Back in the days of three-cornered hats and powdered wigs came the earliest-known self-propelled vehicle, a bizarre steam-powered contraption first demonstrated in France and called the Cugnot.
The year was 1770 and the Cugnot was at the time a technological marvel using the greatest of wagon-building innovation. A huge steam boiler hung off the front, creating pressure to drive the engine and the front wheel of the 3 -wheeled beast.
In the Video of the Day, we see a reproduction of the original Cugnot being started up (a feat in itself) and slowly, laboriously driving away under its own huffing power. Talk about steam punk!
