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In 1885, an obsession began. Daimler and Benz were regarded as the creator of the petrol driven engine, but it was the American Henry Ford who began the mass production of cars, making the motor car available to everyone. This began an obsession which is still as strong today. 90 years later, the huge continent of USA, with its many thousands of miles of highways is producing millions of cars every year.
2.2.1 The Car as a Lifestyle
The 1950s is perhaps the era best known for motor cars and living life in modern Americas "jet age", an era which formed many of the images of America which remain popular today. Bikers wore black leather, boots and white T-shirts and were considered as juvenile delinquents. Waitresses on roller skates served fries at drive-thru fast food joints and burger bars. Kids spent their time cruising in the streets or hanging out in their cars in the parking lots of bowling alleys. Cars were used for much more than getting from a to B. They were a lifestyle, and for some, an expression of their philosophy of life. The cars of the 50s were huge, shiny chunks of metal decorated with chrome, customized with fins and full of crazy accessories. Some people saw cars as works of art on wheels. They guzzled gas, but nobody cared, because of the enormous cheap prices of fuel. They looked good and environmental pollution hadn't even been thought of yet.
2.2.2 Movie Theatres
It is thought that drive- in movie theatres were originally designed to help families get out to see a movie without having to get dressed up or find a babysitter. The first was built in 1933. By the mid- 1950s there were almost 4000 drive-in movie theatres around the US. Today the figure is nearer 1000. The car is like a mobile sitting room where the family watches movies and eats Kiosks sold hot dogs and popcorn and a little piece of American culture was formed. For young people in a time before youth clubs, discos and shopping malls, the drive-in movie theatre was the place to go, to be seen and hang out. Occasionally the teens would even catch a movie, but usually they used the privacy of the car for making out.
2.2.3 Food on the go
Drive-in fast food outlets, burger bars and taco joints quickly caught on to meet the demands the mobile consumer, and these businesses are still growing today. Originally, waitresses would hook a tray on your window ledge so you could eat in front of the restaurant, actually in your car. These days people prefer to drive straight through and take their food away.
2.2.4 Weddings on wheels
Las Vegas is famous for its glitzy casinos and tacky wedding chapels where you can get married quickly and cheaply. But did there are even drive-thru wedding chapels, where the bride and groom don't have to get out of the car. They drive up, park, and the ceremony is conducted through the car window.
2.2.5 Life in the fast lane
One of the most recent drive-thru business ideas is the drive-thru espresso coffee bar. It seems that like in the fast lane these days is so fast that people don't even have time to grab a coffee, sit down and chat with friends. There are drive- thru minimarts, which seem like a good idea if you have kids in your car and you cant park, but a drive- thru liquid store, which was opened a few weeks ago seems crazy, but not in America.
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