Time Line for U.S. Automobile Industry
Compressed Air
December 1996 Pgs. 42-43
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- 1896 Birth of the auto industry with production of 13 Duryea cars
- 1898 First Oldsmobile is produced
- 1901 Autocar introduces shaft drive
- 1902 Barney Oldfield goes a mile a minute in a Ford 999 racecar
- 1903 The Buick makes its debut
- 1904 Henry Leland organizes Cadillac Motor Car Co.
- 1906 First car is stolen in St. Louis, MO
- 1907 First service station opens
- 1909 Henry Ford introduces the Model T; first paved mile of concrete road in the United States appears in Detroit, MI
- 1911 Chevrolet is organized and Cadillac introduces the first electric self-starter
- 1912 Highway lane markers appear in Redlands, CA
- 1913 Gulf opens first drive-in service station; Cadillac introduces the first mass-produced V-8
- 1914 Construction of coast-to-coast Lincoln Highway begins; Detroit installs the first stop sign
- 1916 First mechanical windshield wipers appear
- 1917 Ford opens River Rouge plant, largest manufacturing complex in the world
- 1918 Tricolor traffic lights appear in Detroit, MI
- 1921 First drive-in restaurant opens in Dallas, TX
- 1923 Ford's annual production of Model T's reaches 1.8 million cars
- 1924 Walter Chrysler launches car bearing his name
- 1927 Ford adopts shatterproof windshield and introduces the Model A
- 1928 Chrysler buys Dodge and launches Plymouth and DeSoto
- 1929 Car radios become optional
- 1931 Cadillac introduces the V-16 engine
- 1933 Reo offers an all-mechanical automatic transmission
- 1934 Body streamlining begins with Chrysler and Desoto Airflows
- 1936 Windshield defrosters introduced
- 1938 Buick offers flashing turn signals
- 1939 Packard introduces air conditioning
- 1940 Pennsylvania Turnpike opens
- 1945 Henry Ford II assumes presidency of Ford Motor Co.
- 1947 Car telephones introduced
- 1948 Goodrich introduces tubeless tires
- 1949 Chrysler introduces key-turn ignition
- 1952 Ford introduces ball-joint front suspension and suspended pedals
- 1954 Volkswagen opens distributorship in U.S.
- 1956 Interstate highway system authorized
- 1957 Electronic cruise control is introduced
- 1962 Goodyear develops polyester-cord tires
- 1964 Ford launches Mustang; government mandates front seat belts
- 1965 Government passes Motor Vehicle Air Pollution Control Act
- 1970 Japan becomes world's second largest producer of cars
- 1973 Ford and GM offer optional air bags
- 1974 Speed limit reduced to 55 mph
- 1980 Chrysler avoids bankruptcy with government loan
- 1983 Chrysler posts record profits, repays loan
- 1984 Chrysler introduces the minivan
- 1987 Ford launches the radically styled Taurus/Sable
- 1993 Pickups and sports/utility vehicles begin to take a major share of auto market
- 1996 100th anniversary of the auto industry