Weird Cars: Steam Powered Cars

At the beginning of the 20th Century, gasoline was difficult to store safely and therefore was considered a bad choice for a motor vehicle fuel. Steam engines were a highly refined technology and widely understood by the public. Steam powered cars ran on kerosene, which does not explode when burned. The one drawback was that you had to let your car build up a head of steam for up to half an hour before you could drive it. The car pictured below is a Stanley Steamer. Stanley made cars from 1896 to 1924.

I am by no means an expert on this topic, so I'll turn it over to Mr. Jay Leno.

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Alex Boese Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes. Paul Di Filippo Paul has been paid to put weird ideas into fictional form for over forty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. Contact Us

Posted By: fyshstyxx - Wed May 13, 2009
Category: Technology | Cars

Comments

Of course, the very first car was a steam car: Trevithick's 1802 "Steam Carriage", a follow-up to his 1801 "Puffing Devil", which sadly exploded after its trial run, burning down the barn in which it had been parked for the night.

Posted by Dumbfounded on 05/13/09 at 12:21 PM

Stanley Steamer is a car? I thought it was a carpet cleaner. :cheese:

Posted by vegas_girl in Vegas Baby!! on 05/13/09 at 04:36 PM

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