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In 1894, the Hildebrand & Wolfmüller was the first series production motorcycle. This is in contrast to Gottlieb Daimler's Reitwagen of 1885, which served as an experimental application for the engine and was not manufactured in a series, nor developed further. Heinrich and Wilhelm Hidebrand had previously experimented with steam power, before joining with Alois Wolfmüller to produce their internal combustion Motorrad in Munich.
Patent of 20 January 1894, No. 78553: two-cylinder four-stroke engine, 1,489 cc (90.9 cu in), Bore and stroke: 90 mm × 117 mm (3.5 in × 4.6 in), 2.5 bhp (1.9 kW) @ 240 rpm, a weight of 110 lb (50 kg) and a maximum speed of 28 mph (45 km/h). The Motorbike featured a water-cooled engine and a hollow tube frame. The rear wheel was driven by connecting rods similar to those in a locomotive, and used heavy rubber bands (one visible in the photograph, horizontal and running low down towards the rear wheel) to provide a return impulse rather than rotational inertia, rather than using a flywheel.
Only a few hundred examples of this model were ever built. Apart from the high purchase price, technical problems such as the absence of a clutch prevented the motorbike from becoming a commercial success. The venture ended as a financial failure for both the Wolfmüllers and Hildebrand, their financial backer. Their factory closed in 1919. Examples exist today in the Deutsches Zweirad- und NSU-Museum in Neckarsulm, Germany the Science Museum (London), the Henry Ford Museum in Detroit, Michigan, the Wells Auto Museum in Wells, Maine and the Museum Lalu Lintas Surabaya, Indonesia.