Through steam had really been Henry Ford's first love, he soon decided that the future lay with Gasoline engines. The Quadricycle was his first American Automobile and it can be seen one striking quality which anticipated later Ford practice - it weighed only 500 pounds and was the lightest vehicle of it's type yet produced. Bicycle wheels and steel tube chassis were used. Three years of experimentation preceded the car and it was not until June of 1896 that it was moved out of it's shop at 58 Bagley Ave. for a trial spin.
A four cycle two cylinder engine put together from discarded scrap metal bits and a plumber's pipe generated about 3 to 4 horsepower. Two belt were arranged to transmit the engine's power to the drive wheels. A clutch lever tightened or loosened the belts and gave the drive the choice of 10 or 20 MPH speeds.
The Henry Ford Quadricycle was a crude machine by modern standards, yet it ran and it was soon to be joined by millions of its descendants.
