Cars are one of the major pointers in the world’s industrial revolution history. So, it’s natural that this enormously expanded industry will undoubtedly have some weird, unprecedented, or crazy facts to tell.
Today, we can’t imagine our lives without cars and their many facilities. But do you know what dynamic and intriguing journey the automotive manufacturers have made to come this far?
Since the inception of the automobile industry, car manufacturing has undergone many experiments, failures, and successes. Consequently, those successes and failures have produced so many fun and exciting stories.
Care to know about the top fifteen craziest facts about giant car manufacturers?
Here goes the list:
1. Sheer Market Dominance
Let’s start with the manufacturer that has shaped the car manufacturing industry in the last one hundred years— Ford.
It may not be the very first car brand in the world, but its revolutionary engine and body design remodeling has opened a new door to the car industry.
Not surprisingly, Ford clinched a world record for manufacturing the most cars that ran worldwide. Precisely, 55% share of the world’s car manufacturing was credited to Ford back in 1916.
But they had their peaks and valleys too. Visit this page to learn more about Ford’s best and worst years that shaped the brand they are today.
The model that was crowned with this massive achievement and recognition was the Ford Model T.
2. Unprecedented Quality Commitment
When Rolls Royce hit the market, it had one undivided focus and commitment in its manufacturing process— quality. This is not a cliche marketing promo slogan but a fact still true to this date.
The crazy fact is that more than seventy percent of all the Rolls manufactured since its inception are not just available but still running on the roads! Their bodies, engines, assembly, etc., were so intact and up to the mark that they were still serving on earth.
This is just an unmatched car manufacturing feat that the company had attained a hundred years ago.
3. The Man Who Made up ‘Tune up’
The famous inventor of the mass car manufacturing industry, Henry Ford, is the one who first used the popular term ‘tune-up.’ For Ford, it was a term to define his car’s maximum performance while running.
The term is related to the ignition system of the Ford cars, where ignition coils and spark plugs were supposed to function jointly. And here’s a fun fact.
Since those coils and plugs made a satisfying buzzing noise while working appropriately, the notion of being well-tuned or in-tune came up. So, if those parts didn’t work properly, the car wasn’t running in tune.
4. Speeding at 120 MPH Upside Down
F1 cars can speed up to 233 miles per hour at maximum with the capacity of 3.5 gravitational force of cornering speed. So, theoretically, an F1 car can fire up the tunnel ceiling at 120 mph while running upside down.
Thanks to its wondrous aerodynamic force balanced with its body weight, it may help it steer through the tunnel ceiling at that speed for a decent time.
5. A Blindsighted Cruise Control
Our next crazy fact about car manufacturing is the fantastic invention of cruise control by an inventor who lost his sight at five.
This wonder mechanic’s name was Ralph Teetor, who, inspired by his lawyer, worked on developing the car’s speed system and successfully finished the project in 1948.
He ended up with a device containing magnets and springs that could control the speed of cars.
6. The First Production Car
German engineer and inventor Karl Benz made the Benz Patent-Motorwagen in 1885. He was the man who co-founded Mercedes-Benz.
His first car is considered to be the world’s first production car with an internal combustion engine.
However, Benz’s car manufacturing company produced its first four-wheel car in 1893. In the following years, Benz developed their engines and models and fabricated the first series of racing cars after six years.
7. Origin of NASCAR
The stock car racing association NASCAR (The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC) was in operation due to the famous prohibition in the ‘20s.
The story goes like the moonshiners (the illegal alcohol makers) had to outrun the patrol cars on the road while transporting alcohol stocks to their destinations. Hence, suitable vehicles were supposed to be developed to speed up almost instantly to whisk away from the police.
This urgency of staying on the run with loads of spirits led to the invention of stock cars. Eventually, it worked out for the stock car races we see today.
8. Horns Replaced Bells
If you didn’t know, cars used to have bells instead of horns that we see today. Car drivers preferred bells, whistles, etc., to move pedestrians away from the road. Some even used hand-squeezed horns.
