What Leonardo da Vinci invention is often called the world's first self-propelled cart?

Leonardo da Vinci’s self-propelled cart is often called the world’s first self-propelled cart.

Leonardo designed the spring-powered vehicle around 1478–1480. Drawings show two large driving wheels connected to wound springs, with a smaller steering wheel at the front. When the springs were released, the cart could move without an animal or person pushing it. Its motion was limited and programmable through cams, making it more like an elaborate mechanical device than a modern automobile.

The cart may have been intended for theatrical performances at the court of the Duke of Milan. It could enter a stage or ceremonial space under its own power, creating the impression of a moving object controlled by hidden forces. This is why it is often discussed alongside Leonardo’s theatrical machines and automata.

The design is not evidence that Leonardo built a gasoline-powered car. It used stored mechanical energy from springs, and surviving drawings do not prove that the exact original machine still exists. Modern reconstructions have demonstrated that the mechanism can work, although details of the original construction remain uncertain.