Were there cars on board the Titanic? What’s true and fiction in that?

He titanic Ha came back to the fore, after the disappearance last Sunday of the submarine Titan in the waters of the North Atlantic. A commercial submersible making trips to the sunken wreck of the most famous ship of all time.

It was April 14, 1912, when the Titanic sank after colliding with an iceberg. . Tragedy in which 1,514 people were officially rescued and only 710 were saved, who arrived in New York three days later aboard the Carpathia.

Although throughout the 20th century there were several maritime disasters with a greater number of victims -mainly caused by the two world wars-, The memory of the Titanic tragedy has remained most vivid in the minds of millions of people across the planet.

Probably the dozens of documentaries, books and, above all, the film directed by James Cameron in 1997 with the same name as the ship, have a lot to do with it. Now, as often happens with most well-known historical events through fiction, the account of the real events ends up being irreparably distorted.

Hence the possibility that there are dozens of luxury cars on board -as the film shows in the famous scene where Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Rose (Kate Winslet) make love in a car-, maybe not.

“James Cameron told me that it was his money, that he had invested everything he had in the blockbuster and that it at least gave him the right to take some licenses,” he said. Jesus Ferreiro president of the Titanic Foundation, in an interview with Spanish media AUTO BILD.

“I don’t think there were any cars on the ship, except for a few boxes of Renault parts listed on the cargo manifest, which, perhaps it could even be a disassembled car…”, he then added, based on the 39 interviews with Titanic survivors he has conducted over the years. “None of them saw a car on board, nor was it loaded onto the ship.”

Beyond what Ferreiro believes, there are other experts and researchers in the field who claim otherwise . Above all, and coincidentally, let’s return to Cameron’s Oscar-winning feature, concerning the 1911 Renault BK Limousine, in which one of the scenes between Jack and Rose takes place.

Many claim that the car in question existed and belonged to Mr. William E. Carter who was lucky enough to survive the sinking with his family so that he could claim the two dogs he lost in the sinking, as well as his car, from the insurer for the colossal fortune of $5,000.

In his claim, this Philadelphia millionaire claimed the car was “recorded on the freight manifest as a box, as not fully assembled ”, which partly confirms Ferreiro’s opinion.

William Carter was not the only one to have claimed a vehicle after the tragedy. This led many to speculate about the Titanic’s cars, since there were 125 male heads of household among the 350 first-class passengers, where each ticket cost about double that of one of the most expensive models. luxury of the time.

It’s almost impossible to verify. First, because the ship has disintegrated and most of it is in a very bad state of preservation, due to the enormous impact it suffered during its collision with the seabed. . If there had been cars inside, they would have suffered the same fate. In addition, before thinking of recovering the remains of these vehicles, it should be remembered that they would be found at a depth of no less than 3,800 meters. It would therefore be a difficult task.

Renault manufactured the AX Limousine between the years 1905 and 1914. He equipped it with a two-cylinder engine associated with a three-speed transmission, thus being able to deliver 35 HP and reach a top speed of 56 kilometers per hour.

Its interior was like that of the film: leather seats, brass and hardwood trim, a real luxury for the time. Your price at the time? $437.

james cameron He made a replica of the vehicle to give privacy to the love scene between Rose and Jack, unaware that the model was actually shipped disassembled in a box. Copyright licensing and story sweetening in pursuit of fantasy prevailed.