Gran Truism

A gran turismo (GT) is a high-performance luxury automobile designed for long-distance driving. The most common format is a two-door coupé with either a two-seat or a 2+2 arrangement.



The term derives from the Italian phrase Gran Turismo, homage to the tradition of the "Grand Tour", used to represent automobiles regarded as grand tourers abilities to make long-distance, high-speed journeys in both comfort and style. The Grand tourers differ from standard two-seat sports cars in typically being larger, heavier, and emphasizing comfort over straight-out performance. Historically, true GT`s have been front-engine with rear-wheel drive, which leave more space for the cabin than mid-mounted engine layouts. Softer suspensions, greater storage, and more luxurious appointments add to their driving appeal.



Iconic GT Automobiles



The Porsche 356 was the company`s first production automobile. It was a lightweight and nimble handling rear-engine rear-wheel-drive 2 door sports car available in hardtop and convertible configurations. Design innovations continued during the years of manufacture, contributing to its motorsports success and popularity. Production started in 1948 at Gmünd, Austria where approximately 50 cars were built.

Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing its performance, design, reputation, and futuristic Gullwing door`s were all responsible for its price tag$10930.00. Weight, 3000 lbs



BMW - the 2002tii was the high performance, fuel injected, limited edition of BMW`s 2002 automobile model line. It was a two door sports sedan based on the four doors BMW 1500 of 1961. The 2002 series is important in the history of BMW for several reasons, none the least of which it brought the company out of near bankruptcy in the 1950s and put BMW as a marque on the map in the United States. It was the ancestral grandfather to the BMW 3 Series and was produced from 1968 to 1976.



Corvette - 1963 Chevrolet C2 Corvette Sting Ray split-window coupe. The second generation, or mid-year, was designed by Larry Shinoda with major inspiration from a previous unproduced design called the "Q Corvette" by Peter Brock and Chuck Pohlmann, and under the styling direction of Bill Mitchell, started in 1963 and ended in 1967. Introducing a new name, Corvette Sting Ray, the 1963 model year Corvette was the first year for a coupé with its distinctive split rear window and non-functioning hood vents as well as an independent rear suspension. The split rear window was discontinued in 1964 due to safety concerns. Because they made the design too busy, the hood vents were also cut. Power for 1963 was at 360 hp (268 kW) hitting 375 hp (280 kW) in 1964.



Ferrari - 430 Scuderia is one of Lusso’s favourite sports cars of the moment. With both a weight reduction (down 100kg to 1250kg), and a power increase (up slightly to 510bhp), straight line performance will no doubt be increased noticeably. The weight reduction will also help out on track where it will be shown up by increased agility, and better braking performance. As is the way with Ferrari’s halo models, there is a new and improved version of the semi-automatic F1 transmission which has cut gear shift time to a mere 60 milliseconds - almost as fast as current Formula 1 cars. It will be available from the end of 2007



Some very high-performance grand tourers, such as the Porsche, BMW, Ferrari, Corvette, Maserati , Bentley, Aston Martin, Jaguar and Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren make various compromises in the opposite direction while rivalling GT cars in speed, acceleration, and cornering ability, earning them the special designation supercars.



Aston Martin - In 1913, a man called Lionel Martin had a passion for the burgeoning sport of motor racing and wanted to turn his love of the sport into a business. He teamed up with Robert Bamford to sell Singer cars. The two men started adapting the cars for the tough up-hill challenges that were an integral part of the early years in Motor sport; after this the pair wanted to manufacture cars of their own and for that they needed a name. Lionel Martin regularly competed in climb challenges at the Aston Hill course and so the name for their cars was born.



Martin was quoted as saying: A quality car of good performance and appearance: a car for the discerning owner driver with fast touring in mind, designed, developed, engineered and built as an individual.



