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If you asked most people when the first gasoline-electric hybrid automobiles became available, they would probably point to the original Toyota Prius and Honda Insight of 2000. They would be off by about 100 years! Neither electric motors or combustion engines, or the way they can be combined, has really changed that much in the last 120 years.
Most governments today are hoping for an even mix of combustion engine vehicles and BEVs sold by 2030 or earlier. They would be very happy with the mix that existed at the beginning of the 20th century: American car production in the year 1900 numbered 1,575 electric cars and 936 gasoline-powered cars (and 1,681 steam-powered).
Here are examples of three cars from the period 1900-1905 that set the template for our automotive options today:
| 1900 Lohner-Porsche Electric Racing Car |  | |
Porsche is best known as the maker of combustion engined sports and racing cars built by Ferry Porsche, starting in 1948. The foundation of the company was in fact electric, starting with Ferdinand Porsche Sr.'s designs 50 years earlier.
The Lohner-Porsche pictured above features four hub-mounted wheel motors giving all wheel drive. The occupants are sitting on a large battery pack that was suspended from the chassis with coil springs to protect its fragile electric cells. This was one of Porsche's first racers, but with a weight of over four tons it was too heavy for the pneumatic tires of the day.
This 4-motor Lohner-Porsche is credited as the first AWD automobile. There is a parallel with today's Rivian and Rimac EVs, which also feature one motor per wheel. This is perhaps the ultimate EV spec as it gives individual throttle and braking control for each wheel, yielding the most advanced versions of torque vectoring. Porsche is testing this arrangement with its Macan EV prototypes today.
| 1900 Lohner-Porsche 'Semper Vivius' | |
To reduce the weight, and strain on the tires, Porsche came up with the idea to carry a smaller battery combined with a 'portable generator'. Twin de Dion engines turned generators to charge a battery which fed electricity to the front wheel-mounted motors. This was given the name, 'Semper Vivius' or 'Always Alive'. This was one of the first hybrids on record.
For 1901 Porsche switched the de Dion engines for a more powerful 5.5 Litre Daimler power plant and did away with the battery pack all together. The Gasoline engine turned a generator which fed the electric motors directly. This version of the gas-electric Hybrid was known as the 'Mixte'. This design would be later licensed to Mercedes and would remain in production until 1915.
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Above: The 1903 60 PK AWD Spyker race car. The '60' referred to the power of the 6-Cylinder engine.
Below: The chassis of the 1905 Spyker 20/28 PK with the 4-Cylinder engine and AWD.
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The 1903 Spyker PK Series passenger and racing cars were the first automobiles to feature 6 cylinder engines and the first to feature 4WD coupled to a combustion engine. The arrangement of the engine, gearbox, transfer case and differentials is no different than on many of today's AWD vehicles.
Consumers, then as now, have their choice of ICE, Hybrid or BEV as well as 2WD or AWD. Each of them still have the same advantages and disadvantages today as they did 120 years ago. Electric cars make far superior city cars (in my opinion), ICE are much better suited to longer trips, and Hybrids remain a good compromise if one car needs to do everything.
| For Sale This week on Bring-A-Trailer | |
2006 Spyker C8 Spyder
Scheduled the week of Sept 19th on BAT and to run in the 2-week Premium auction format (link to come).
357 miles from new, sold with a New York Title and presently located in Scottsdale, AZ. Can be imported and registered in Canada.
We are hoping for a world record price for a C8 Spyder with this car.
| Last Week on Bring A Trailer | |
1988 Chevrolet Corvette For Sale In Calgary
Sold for $17,000 Sept 16, 2022
This was a fantastic buy, and went to a local buyer. One of the best classic car bargains at the moment. It would be a challenge to buy any 34,000km well maintained car for this price, let alone a classic sports car. A 911 3.2 Carrera in this condition would be over $100,000.
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1947 MGTC For Sale in Maryland
Reserve Not Met, Bid to $18,500 on Sept 10, 2022
'Reserve Not Met' auctions are relatively rare on BAT. BAT has a pretty good idea what cars are going to sell for, and insists on a reserve that is about 15% less. Nobody wants to go to an auction where nothing sells, and the $99 listing fee wouldn't cover BAT's expenses. For sight unseen purchases, which is normal for an on-line auction, the standard for presentation is very high. It looks like a lack of a driving video and some un-answered questions held this car back.
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- On-Line Auction preparation and management
- Post-Sale logistics and sorting
- Restoration Project Management
- Dent Removal Wheel Repair Wraps and Tint Paint Touch Up Detail
Email Lawrence
Lromanosky@me.com
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INCOMING:
Hummer H1
Ford Model T
FOR SALE:
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1993 MERCEDES-BENZ E320 CABRIOLET
122,000km
Extremely well preserved Victoria car reconditioned to the highest standard by meticulous owner. Over 100 hours and $13,000 in parts (wholesale) was recently spent to replace all consumables. Looks like a new car.
The W124 and W126 and their variants were design masterpieces from Bruno Sacco that are not outsold by current Mercedes-Benz offerings. They only made about 35,000 E Class Cabriolets, with about 20,000 of them being fitted with 6 cylinder engines. That is about the same production number as a Porsche 996 Turbo or a Ferrari 360 Modena.
$40,000
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