Mercedes-Benz Patent Motorwagen review

‘Inside’ is a relative term in this context, but there’s not a great deal to discuss here in terms of design or luxury. Even the engine is on the outside. As far as controls go, there’s the big broomstick on the left; push forward to go forwards, pull back to slacken the rate of ‘acceleration’. The tiller is basically a tiny steering wheel in the horizontal plane with a wheelie-knob on the top (like you get on tractors), so that’s perfectly intuitive. Air conditioning is very much free. Later models  - like the one Bertha Benz used for her inaugural roadtrip (see ‘Owning’) - boxed in the sides of the motor, upholstered the seating bench and explored the idea of a foldable rooflet recognisable as somewhat like a modern cabriolet roof. Without any bodywork in front of it, such a roof would actually act pretty faithfully as a parachute, but given that the Motorwagen isn’t really capable of aero-inducing speeds, that’s not too much of a bother. Brakes, by the way, are via leather blocks applied directly to the tyres. So be careful slamming on the anchors.