Frustrated by the limitations of personal transportation, a select group of inventors set out to liberate humanity from their dependence on the horse by harnessing the power of the internal combustion engine. Karl Benz discovers a potent, portable fuel that sparks the invention of the car, leading rival Gottlieb Daimler to build a faster, more powerful engine. As the car slowly changes from expensive curiosity to essential technology, Charles Rolls, a man of privilege and an early car enthusiast, partners with brilliant engineer Henry Royce to build the greatest car in the world.

As the roaring twenties bring cars to the American masses, Germany lags far behind--and Japan struggles to modernize. The car could be the answer to the problems of both nations, as Adolf Hitler seeks a "people's car" to help pull Germany from an economic depression, and a small group of industrialists and upstarts see the car as the way to claim Japan's rightful place in the world. Then World War II changes everything.