"The oldest car (German Benz 1892!)" Top 5 Page for this destination Luray Things to Do Tip by matcrazy1

Benz from 1892 is one of the oldest automobiles on display in the USA and top highlight of the Car & Carriage Caravan Museum. It was one of the very first cars produced in any quantity for resale. It has single cylinder, water-cooled, gasoline engine of 5 horse power and referring to the information given in the museum the automobile is still in operating condition. Well, I would rather call this early automobile a horseless or engine-powered carriage. Did you know that drivers of that vehicle had to stop at every pharmacy on the way to buy gasoline which was available only from pharmacies that sold it as a cleaning product, and they didn't stock it in large quantities.

These cars were manufactured in Mannheim, Germany by Benz & Company Rheinische Gasmotoren-Fabrik, usually referred to as Benz & Cie. In the beginning it was a bicycle repair shop. Then they produced industrial machines and gas engines, finally automobiles. It was the largest automobile company in the world with 572 units produced in 1899.

The first ever "automobile fueled by gas" - a three-wheeler - was created by Karl Benz in 1985 and patented in 1986, six years before the car displayed in Luray was produced. American Henry Ford had an engine running by 1893 but it was 1896 before he built his first car. Well, Americans were focused on steam powered cars; the early ones looked like miniature locomotives. However in 1888 William Steinway, owner of Steinway & Sons piano factory, made a deal with Karl Benz and founded the Daimler Motor Company which by 1891 produced petrol engines in a plant in Hartford, Connecticut.

Address: 970 US Highway 211 West, Luray, Virginia 22835
Directions: In the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, 15 min. east of I-81: take exit 264 to US-211 East and follow the direction signs to Luray Caverns.
othercontact: info@luraycaverns.com
Phone: +1 (540) 743-6551