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THE ELECTRIC HEADLIGHTS
At the beginning the cars had oil or carbide lanterns and gave very little light. their lamps were more to make them visible than to see where they were going. Thanks to the electric light, the cars were able to start operating and also circulate at night. The first electric-powered cars began arriving in late 1920 and the pioneer in them was the Cadillac model. -
Independent suspension
Until the arrival of the Lancia Lambda, the cars had the two wheels of both axles connected by a rigid bar. This greatly conditioned comfort. The independent suspension on the front axle improved the comfort and safety of the car, as well as allowing more precise steering and better dynamic behavior. Today, only trucks and some highly specialized 4x4s for the field do not use the independent front suspension. -
Programmable deformation zones
Without a doubt, the concept of a survival cell with programmed deformation structures invented by Bela Barenyi is one of those ideas that has changed the way of making cars forever. Until this gentleman came up with his theory that a car should be a fortified structure surrounded by soft zones that cushion the impact, the manufacturers thought that the whole car should be rigid to be safer. Barenyi proved that his theory was correct. -
SEAT BELT
In 1959, the device that saved the most lives in traffic accidents was invented, the three-point seat belt, a device that, basically, has hardly changed during its 60 years of history. Nils Bohlin, a Swedish engineer who was then hired by Volvo, made it clear that, as almost always, the simplest ideas are the most effective. A simple strap anchored by three points allowed to hold the body of the passengers of the car in the event of an accident, avoiding projecting after impact. -
THE TURBO
The turbo was born as a device so that the aircraft, as they were able to fly at higher altitudes, were able to maintain good power figures as the air lost oxygen density. That is why it was born with the name of "height correction device" and what it did was to put pressurized air into the cylinders of radial aviation engines. In the 1960s Chevrolet used this aeronautical technology to improve the performance of the 6-cylinder boxer engine of the legendary Corvair Monza Turbo. -
THE AIRBAG
Las primeras pruebas con prototipos de airbags comenzaron en la década de los años setenta. Uno de los primeros automóviles en ensayarlos fue el Citroën SM, pero la ruina de Citroën dio carpetazo a su desarrollo y al final fue Mercedes Benz la primera en comercializar un automóvil con este dispositivo que complementa al trabajo de los cinturones de seguridad. -
Electronic injection
In 1968 a puzzling car hit the market: the injection Volkswagen 1600. This vehicle had an air-cooled 4-cylinder boxer engine. He rode a fuel supply system that was revolutionary: the first electronic injection, the Bosch D-Jetronic.
This technology was so advanced in 1968 that it was not standardized until more than a quarter of a century later. -
ABS
The first ABS were mechanical and of very poor performance. They made it possible to maintain control over the vehicle's trajectory by preventing the wheels from locking in braking, but they lengthened the distances. At the end of the 70s, Bosch and Mercedes had highly developed the technology of electronic ABS and finally came to the car. In addition, its technology was the key to the arrival of the first traction controls. -
ESP
Stability control is the most effective active safety system (those designed to prevent accidents) in saving lives today. Thanks to ESP, cars with powers that would be unaffordable for most drivers have become drivable, the level of safety has increased and the accident rate has decreased significantly. What this system does is correct our mistakes and maintain the trajectory indicated by our steering wheel. -
The catalyst
The catalyst is a chemistry laboratory installed in the exhaust pipe. A series of substances enter it and transform into others. Thanks to the catalyst, polluting emissions were drastically reduced and today it is also a technology that has become essential.