In 1914, Bamford and Martin Limited bought its first premises in Chelsea, London and by March, 1915 the first Aston Martin race car was registered. Fitted with a Coventry simplex side-valve engine and built to Martin`s specifications, it became known as the `Coal Scuttle`. In 1920, they moved their premises to Abingdon Road, South Kensington and with the financial help of Count Louis Zborowski1, an automobile engineer and early racing driver; they built two racing cars that competed in the 1922 French Grand Prix. The Aston Martin cars were now establishing their racing credentials. On 24 May, 1922 one of the cars, known as a `Bunny`, broke ten world records at the Brooklands track during a sixteen-and-a-half-hour endurance run, averaging a speed of 76.04mph.



In 1947 David Brown paid �20,000 for Aston Martin after spotting an advertisement in The Times for a `high class motor business`, and then acquired Lagonda the following year. Lagonda`s founder Wilber Gunn started his engineering career by building an engine for his bicycle; motorcycles and tricars followed. Like Martin and Bamford, Gunn quickly became involved in motor sport and regularly took on the Aston Martins in the early Grand Prix and in 1935 a Lagonda won the Le Mans 24-Hour race.



In 1950, Aston Martin produced the 2.6 litre DB2; it took equal first in the Index of Performance in the Le Mans race and won the 3.0 litre class. By now, the factory had moved down the road to Hanworth Park: the bodies of both the Aston Martin and Lagonda cars were built there while the engines, gearboxes and chassis were produced at Brown`s factory in Farsley, Yorkshire.



Throughout the 1950s Aston Martin had phenomenal success in racing with the DBR1/300, the DBR3 and the DB4 but the rise in costs in running a race team was taking its toll and in 1963 Aston Martin withdrew from racing to concentrate on its production cars. In October of the same year the new four-litre DB5 rolled off the production line and a shrewd business decision from Brown made it the most sought after car in the world when it had a starring role in the new James Bond film, Gold finger.



In July 2000, Dr Ulrich Bez joined the company and in the October, the last V8 model rolled off the production line. The V12 Vanquish was unveiled in 2001: the first model to have the `Paddle Shift` gearbox3. In 2004, the S version was launched and its paddle shift gearbox came in for a lot of criticism for being unable to operate smoothly and correctly.



2003 saw the opening of the ```don factory, the first purpose-built Aston Martin factory and this year also saw the launch of the DB9 coupé, the first car ever built at ```don, with the Volante version appearing in 2005. Also in 2005, Aston Martin returned to racing, with the purpose-built DBR9 competing in the International GT events, including a return to the Le Mans 24-hour race in which they came third. 2007 saw the company change hands yet again, when Ford, who were rumoured to have financial problems, sold the main stake to a team headed by Prodrive`s front man Dave Richards bringing Aston Martin back into British hands. In the next few years, a four-door car called the Rapide is due to make an appearance and a replacement for the Vanquish is due in 2012.



Bentley Motor Cars – The Roaring Twenties; the decade and the car went together. The car was the hard-driving, ear splitting complement to the ``` life. What the Stutz Bearcat meant to the college youth of America, the Bentley meant to the young bloods of England. It underscored, and quite noisily, the hysterical relief and reaction that followed World War I. And when the twenties ended, the Bentley was ended. It became sedate, silent, and aristocratic; for it was now being made by Rolls-Royce.



The original Bentley Motors, Limited existed for only twelve years, from 1919 until 1931a short life, but a fast-paced whirl of racing success and financial problems. As in so many other automotive companies, two brothers were involved - W. O. and H. M. Bentley. W. O. was the engineering genius, racing driver, and irascible head of the firm. His brother quietly handled the business management.



The Bentley brothers got started with a sales concession for three cars: Buchet, La Licorne, and the D. F. P. which stood for Doriot, Flandrin and Parant. The D.F.P. was a racing machine for which W. O. designed new aluminium alloy pistons. His success with the D.F.P. led to the adoption of the pistons by Rolls-Royce and Sunbeam, and to the design of an aircraft engine.



.Being a racer at heart, Bentley`s first products were high- performance open cars that immediately established themselves as winners in the hectic world of European racing between the wars. Bentley cars won the 24 Hours of Le Mans four times from 1923 until the demise of the company in 1931.



