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1807 Rivaz Illustration
Francois Isaac de Rivaz in 1807 designed the first internal combustion engine that propelled the first automobile. The Rivaz was powered by hydrogen gas and oxygen. This first experimental prototype car stored compressed hydrogen gas in a balloon and ignited the gas with an electrical Volta cell ignition. He made test runs in the area around Vevey, Switzerland, on Lake Geneva.

Sources: wikipedia, www.hydrogencarsnow.com