I am really not that familiar with the Selden situation but this thread piqued my interest for sure, I've got a bit of reading to do...as far as "giving it a try" I'd say this thread is quite interesting! Thanks for sharing!

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TC
Current stable:
- 2004 Mazda RALLYWANKEL
- 2007 Saturn sky redline
- 2004 Explorer...under surgery.

Past: 135i, GTI, 300E, 300SD, 300SD, Stealth

Some Mercedes dealers have a copy of the first one. The dealer in Sugarland, Texas, has one or at least they did five years ago.

When you look at it up close it is amazing to see just how much stuff old Damiler had to work out. Since there was no example to pull from he just had the task of making a wagon self-propelled and that meant a starter system, gasoline storage, ignition, vibration, steering.... It was a wonder it worked at all.

But as far as the Selden Patent goes.... I can see where Ford would refuse to pay since Ford, unlike some big-time investor, would have built his own car from the ground up and knew that an automobile was a collection of many different things; not a device like an egg-beater. Patents covered individual inventions and not a bunch of different inventions all bolted together.

Back when there was a Pate collection southwest of Fort Worth one of the nicest cars in there was from 1896. The strangest thing about it was that it was found in a barn just a few miles from where Pate stored all his other cars.

I don't remember the make of the car, (I think it was a 'Schotts' or a 'Schachs') but I do remember it had a 'Selden Patent' badge attached to it, showing that it was built by a 'real' car company and not some fly-by-night bunch.