The last of the line was powered by a huge 8.0-liter six-cylinder engine. Besides the inevitable open sports car bodies, it was also fitted up with limousine, touring car and coupe bodies. Bentley had become a major competitor for Rolls-Royce and other British luxury car builders.



World War II devastated the British industrial complex and Rolls-Royce suffered too. The post-war Bentley Mark VI became literally a Rolls-Royce Silver Dawn with a different grill. In 1952, the R-R hot-rod concept was resurrected in the form of the R-type and in particular, the R-type Continental, a high-speed coupe designed for touring in Europe.



In the years that followed, this program was expanded upon and included a turbocharged V8 that provided top speeds in the neighbourhood of 150 MPH and 7-second 0-to-60 MPH acceleration times.



The turbulent financial times of the `60s culminated with the company becoming part of the Vickers conglomerate which in turn recently sold the Rolls-Royce name to BMW and the Bentley name, factory and assets to Volkswagen. The resulting conflict between the two German giants has lead not only to massive law suits but corporate animosity between the two.



To its credit, the leaders of VW have resurrected the Bentley motorsports tradition in general and its return to Le Mans in particular. This, of course, pleases British auto enthusiasts immensely and helps to mollify the fact that a British automotive icon is owned by a German company. But W.O. Bentley would be even more pleased that "his" company was finally wrestled away from Roll-Royce.



The Bentley Continental GT was the fastest genuine 4-seat car in the world - a sporting coupé without rival. Inspired by the grace and power of Bentley’s thoroughbred bloodline, the Continental GT combines phenomenal power, incomparable refinement and class-leading performance. The Bentley Continental GT is a two-door 2+2 grand touring coupé released in 2003, replacing the previous Rolls-Royce-based Continental R and T. It is equipped with a 6.0L, twin-turbocharged W12 engine, producing 552 hp (412 kW), with a top speed of 198 mph (319 km/h).



Designed by Belgian stylist Dirk van Braeckel, the Continental GT is built on the Volkswagen Group D1 platform and therefore shares many technical components with the Volkswagen Phaeton. Above all, true Grand Touring performance complemented by the luxury of Bentley legend.



BMW - Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BMW) the origins of BMW trace back to 1913 when Karl Friedrich Rapp, a Bavarian who had been a well-known engineer in a German aircraft company, formed Rapp Motoren Werke in a suburb of Munich. The company specialized in airplane engines however Rapp found that they were problematic and suffered from excessive vibration. Nearby, Gustav Otto, also an airplane specialist, set up his own shop, Gustav Flugmaschinefabrik, building small aircraft.



It was 1928 that made history in terms of the BMW car. Produced at the Eisenbach factory, the Dixie 3/15 PS marked the beginning of BMW automobile production. It was built under license from Austin and was essentially the same model as the US Bantam and the Japanese Datsun. The first Dixi`s used an open roof and were powered by a 743cc 4 cylinder engine producing 15 horsepower. Top speed was in the neighbourhood of 50 mph (80 km/h). In 1929 a new improved version was launched, the DA2, which employed an all-steel body and 4-wheel brakes, and in 1930 the Dixie scored its first wins in motor racing. Total production: 18,976 units.



1932 was the year the BMW AM 4 (Ausfuhrung Munchen 4 Gange - Munich Version 4 Speeds) - a.k.a. BMW`s first "real" car - went into production. The AM 4, also called the 3/20 PS, was the successor to the Dixi and the first production car to be built entirely in-house by BMW. The power plant was a 782cc 4 cylinder unit which featured suspended valves and a double chain driving the camshafts, producing 20 horsepower at 3500 rpm and providing the saloon with a 50 mph top speed.





Corvette - General Motors was so big that it made more than half the cars sold in the United States and the U.S. Department of Justice`s antitrust division was threatening to break it up. In the vast 21st century, it`s almost hard to imagine how overwhelmingly large GM was back then. But it didn`t make a sports car. The idea of a car coming from stodgy GM that could compete with Jaguar, MG or Triumph was almost absurd.



