Gottlieb Daimler's patent for his high-speed petrol engine (dubbed the "Grandfather Clock") on 3rd April, 1885, wasn't just a technological breakthrough—it inadvertently birthed the motorbike.
Teaming up with Wilhelm Maybach, the duo had crafted a compact engine featuring float-metered carburetors and mushroom intake valves, all powered by hot tube ignition. This engine found its way into their first vehicle prototype, the Petroleum Riding Car, which bore little resemblance to today's motorcycles but represented a pioneering step towards motorised transportation.
In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how it was not Daimler, but his son, Paul, who became the first-ever motorbiker; consider the steam-powered predecessors that could potentially lay claim to inventing the motorbike; and explain how Daimler took what he’d learned from these experiences to establish Mercedes…
Further Reading:
• ‘An Overview of the Motorcycle's History’ (ThoughtCo, 2019): https://www.thoughtco.com/history-of-the-motorcycle-1992151
• ‘History Channel’ (Motoring World, 2017): https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Motoring_World/Pt0xDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=Daimler+Reitwagen&pg=PA26&printsec=frontcover
• ‘The riding car – a Daimler patent’ (Mercedes-Benz TV, 2010): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0Tvuya6otc
Love the show? Join 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS 🌴 to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode every SUNDAY!
Plus, get weekly bonus bits, unlock over 70 bits of extra content and support our independent podcast.
Join now via Apple Podcasts or Patreon. Thanks!
We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/Retrospectors
The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.
Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Ollie Peart.
Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2024.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Who Needs A Switchboard?
Elvis, Jerry Lee, Johnny & Carl
When Gnomes Took Over The World
Football's First International
Marriage of the Moonies
The Sound of Luxury
The Berners St Hoax
QVC's First Day
The Tamagotchi Effect
Fall of the Knights Templar
The First Hanukkah
The Real Moby Dick
Turn To Page 3
When Space Mountain Saved EuroDisney
The Queen's Soviet Spy
Let's Go On Strike
Hypnosis Goes Legit
The Temple of Reason
Roosevelt's Panamanian Photoshoot
The Instant Message Murder
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Irish Songs with Ken Murray
History Obscura
Historycal: Words that Shaped the World
The Rest Is History
Rachel Maddow Presents: Ultra