The automobile is one of the indicators of industrial design which appeared in the 20th century and one which defined it through culturalogical design.

In 1951 MOMA in New York organised an exhibition entitled “Eight Automobiles” which recognised automobiles and automobile design as a creative act, whose basic goal is to define the design qualities of industrial products. The motto of the exhibition was the belief that automobiles were “sculptures on wheels”.

Three inventors contributed towards the development of the automobile and its design: Karl Benz, Henry Ford and Alfred Sloan.