Car IX

An automobile, or car for short (also Kraftwagen, in Switzerland officially Motorwagen), is a multi-track motor vehicle (i.e. a road vehicle driven by an engine) used to transport passengers (passenger cars "Pkw" and buses) or freight (trucks "Lkw").

Colloquially - and also in this article - the term car usually refers to vehicles whose design is primarily intended for passenger transport and which may be driven on public roads with an automobile driver's license. The worldwide vehicle population is continuously increasing and in 2010 was over 1.015 billion automobiles. In 2011, more than 80 million automobiles were built worldwide. In Germany, around 51.7 million motor vehicles were registered in 2012, of which just under 43 million are passenger cars.

The main components of the automobile include the chassis with running gear and other parts, as well as the body, engine, transmission and interior. European passenger cars are made of over 54 percent steel, half of which is high-strength steel. Engineers and designers have to give the vehicles' technology a functional, ergonomic and aesthetic form that conveys the manufacturer's brand values and arouses emotions. When buying a car today, vehicle design is one of the most important decision-making criteria