A
car is a wheeled, self-powered
motor vehicle used for
transportation and a product of the
automotive industry. Most definitions of the term specify that cars are designed to run primarily on roads, to have seating for one to eight people, to typically have four wheels with
tyres, and to be constructed principally for the transport of people rather than goods. The year 1886 is regarded as the birth year of the modern car. In that year, German inventor
Karl Benz built the
Benz Patent-Motorwagen. Cars did not become widely available until the early 20th century. One of the first cars that was accessible to the masses was the 1908
Model T, an American car manufactured by the
Ford Motor Company. Cars were rapidly adopted in the United States of America, where they replaced
animal-drawn carriages and carts, but took much longer to be accepted in Western Europe and other parts of the world.
