Rolling back the years: Driving hasn’t changed all that much in 100 years
War against the motorist, the abysmal state of our potholed roads, unfair persecution of motorists by police and politicians, and the future of electric cars in the face of concerns about their range and a shortage of charging points.
All major issues that worry motorists today and some elements of Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s budget sought to eliminate on Wednesday.
But it may surprise many to learn that these were precisely the issues hotly debated at the height of the Victorian era more than a century ago.
Historic: An early Mercedes crosses Westminster Bridge on the annual car journey from London to Brighton
How similar are the concerns of motorists more than a century apart is something I came across almost by chance when browsing through this newspaper’s fascinating archives.
And they’ve been chronicled in the Daily Mail ever since, launching on May 4, 1896, largely coinciding with the birth of the automobile and driving.
To promote ‘automobilism’ among the cycling masses, The Autocar magazine was launched a year earlier in 1895 in Coventry and still exists today.
And it was also in 1896, on November 14, that the government wiped out the need for a man with a red flag to lead the way.
To celebrate ‘Emancipation Day’ there was a motor race from London to Brighton – celebrated to this day by the annual London to Brighton veteran car race for pre-1905 cars organized by the Royal Automobile Club, which started life (as the Automobile Club ) in 1897.
Founded in 1905, the upstart Rival Automobile Association was formed to promote motorists’ rights, and its patrols would warn members of police speed traps where officers hid behind bushes with a stopwatch.
When this was declared illegal, the AA introduced its legendary AA salute. If a patrol does not salute, AA members would know a speed camera was nearby.
It is revealing to see how similar the subjects covered by my ancestors, including speed record breaker Sir Malcolm Campbell, who was the Daily Mail’s motoring editor in the 1930s, seem to motorists today.
And my research also revealed, to my surprise, that I am officially the Daily Mail’s longest-serving motoring correspondent. Some of the language and social customs may have changed over the course of a century or more, but the thorny problems facing motorists have not.
Budget boost or bust?
Motorists can take some comfort from Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s budget on Wednesday.
The main highlights are:
- A £200 million incentive for English councils to solve ‘the curse of potholes’ on the country’s crumbling roads. It marks a victory for the Daily Mail’s campaign to end the pothole plague.
But the AA said the money was needed now, not next year, warning: “Years of underinvestment in our road network coupled with a cold and wet winter are already revealing the craters.”
Freeze: The Chancellor froze fuel excise duty at the pumps by extending a 5p per liter excise cut introduced last March and waiving an automatic rise in inflation
- Freeze fuel excise duty at the pumps by extending a 5 pence per liter excise cut introduced last March and waiving an automatic rise in inflation. The excise duty on petrol and diesel will remain at 52.95 cents per litre.
Automotive groups welcomed the freeze. However, motorists will still have to pay 20 percent VAT on the combined cost of the basic product price plus excise duty.
- There was no specific additional support for the introduction of electric cars.
However, motorists’ charging costs may have some indirect relief from the Chancellor’s decision to keep the energy price guarantee at £2,500 until June, which he says will save the average household £160 in bills.
But the energy support scheme that gives homes £67 a month off their bills still expires in March.
At the time, “motorists” and “cars” had yet to be properly defined as the world struggled to create a new vocabulary. Horseless carriages, cars, and “motorists”—as drivers were initially called—were among the first attempts to define the new craze. ‘Motists’ was another.
But also surprising to many, electric power seriously competed with the internal combustion engine for dominance, though insufficient battery power and range, and too few charging points, put the end of it so far.
That very first edition of the Daily Mail in 1896 set the tone for a brave new world with a page 3 article with the prescient headline ‘The Carriage of the Future’, which reported on the opening of the ‘International Horse Drawn and Horseless Carriage and Roads Locomotion Exhibition’. at Crystal Palace.
