3 The first cars

Chapter 3 The first cars Gradually, inventors turned away from steam and tried different engines instead. Some were powered by gunpowder... ...but they blew up.

渐渐地，发明家们不再使用蒸汽，转而使用不同的发动机。 有些是由火药驱动的…… ．..但是他们爆炸了。

Others used electricity. The first electric carriages were driven by huge batteries. The only problem was- the batteries quickly ran out of power. They've stopped twice in ten minutes! Finally, an engine was made that worked using petrol. Designed by Etienne Lenoir and improved by Nicolas Otto, would this engine be able to power a carriage?

其他人则使用电力。最早的电动马车是由巨大的电池驱动的。 唯一的问题是——电池很快就没电了。 他们在十分钟内停了两次！最后，一种使用汽油的发动机被制造出来。 由Etienne Lenoir设计，由Nicolas Otto改进，这个引擎能驱动一辆马车吗？

Yes! In 1886, German engineer Karl Benz designed and built the first petrol-driven vehicle. It had three wheels, one seat and a small engine at the back. Benz was delighted with his invention. You've done it!

是的!1886年，德国工程师卡尔·本茨设计并制造了第一辆汽油驱动的汽车。 它有三个轮子，一个座位，后面有一个小引擎。 本茨对自己的发明非常满意。 你做到了！

Then, the first time he drove it in public, he crashed into a wall. Oops! But his vehicle worked and word spread. Soon other inventors were designing petrol-powered, horseless carriages- or "cars" for short.

然后，他第一次在公共场合开着它，就撞到了墙上。 哦!但他的车成功了，消息传开了。 很快，其他发明家也开始设计以汽油为动力的无马马车——或简称“汽车”。

Around the same time, another German, Gottlieb Daimler, built a wooden bicycle with an engine. His son Paul bravely took this "motorcycle" on its first ride... Good luck, Paul! ...and came safely home again.

大约在同一时间，另一位德国人戈特利布·戴姆勒（Gottlieb Daimler）制造了一辆带引擎的木制自行车。 他的儿子保罗勇敢地第一次骑上了这辆“摩托车”…… 祝你好运，保罗！．..平安地回到了家。

The following year, Daimler tried his engine inside a carriage. The result was the world's first four-wheeled car. This feels much safer, Father. Where's the horse?

第二年，戴姆勒在一辆马车上试用了他的发动机。 结果是世界上第一辆四轮汽车。 这样感觉安全多了，神父。 马在哪儿？