisis as well as the automobile emissions control act. Moreover, the small imported cars were preferred to the large American ones and combined with the stagnancy in any type of innovation in this field, the American automobile industry began to experience a fall.

1956 Interstate high way

system begins

80s-90s Almost all passenger cars that are manufactured employ

the front wheel drive unibody design, and are fitted with transversely mounted engines, as opposed to earlier periods. Safety also became a major issue.

1985- More than 1 car per

licensed driver in the US

Since 2000 With Global Warming and fossil fuel depletion having
become major issues, the focus has shifted on Hybrid cars, Electric cars, etc although they are still at a very nascent stage

There are 450 million cars in the world today.

MILESTONES

1914

Social Impact
The assembly line production resulted in lay-offs of workers as workers began to be replaced by machines. Most factories which did not have assembly lines were forced to shut down as they could not compete with the stiff competition. Model T made sure that the automobile was no longer an accessory of the rich. As it became affordable for the middle classes, it allowed for mobility which was hitherto deemed impossible.

Since 1920s

Social Impact
Man s desire for competition and one-up manship also manifested in automobiles. Car Racing competitions became synonymous with all that is macho and cool.

Since 1923

Social Impact
The shopping mall allowed for the commercial area to be shifted out of the city. This heralded the end of Mom and Pop stores around the corner, which were an intrinsic part of the social fabric of any neighborhood.

1932

Social Impact
The automobile allowed for the liberation of women, emancipation in a way it was hitherto unthinkable. The car allowed them to venture out of the house in search of work and made them more coscious of their rights, their freedoms.

Since 1920s

Impact on Economy
Tourism was one industry that was given a new lease of life by the automobile. People were travelling and visiting places like never before. Economies of Hill stations, small towns witnessed a surge like never before.

Since 1920s

Social and Cultural Impact

The automobile changed the way people live. People chose to shift out of the cities to escape the congestion and pollution. They shifted into purely residential locales and neighborhoods. The proximity and close knot communities of city neighborhoods were lost.

Since 1920s

Social Impact
As people shifted out of the city, the city centers started decaying. This resulted in an exponential rise in crime and disintegration of close knit communities.

1956

Social Impact
As people could easily commute out of the city, recreational areas like Disneyland could be established which completely redefined the way in which entertainment is looked.

1956

Impact on Infrastructure
The automobile brought about the need for highways as it never existed before. This allowed for better networking of the country, unifying it, allowing free movement of population across the states.

Social Impact
Ever since its advent, the automobile has been a status symbol. It became a medium to show your wealth your position in society.

Since 1950s

Impact on Infrastructure
Traditionally, all major cities were essentially mixed usage which resulted in close knit communities where all major facilities were at walking distance. The automobile allowed for rigid landuse zoning and dismantling of that social structure and way of life.

Since 1960s

Impact on Infrastructure
The automobile brought congestion and space crunch in cities and traffic jams became a word of common parlance. This has brought about things like road range, time wastage, etc

Since 1980s

Impact on Environment
As global warming and air pollution have come to be pertinent issues, the statistic that 50% of the air pollution is cause by automobiles has come to the fore. And increasing, governments are trying to discourage the usage of automobiles in favor of public transport.

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