7 Facts You Probably Didn't Know About Cars

By: Paige Jackson

Whether you are passionate about automobiles in general, or you are simply grateful for your own reliable vehicle, here are 7 interesting car facts you probably didn’t know.

1. Horsepower has nothing to see with the speed of a horse

Horsepower is a basic unit used to measure the power of car engines, but contrary to what many people believe, it has nothing to see with the speed of a horse. In fact, if the speed of a horse was measured the same way as the speed of a car, it would produce around 0.7 horsepower.

2. The first car accident in the world happened in France

The first car accident in the world happened in France, in 1771. A man named Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot lost control of his steam-powered automobile and ran into a wall. His vehicle is still kept in a museum in Paris.

3. Cars can be fully recycled

When they are not being displayed in a museum, cars that are not longer on the roads can be recycled. Up to 95% of retired cars are being recycled so their parts can be used to build new cars and many other products.

4. The average car has a lot of parts

The average car has 30,000 parts, including the thousands of parts that form the engine. In average, it takes 19 hours to assemble a standard car in a factory, and about 165,000 cars are produced everyday around the world.

5. Many people around the world own a car

In fact, 1 billion cars are currently being used all around the world. That’s a lot of cars. However, this number doesn’t seem as high when we think about the fact that there are now 7.5 billion people on our beautiful planet.

6. A Rolls-Royce is a very smart investment

Rolls-Royce are expensive luxury cars, but did you know that 75% of all the Rolls-Royce ever produced were still on the road today? A Rolls-Royce is a smart investment if you are looking for a quality car that will last.

7. There is a simple way to quickly cool down a car

Finally, did you know there was a simple way to cool down a car that has been staying under the sun too long? All you have to do is roll down the window on one side of the car, and open and close the door on the other side a few times.