Historical firsts

English cabbie got first ever DUI 

Since it's Friday, something funny is called for. From Jalopnik comes a great blog which I want to share with you. It is called the ten strangest automotive "firsts", which I have diluted into just five.

At number 10, the first car crash, some argue whether this was a car since it could not be steered, involved the 1770 two-and-a-half ton steam wagon built by Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot. In 1771 the full size vehicle crashed straight into a wall.

First ever in-car phone call 

At number 7, the first in-car telephone call. A team from Bell labs successfully made in 1946 the first mobile telephone call, using a phone mounted under the dashboard of the car. This qualifies it also as the first mobile phone ever.

At number 6, the first talking car. Datsun's 810 Maxima's (1981-1985) and the 280 ZX were sold with an optional shock-resistant phonograph with six individual spoken messages: "Left door is open," "Right door is open," "Parking brake is on," "Fuel level is low," "Keys in the ignition," and "Lights are on."

At number 5, the first DUI, which happened in 1897, when a London cab driver crashed his electric taxi while drunk and was promptly arrested and fined twenty shillings. Yep, had to be the English.

The first ever cross country drive & race

And at number 1, the first drive across North America happened in the spring of 1903, when Dr. Horatio Nelson Jackson, Sewall K. Crocker, and Crocker's goggles-wearing bulldog, set off from San Francisco to settle a $1.50 bet. Back then there were roughly only 150 miles of paved roads in the USA, so you can imagine how difficult this must have been. Still Jackson beat both Packard and Olds Mobile, who sent cars of their own from California to New York City.

The very first joyride

However, my personal favorite is the first joy-ride, which occurred when Bertha Benz "borrowed" the car to go see her mother, who lived sixty-five miles away. This happened in 1888 and was the first long distance drive in history, and helped prove the viability of the automobile industry as a transportation conveyance instead of just a backyard project. And yes, she did this without telling her husband Karl.

There just is something special about old photographs. Look at the one on the right, of Crocker and his bulldog.

Source: Jalopnik