Highlights included a job for “car-motor vehicles” that “carried some of their owners’ girlfriends.” It read: ‘These carriages were propelled by kerosene or benzoline, a fact amply obvious to the noses of the spectators.’ They maintained “a very reasonable speed.”
It was also in 1896 that a Victorian entrepreneur named Harry Lawson, who had made his fortune making bicycles, bought a former textile mill to produce Britain’s first automobile: a Coventry Daimler. He did this by teaming up with talented engineer Frederick Simms, who befriended German automotive pioneer Gottlieb Daimler.
At just 27 years old, Simms bought the rights to Daimler’s patents in Great Britain and the Empire—nearly a quarter of the world—excluding Canada. Simms then sold those Daimler rights to Lawson for £35,000 – the ransom of a king in today’s money.
T he first Coventry Daimler — where I drove one — was launched in 1897 and the British motor industry was officially born.
Fast-forward to September 13, 1899, when under the banner of “The Coming Craze,” the Daily Mail’s auto section highlighted topics that sounded eerily familiar: the dangers of “cheap death traps” vehicles; car price rip-off (anything over £1,000 is ‘a nice price’) and the need for trained drivers (‘any vehicle is dangerous in the hands of an ignorant or incompetent person’).
That first column warned, “A very cheap and dirty car is certainly a very bad one and probably a dangerous one.”
And, amazingly given the debate raging today, should you buy a petrol or an electric car?
Under the headline Petroleum vs Electric, it noted, “There is absolutely no authentic evidence that a railcar has traveled 60 miles on a single charge,” but added, “That’s undoubtedly far enough if you have charging stations at home.”
The Ferrari of child car seats!
What about the ultimate design child car seat?
According to the makers, the new Babyark is ‘the safest baby seat ever designed’ and promises uncompromising levels of safety, state-of-the-art technology and timeless design.
Described as a ‘safety cage’ for babies, it was created by former Ferrari and new Mini maker Frank Stephenson, who was inspired by the structure of an egg and shaped it like a pod.
Smart seat: The Babyark car seat was created by former Ferrari and new Mini maker Frank Stephenson
He also drew inspiration from his work in aerospace engineering and performance cars, using “military-grade energy-absorbing technology” and a carbon fiber frame to keep the precious cargo safe in a collision.
The chair has 14 sensors in the base. Via a smartphone app, it also signals to parents whether the seat has been properly installed and whether the child is properly secured.
Stephenson, who now runs his own London-based design agency (frankstephenson.com), said: ‘Babyark is a remarkable, high-quality product that gives parents peace of mind.’
Goodwood expedites insurance
Famous for celebrating motorsport heritage past and present, Goodwood now assists classic car owners with their insurance needs.
It has launched Goodwood Classic Solutions as a unique comparison service that can provide personalized coverage for over two million highly cherished classic and historic cars on UK roads today.
It comes as Goodwood and its chairman, the Duke of Richmond whose ancestral seat it is, celebrate THREE major motoring anniversaries this year: 75 years of motor racing on the Goodwood circuit; 30 years of Goodwood Festival of Speed (July 13 to 16 this year) and 25 years of Revival (September 8 to 10).
Got you both covered: Goodwood is now helping classic car owners arrange their insurance
Goodwood has partnered with Sterling Insurance to provide an online service that is accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
It said: ‘Backed by Goodwood’s 75 years of classic vehicle experience and unique position within the automotive industry, online quotes can be customized to include agreed vehicle value, limited mileage discounts, salvage retention and modification coverage.’
Sterling said it will obtain quotes from a panel of specialist and leading insurers, providing customers with three individual quotes quickly and accurately.
The Duke of Richmond said: ‘Exceptional customer experiences are at the heart of what we do and with the launch of Goodwood Classic Solutions in 2023 – the year we celebrate 75 years of motorsport at Goodwood – it couldn’t be a better time to extend this passion and expertise to fellow enthusiasts.’
- More details on all things Goodwood at: goodwood.com.
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