What name is given to Leonardo da Vinci’s spring-powered vehicle that moved without a driver?

Leonardo da Vinci designed a spring-powered self-propelled cart that could move without a driver.

The cart appears in Leonardo’s late-15th-century engineering drawings. Wound springs inside the vehicle supplied power, while a system of gears and components controlled its movement. The mechanism resembles an early programmable or automated vehicle rather than a modern automobile.

The cart may have been intended for theatrical performances or court spectacles. Some reconstructions have shown that its path could be set in advance by adjusting control components, allowing the machine to perform a planned movement.

It is often associated with Leonardo’s broader work on automata, including his mechanical lion and robot knight. The cart was not powered by an engine, and calling it a car in the modern sense can be misleading: it was a wind-up mechanical device designed for demonstrations.