Car Paris. Although several other German engineers (including Gottlieb Daimler, Wilhelm Maybach, and Siegfried Marcus) were working on the problem at about the same time, Karl Benz generally is acknowledged as the inventor of the modern car. In 1879, Benz was granted a patent for his first engine, which had been designed in 1878. Many of his other inventions made the use of the internal combustion engine feasible for powering a vehicle. His first "Motorwagen" was built in 1885 in Mannheim, Germany. He was awarded the patent for its invention as of his application on 29 January 1886 (under the auspices
Car layout Car layout The layout of a car is often defined by the location of the engine and drive wheels. Layouts can roughly be divided into three categories: front-wheel drive, rear-wheel drive and four-wheel drive. Many different combinations of engine location and driven wheels are found in practice, and the location of each is dependent on the application for which the car will be used. The "front-engine, front-wheel-drive" layout (abbreviated as FF layout) places both the internal combustion engine and driven wheels at the front of the vehicle. This is the most common layout for cars since the late 20th century.