It depends on what “first” means. Porsche and the German Patent and Trade Mark Office identify Ferdinand Porsche’s 1900 Lohner-Porsche electric special, powered by four wheel-hub motors, as the first all-wheel-drive vehicle. The Louwman Museum calls the Spyker 60-HP the first petrol-driven four-wheel-drive car; it was presented in 1903 and was probably built in 1902.
Which vehicle was the first four-wheel drive?
The earliest milestone in these accounts is the 1900 Lohner-Porsche electric all-wheel-drive vehicle. Its four electric motors were mounted in the wheel hubs, so it was not a petrol car with a conventional engine and transmission driving all four wheels. Porsche’s corporate history says Ferdinand Porsche presented a vehicle propelled by all its wheels at the Paris World Exposition; Porsche Newsroom and the German Patent and Trade Mark Office describe the four-motor design as the first all-wheel-drive vehicle or car. Porsche’s history, Porsche Newsroom’s account and the DPMA’s automotive milestones support that qualified description.
The Spyker 60-HP is a different, later first: the Louwman Museum identifies it as the first petrol-driven car with four-wheel drive. Its distinction is useful if by “four-wheel-drive car” you mean a petrol-powered vehicle whose transmission drives both the front and rear wheels. The museum’s vehicle record describes that layout and the car’s history.
How the two milestones differ
| Milestone | Power source and drive | What “first” means | Date qualification |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lohner-Porsche special | Electric; four wheel-hub motors | First all-wheel-drive vehicle or car, according to Porsche and DPMA | 1900 |
| Spyker 60-HP | Petrol engine and transmission driving front and rear wheels | First petrol-driven four-wheel-drive car, according to Louwman Museum | Probably built in 1902; presented in 1903 |
These are related but not identical claims: the Lohner-Porsche milestone is about electric all-wheel drive, while the Spyker marks an early petrol-driven four-wheel-drive car. Calling either one simply “the first 4×4” without saying which category you mean can obscure that difference.
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Why the Spyker has both 1902 and 1903 attached to it
The Louwman Museum says the Spyker was commissioned by Jacobus Spijker for the 1903 Paris-to-Madrid race, but it was not ready in time. The museum says it was presented in Paris in December 1903. A separate Louwman collection page distinguishes that presentation date from the car’s probable construction in 1902. So “presented in 1903” is the firmer public milestone; “built in 1902” should remain qualified as probable. Louwman’s collection history also records its later display at Crystal Palace in 1904 and a five-year restoration to that appearance.
Where the 1898 Porsche electric car fits
The Egger-Lohner C.2 Phaeton dates to 1898 and provides earlier context for Ferdinand Porsche’s work on electric vehicles. Porsche Museum describes it as an electric car and the oldest surviving design on which he worked. That does not make it the 1898 first four-wheel-drive car: the cited 1900 all-wheel-drive claim belongs to the later Lohner-Porsche special. Porsche Museum’s exhibition page documents the C.2 Phaeton.
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How to answer “Was the first 4WD car electric?”
For the earliest all-wheel-drive vehicle identified by Porsche and DPMA, yes: the 1900 Lohner-Porsche special was electric and used four hub motors. For the first petrol-driven four-wheel-drive car identified by Louwman Museum, no: that is the Spyker 60-HP, presented in 1903. The best short answer names both and keeps each “first” attached to its category.
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