Spot on. A point is on its way.
Here's what I found (apparently an excerpt from a local paper)
"Frederick William Bremer (b 1872) the son of a German immigrant, built Britain’s first combustion engine motor car in a workshop in the back garden of his family home at number 1 Connaught Road, Walthamstow, with assistance from his friend Tom Bates in 1892. Fred, a gas fitter and plumber by trade, was also known to dabble as an electrician, engineer and bicycle maker. He built this first car for pleasure rather than profit. The “Bremer” uses an engine similar to that of a modern car. It has one cylinder rather than four or six; in order to run on one cylinder, it uses a flywheel to keep the running even. The fuel he used was paraffin; Fred used a vaporiser that had a wick, much like a paraffin lamp. This was heated by hot water from the engine to improve efficiency. The car has no clutch or gears, but Fred had the same effect by using a leather belt to gradually engage and disengage power - but it was designed for just two speed using two pulleys, there is no reverse gear. There is also a basic throttle and mixture control and single braking system. There is an advance and retard for the spark; this is mostly for controlling the engine.
He first drove it down Connaught Road and around Walthamstow in 1894, preceded by his friend Tom holding a red flag. The ride is anything but smooth because of the springs and solid tyres. The steering is by tiller and unless you hold on tight and steer straight the car tends to veer and turn over. There is no milometer but it is reckoned that speeds of between 7 or 8 miles per hour any faster and it becomes more difficult to control."
Quite what a "combustion engine motor car" means I don't know. Maybe the local hack meant "internal combustion ~ " and the printer took it out to shorten the piece.