Harley J. Earl, GM`s chief designer (formally the head of the Art and Colour Section) and the man who invented the "concept car" with the 1938 Buick Y-Job, was in charge of the corporation`s ambitious musings While the car was conceived with rigorous attention to the bottom line and production feasibility in mind, it was still only intended to be part of GM`s Motorama exhibit at the 1953 New York Auto Show. But first Cole needed to name it.



So he called Myron Scott, founder of the All-American Soap Box Derby and an assistant advertising manager for Chevrolet, into a special meeting of executives researching the name. Scott suggested "Corvette," Cole loved it and the rest is history.



The public at the New York show loved the 1953 Motorama Corvette almost as much as Cole did. Thousands of potential buyers wanted to know when they could buy one. Just six months later, they could. The 1953 Corvette, virtually identical to the Motorama prototype, went into production on June 30, 1953, in Flint, Mich. The year 1955 brought the single most important development in the history of the Corvette: Chevrolet`s brilliant small-block V8. Originally displacing 265 cubic inches



Big news came in the form of a big engine for 1962 as the small-block V8 grew to 327 cubic inches. The base four-barrel engine now knocked out 250 horsepower with higher output versions available in 300- and 340-horsepower versions. The dual-quad option was dropped, but the fuel injection system was back and it was now rated at a thrilling 360 horsepower.



More than four decades after its introduction, the C2 Sting Ray (1963-1967) remains one of the most startling, engrossing and completely delightful automotive designs of all time. For many discerning enthusiasts, the `63 to `67 Corvettes are the most compelling of the series.



Ferrari - Enzo Ferrari was born in Modena Italy on February 18 1898. Later on he found work as a test driver in Turin in late 1918. Enzo then moved to Milan to work at CMN (Costruzioni Maccaniche Nazionali) as a racing car driver. His first real race came in the 1919, the Parma-Berceto, he then entered the Targa Florio that same year. Enzo then founded Scuderia Ferrari, (literally means Ferrari Stable) who were mainly sponsors and trainers for Alfa Romeo. The prancing horse motif of Ferrari is one of the best known icons in motor sport. Enzo Ferrari took the emblem from the First World War Italian fighter ace Francesco Baracca



In 1943 the Ferrari factory moved to Maranello, where it has remained ever since. The factory was bombed in 1944 due to making machines for ball bearing production, it was rebuilt in 1946 to include a works for road car production. The first Ferrari road car was the 1947 125 S, powered by a 1.5-litre V12 engine; Enzo reluctantly built and sold his automobiles to fund the Scuderia. In 1969, to meet growing market demand, Enzo Ferrari sold 50% of the share capital to the Fiat Group, and investment that increased to 90% in 1988. In spite of this Ferrari has always maintained a strong autonomy, thanks to its specialist activities.

Enzo Ferrari died in Modena on August 14, 1988. As of the writing of this article, FIAT owns 56% of Ferrari, Mediobanca owns 15%, Commerzbank AG owns 10%, Lehman Brothers owns 7%, and Enzo’s son Piero Ferrari owns 10%.



Carrozzeria Zanasi is located in Maranello, Italy, where Ferrari is headquartered, and is the Italian sports car maker`s preferred body shop. The history goes back to 1964 when Ferrari founder Enzo Ferrari was looking for a shop to repair his cars. Enzo Ferrari enlisted the help of Umberto Zanasi who founded the body shop to do the special work required by Ferrari. The partnership continues to this day where Zanasi serves as an authorized "carrozzeria" on behalf of Ferrari clients. Its services also include restorations of old and classic Ferrari models.



Jaguar – (Originating from a sidecar) as a 20-year-old motorcycle enthusiast in England, William Lyons launched the Swallow Sidecar Company with a friend, William Walmsley, in 1922. Five years later, Swallow was fashioning bodies for chassis built by Austin, Fiat, and others. By 1931, the Coventry-based company had joined with nearby chassis builder Standard Motor Company to build the SS1, for "Standard-Swallow." The first car to bear the name Jaguar appeared at the 1935 London auto show: the SS Jaguar 100. The "SS" already had bad connotations in the U.K., thanks to the Nazis in Germany, and the letters would soon be dropped from the company name.



