The very first self-propelled car was built in 1769, when Nicolas Cugnot, a French military engineer designed a steam powered road-vehicle.

  The vehicle was built at the Paris Arsenal, and was used by the French Army to move cannons. It had three wheels with the engine in the front along with the boiler. While Cugnot's 'car' was capable of attaining speeds of unto 6 kms/hour, it was far too heavy and slow to be of practical use.