Inventor of the Internal Combustion EngineGottlieb Daimler invented the internal combustion engine. I am sorry to say but it was not Daimler who invented the first internal combustion engine it was in fact Christian Huygens, who invented it in 1680, however the first gasoline engine was not created till 1859 by J. J. Étienne Lenoir, a french engineer. Daimler took their concepts and developed the engine in 1885, which is said to be recognized as the modern petrol engine, he later went on to produce the first 4-stroke V-twin engine in 1889. Nikolaus august ottoLenoir actually engineered his engine in 1858. Also he was Belgian, born in the Belgian province of Luxembourg, not French. He Emigrated to Paris, France in the early 1850's