1. Technology in the Automotive Industry By Mike Grathwohl

2. History A French artillery engineer named Joseph Cugnot designed a three-wheeled steam wagon in 1769, which is considered to be the first indication of a car construction. A great advance in the production of motor vehicles came in 1914, when Henry Ford began assembling cars using the assembly line.

3. Advances in Automotives Throughout the history of the automobile, there have been many advances. These advances have allowed our transportation to become more efficient, cheaper, and easier to use. Examples: The internal combustion engine, the assembly line, seatbelts, air conditioning, airbags, cruise control, all- wheel drive, traction control, and many others.

4. Automatic Transmissions Automatic transmissions were one of the great technological improvements in the history of the automobile. The first car with this new type of transmission was an Oldsmobile in 1940. By the time 1948 came around, most automotive makers were offering an automatic transmission as an option.

5. Disc Brakes Another important change for the modern car came in the early 1970s, when most car manufacturers began switching from drum brakes to disc brakes. Though disc brakes rely on the same principle as drum brakes to slow a car, friction and heat, their design is much better. Unlike drum brakes, disc brakes allow much more cooling. Drum brakes build up heat inside, because they are enclosed. Disc brakes, on the other hand, are fully exposed to the air. Therefore, the disc brake is less likely to overheat and wear down.

6. Safety Regardless of such advances in technology, cars can still be unreliable. Our means of transportation has become evidently safer thanks to advances in technology.

7. THE END The advances have allowed us increased comfort, luxury, safety, efficiency, and made it a little easier on the wallet. However, as is shown, cars are still a dangerous thing, if not handled very carefully. Even then, bad luck can strike, and you have only the engineering of your car’s safety mechanisms to rely on.