Then a change came in the US cars with E Flat or C horns which lasted until the mid-‘60s. Afterward, car manufacturers started replacing it with F Sharp and A Sharp.
Gradually, it turned out that horns were more effective than bells in place to this date.
9. 1 Billion+ Cars Roaming the Road
Actually, the number of cars on the road is approximately 1.45 billion! These cars are roaming the world today while announcing how enormously this industry has facilitated people’s transportation and social status.
Amazingly, one-fourth of those cars belong to the roads of the US, followed by China and Japan in close approximations.
No wonder the US has the maximum number of road networks, more than six million kilometers, to be more precise.
10. BMW Flamethrower
The prominent car manufacturing company BMW went way up its game by introducing a model in its production line called ‘BMW Flamethrower’ back in 1998.
Much like an action movie gadget automobile, this advanced car, designed by Charl Fourie, ensured how to be safer on the road while under attack by muggers and carjackers in South Africa.
Back then, people struggled to escape mugging, murders, rape, and assaults while driving in the neighborhood or on highways. This is a problem to date in this country.
However, this life-saving tech consisted of liquified petroleum gas, enabling the driver to shoot a flame from under the car’s door as he flipped a specific switch whenever they felt threatened by a possible attack.
11. BMW Recalling Female-Voice GPS
It’s rare, but in Germany, back in 2013, a controversy spread among German drivers who refused to follow directions from a female-voiced GPS in BMW cars! Such a notion rose high as more days passed.
Eventually, BMW was compelled to make a product recall. They withdrew their GPS tech from Germany to prevent any further issues.
12. Farewell to Cassettes in Cars
Cassette players in cars were a wonderful amenity for riders as they could listen to songs, radio, news, etc., while on the go.
But people had to bid farewell to this classic function in 2011 as Ford Crown Victoria closed adding these players to their cars’ overall amenity; evidently, the very last vehicle manufacturing company to do it in the business.
Modern Bluetooth, MP3 players, subwoofers, amplifiers, etc conveniently replaced the cassette players.
13. Jaguar Wasn’t Always their Name
Did you know the astonishing Jaguar car wasn’t always identified as the same? The original car manufacturing company was Swallow Sidecar Company (Est. 1922) which initially manufactured motorcycle sidecars.
Owned by S. S. Cars LtdThis company started making passenger bodies in the later years. They changed their name to Jaguar Cars in 1945.
14. Whale Oils as Transmission Fuel
Whale oil was industrially used in fueling cars’ automatic transmission systems until 1973. GM (General Motors) led in procuring sperm whale oil for their manufacturing process but was compelled to stop it by a Congress’ Endangered Species Act bill.
This bill literally saved whales from going extinct as nearly thirty million pounds of sperm whale oil was procured to substantiate automatic transmission functions in cars until that time.
Later, petroleum and kerosene-based lubricants replaced the whaling to improve the car’s fuel efficiency.
15. Norway Being Environmentally-Friendly
The revolutionary energy-based car manufacturing company Tesla in Norway has been rigorously working on making environmentally-friendly cars.
It’s no wonder that Norway has been leading the concept of being socially and environmentally responsible while manufacturing its cars. As a country, they’re also trying to maintain the same policy in all of their affairs.
Nearly fifty percent of the cars Norway has produced so far are hybrid or electric that roams the country’s roads. In fact, the country produces the highest proportion of electric cars in the whole world.
They’re also trying to wrap up the concept of diesel and petrol cars, being the pioneer in doing so in the car manufacturing industry.
To Conclude
So, how did you find these fifteen crazy facts about giant car manufacturing companies? We’ve selected only a fraction of what promises to be a huge list of fun facts about cars, automobile engineering, and even relevant national and international issues.
We hope you’ve enjoyed reading about these amazing stories, which may revitalize your fascination with auto vehicles. What crazy facts about cars can you share?
