In August 1888, Bertha Benz — wife and business partner of Carl Benz — took the Benz Patent-Motorwagen on the first long-distance automobile journey in history, driving about 66 miles (106 km) from Mannheim to Pforzheim with her teenage sons Eugen and Richard. She left without telling her husband. Along the way she bought fuel at a pharmacy, cleared a blocked fuel line with a hatpin and had a cobbler fit leather to the brakes. The trip proved the automobile was practical and gave Carl valuable ideas for improvements.

At a glance
Date August 1888
Route Mannheim to Pforzheim, Germany, and back days later
Distance About 66 miles (106 km) each way
Travelers Bertha Benz and her sons Eugen (15) and Richard (13 or 14)
Car Benz Patent-Motorwagen Model III

Why she did it

Carl Benz was a brilliant engineer but hesitant about marketing his invention. Bertha, who had invested her dowry in his business, believed people needed to see the car working over a real distance. Her stated reason was to visit her mother in Pforzheim.

Problems solved on the road

  • Fuel: The Motorwagen ran on ligroin, a petroleum solvent sold at pharmacies. Bertha bought some at a pharmacy in Wiesloch, which calls itself the world’s first filling station.
  • A blocked fuel line: she cleared it with a hatpin.
  • An ignition problem: she insulated a wire using a garter.
  • Weak brakes: a cobbler nailed leather to the wooden brake blocks — arguably the first brake linings.
  • Hills: her sons pushed the car up steep climbs, which led Carl to add a lower gear.

The impact

The journey attracted attention and showed skeptics that the automobile could travel long distances. Carl Benz improved the car based on her feedback, including better brakes and gearing. Benz & Cie went on to become one of the world’s largest car makers by the end of the century.

The Bertha Benz Memorial Route

Since 2008, the route has been signposted as the Bertha Benz Memorial Route, a tourist road through the Baden region. In 2016 Bertha Benz was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame.

Road trips today

From the first road trip to modern day trips, the idea is the same: the joy of going somewhere by car. Plan your own in our guides to the Hudson Valley or the Hamptons. Read about the car itself in the Benz Patent-Motorwagen.