Duryea Four-wheeled Gasoline Surrey

Frank Duryeas designs show that he is a very religious man. In this car, this can be seen among other things on the sides in the shape of a fish, the symbol of Christ.

The designs of Frank Duryea show that he was a very religious man. This car reflects that, among other things, in the fish shape on the sides, the symbol of Christ. Duryea also expresses in his cars that he is a follower of the doctrine of the Trinity. Many of his cars have three wheels and almost all of them are fitted with a three cylinder engine. This Gasoline Surrey also has a three cylinder engine with a capacity of 3.5 liters. The lever in the middle is multifunctional: it controls the steering and throttle as well as the transmission. It can be operated from both the left and the right seat. The first recorded car accident is caused by a Duryea, when in 1896 New Yorker Henry Wells hits a cyclist. The cyclist suffers a broken leg and Wells spends a night in jail. Frank Duryea and his brother Charles build the first gasoline car in the United States in 1893. A second model wins the 1895 Chicago Times Herald Race over 87 kilometers with an average speed of 12 km/h. In that same year they start car production, making the Duryea the first commercially built car in America.