The death of the internal combustion engine
It had a good run. But the end is in sight for the machine that changed the world
“HUMAN inventiveness…has still not found a mechanical process to replace horses as the propulsion for vehicles,” lamented Le Petit Journal, a French newspaper, in December 1893. Its answer was to organise the Paris-Rouen race for horseless carriages, held the following July. The 102 entrants included vehicles powered by steam, petrol, electricity, compressed air and hydraulics. Only 21 qualified for the 126km (78-mile) race, which attracted huge crowds. The clear winner was the internal combustion engine. Over the next century it would go on to power industry and change the world.
This article appeared in the Leaders section of the print edition under the headline “Roadkill”
From the August 12th 2017 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the edition
First he busted gangs. Now Nayib Bukele busts critics
El Salvador’s president has all the tools of repression he needs to stay in power indefinitely
How Labour should save the NHS
Among all its ideas, the most important is to go all-in for digital transformation
American finance, always unique, is now uniquely dangerous
Donald Trump is putting an untested system under almighty strain
India needs to turn the air-con on
If its awful air pollution is ever solved the country will get even hotter
Pausing foreign applications to American universities is a terrible idea
The Trump administration hobbles a great American export
The plan to protect America by shooting down missiles mid-air
It’s not as outlandish as it sounds