... artillery on three wheels without horses. The disadvantage was that it had to stop every ten to fifteen minutes to build up its steam power and it could only go at two and a half miles per hour. The steam engine and the boiler were separated from the other parts of the vehicle and were put on the front of the automobile which gave it a very ugly design and the steam engine was very heavy as well. This vehicle needed forty-five minutes to start and had no gear shifting. Cugnot built a tricycle which was powered by steam and could carry four persons at the same time. In 1771 Cugnot had to stop his automobile experiments because one of his patrons died and the other was exiled. After Cugnot the steam-powered automobile experiments continued. From 1820 to 1840 steam-powered stage coaches were produced for public transport in Britain. Around ...

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