THE HISTORY OF AUTOMOBILES 1

The History of Automobiles and The Differences in The Automobile Industry That Are Caused

Due to Geography

Prepared By: Wisam Alsaadi

Prepared for: Instructor Grant Morin

250953858

October 1st, 2019

University of Western Ontario

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Automobiles are one of the most important and prominent inventions possibly ever created.

Without automobiles our lives would be completely changed and different. Automobiles changed

the way people traveled and lived. Without cars there would be no drive-ins, drive-thru fast food

restaurants, and shopping centers. The United States is one of the leading producers of automobiles

(as shown in Appendix A) and is often called the “Nation on Wheels” (Ronald, 2010). The world

has become very dependent on cars for transportation. Moreover, cars of certain models are

available all over the world, and from the outside they may even look identical, but they can be

very different due to laws and regulations set in the region the car was produced in. Therefore, the

Geography of production plants play a vital role in the characteristics of the end product.

The automobile was first invented and perfected in Germany and France in the late 1800s,

though Americans quickly came to dominate the automotive industry in the first half of the

twentieth century (Melosi, 2007). Henry Ford innovated mass-production techniques that became

standard, and Ford, General Motors and Chrysler emerged as the “Big Three” auto companies by

the 1920s (Hilda, 2011). Manufacturers funneled their resources to the military during World War

II, and afterward automobile production in Europe and Japan soared to meet growing demand

(Shahnoza, 2014). Once vital to the expansion of American urban centers, the industry had become

a shared global enterprise with the rise of Japan as the leading automaker by 1980 (Brown, 2009).

Given the American manufacturing tradition, it was also inevitable that cars would be produced in

larger volume at lower prices than in Europe. The absence of tariff barriers between the states

encouraged sales over a wide geographic area (Flink, 2005, p. 44-45). Cheap raw materials and a

chronic shortage of skilled labor early encouraged the mechanization of industrial processes in the

United States. In 1913, the United States produced some 485,000 of the world’s 606,124 motor

vehicles (Kramwell, 2008).

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What color should rear turn signals be? In North America they’re usually red and can

sometimes also be amber. However, almost everywhere else in the world, they must be amber

(Stern, 2018). As a result, the automotive industry had to make some adjustments to cars produced

in Europe and North America so that they abide by local laws. For instance, regulators in the

United States specified that the brake light and rear turn signal must each have a lit lens area of at

least 50 cm2. The American regulation calls this lit lens area “EPLLA” for Effective Projected

Luminous Lens Area. Additionally, this minimum-size requirement doesn’t exist outside North

America (Sidsel, 2013). According to a 2009 report from the National Highway Traffic Safety

Administration, “amber signals show a 5.3% effectiveness in reducing involvement in two-vehicle

crashes where a lead vehicle is rear-struck in the act of turning left, turning right, merging into

traffic, changing lanes, or entering/leaving a parking space (The Effectiveness of Amber Rear Turn

Signals, 2009). Due to the disadvantages of the red rear turn signal, almost all countries use the

amber turn signal instead of the red. As a result of physical geography, car manufacturers had to

adapt different styles of lighting systems in order to meet the requirements and regulations of

different countries.

Another major difference in automobiles due to a different geographic location is the side

on which motorists drive. In North America, one is used to seeing the steering wheel on the left

side of the car and cars travelling on the right side of the road. However, in some countries it is the

complete opposite. About 35% of the world population drives on the left, and the countries that

represent this population are old British colonies (Elledge, 2016). In the past, almost everybody

travelled on the left side of the road because that was the most sensible option for feudal, violent
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societies. Since most people are right-handed, swordsmen preferred to keep to the left in order to

have their right arm nearer to an opponent and their scabbard further from their opponent.

Moreover, it reduced the chance of the scabbard (worn on the left) hitting other people as shown

in Appendix B (Smalling, 2016). Moreover, BMWs highest volume car, the 3 series, the Right-

Hand Drive versions worldwide are not built in Munich, like the Left-Hand Drive versions, but

instead, in one plant, in South Africa (BMW Group, 2008). The cars are built in South Africa

because it’s not cost efficient to build LHD and RHD in the same plant since the process cannot

be globalized due to the major differences between the production of both cars. As a result, car

manufacturers had to adjust their designs in order for their cars to comply with local regulations.

Another difference that the automotive industry faces in different geographic locations is

the type of engine cars are equipped with. For instance, the great majority of cars in Canada and

the United States run on gas and have gas powered engines. On the other hand, in Europe, the great

majority of cars have diesel powered engines. This difference is the result of government sanctions

and the prices of oil end products such as; gas and diesel. In Canada, gasoline and diesel are dirt

cheap compared to their cost in Europe. In late August, the average Canadian price for a litre of

gas was $1.10, and a liter of diesel cost $1.15 (Canada Fuel Statistics, 2019). Both diesel and

gasoline come from the same barrel of oil but since diesel is a heavier, less refined product, it has

historically cost less than gasoline (Oleg, 2018). European drivers pay more than double our prices;

$2.62 for a liter of gas and $2.35 for diesel (as shown in Appendix D). The big difference in price

is due to fuel taxes in Europe. These taxes are historically much higher, but the tax on diesel is less

than gas. Additionally, it's been that way for over a decade. Over time, the high European taxes

caused a marked difference in customer demand (Watson, 2019). Therefore, the physical
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geography caused manufacturers in the automotive industry to modify the type of engines used in

certain countries in order to meet with local demand and regulations.

The technology and the features of future cars will be arguably the biggest change in the

future cars. Much like cell phones are now capable of doing more than making calls, cars can do

much more than drive and park. According to a new report by PwC, the industry workforce will

be cut by at least 50% by 2030, and the employees who remain will need a very different skill set.

(Baker, 2018). The number of shop-floor logistics roles will be reduced by around 60 percent,

partially because humans will be replaced by autonomously guided vehicles (Roy, 2018)

Moreover, the number of data engineers required will almost double in some types of plants, and

increase by 80 percent in others, while the number of software engineers needed will rise by as

much as 90 percent (Kartik, 2017).

In conclusion, the physical geography of some countries has forced automotive

manufacturers to make some changes to their end products in order to meet local regulations and

consumer demand. One of these changes was the colour of the rear turn signals. As a result, the

same exact model of a car can have red turn signals in one country and amber in another. Another

change that manufacturers were required to implement due to regulations is the side on which the

steering wheel of a vehicle is placed. For instance, a BMW X5 in Canada would have its steering

wheel on the left-hand side due to Canadian regulations, while the same X5 would have its steering

wheel on the right-hand side if it was in the UK due to British regulations. Last but not least, the

price differences in gas and diesel across different regions in the world made automotive

manufacturers create different engines that are cost efficient in order to meet the consumer

demand.
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References

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Berg, T. (2014, March 13). Amber Rear Turn Signals Are Safer Than Red, But Few Use Them.

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BMW Group Plant Rosslyn. (2008, February 13). Retrieved September 25, 2019, from

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Brown, D. (2009, February 13). Rise Of Japan as a Leading Auto Maker. Retrieved September

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Appendix A
Figure comparing car production between different nations
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Appendix B

Illustration of how right-handed knights preferred to keep to the left in order to have their

right arm nearer to an opponent

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Appendix C
Figure highlighting countries that have LHD in Blue and RHD countries in Red
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Appendix D

Graph illustrating the price of fuel in Europe over the past three years