XK Models - During WWII, Jaguar returned to building sidecars, but this time for the military. After the war, the company introduced its first sports car, the XK 120, at the 1948 auto show in Earls Court. Lyons originally intended to build only 200 of the cars, but demand for the striking body with a top speed of 120 mph was too great, and he geared up the Coventry line for mass production. In 1953, a drop head coupe version was added to the line-up.



C Type - Jaguar followed the success of the XK 120 with its C-type, or competition type, cars of the 1950s. The underpinnings were based on the 120, but the bodies were all-new and aerodynamic. The car debuted in the 1951 24 Hours of Le Mans race--and won, with Stirling Moss at the wheel. Altogether, there were only 54 C-types ever built. In 1955, Lyons suffered the tragedy of losing his only son, John, on a trip to Le Mans; it was also the year Enzo Ferrari`s son Dino died. Later that same year, Lyons was knighted by Queen Elizabeth.



D Type - Jaguar improved on the touring-ready 120 with the new XK 140, and updated its race squad with the legendary and instantly recognizable D-type. The bass-mouth front intake, the bulbous, curved fenders, and the aerodynamic fin behind the driver`s head were innovations in auto design. In 1954, the first D-type was driven from England to France for testing at Le Mans. It didn`t win in 1954, but it did in 1955--after driver Mike Hawthorn caused an accident that resulted in more than 80 deaths, including that of Mercedes driver Pierre Levegh. Jaguar didn`t advertise the win.



Iconic E-Types - While most automotive histories involve companies being at the mercy of creditors and buyers, in 1960, Lyons bought Daimler. In 1961, he bought truck manufacturer Guy Motors, and in 1963, he bought Coventry-Climax, maker of race engines and forklifts. In its own factories, Jag had created the iconic, long-nosed E-type, which debuted in 1961. In 1966, Lyons announced that Jaguar would merge with British Motor Corporation, though he would stay on as a consultant. In 1968, the 4.2-liter Series 2 debuted, followed by the ill-conceived V12 Series 3 E-type of 1971.



Things Get Messy - BMC also owned Austin-Healey and MG, and in 1966 became British Motor Holdings. This entity merged with Leyland, owner of Triumph and Rover, in 1968, to become the British Leyland Motor Company. At this point, many of the Jaguars rolling out of Coventry were sedans like the new XJ6, plus the Series 3 XKE. But Jag was still close to bankruptcy, so in 1975, the government took control under a new name, Leyland Cars. This didn`t work either, so Jaguar Rover Triumph split off. After years of struggle, the XJ40 made its debut and became solvent once again. In 1984, the company was privatized again, and in 1985, Lyons died.



Ford Steps In - The idea of staunchly British Jaguar having a foreign owner was inconceivable--unless you were the head of Jaguar and knew the company needed resources for new models. Enter Ford Motor Company with $2.56 billion in 1990. The company used the cash to modernize and expand its facilities, and to produce XKR and XK8 sports coupes. It also brought the much anticipated XJ 220 prototype to market in 1992--to nearly worldwide disappointment. The 6.2-liter V12 had been downgraded to a 3.5-liter V6 and the all-wheel drive was swapped for more conventional rear-wheel drive. The car wasn`t even legal to own in the U.S.



The Modern Era - Jaguar continues to build X-type cars, both sedans and coupes, with a sporting heritage. The latest line-up includes the XJ, XK, and XF, all of which seem to share something with owner Ford and stable mate Volvo. Not for long, though--in 2008, Jaguar was sold once again, thanks to the auto industry`s fall from great heights. In a neat twist on history, Jaguar (along with Land Rover) is owned by Tata Motors, based in the former British colony of India.



Lamborghini - Ferruccio Lamborghini was a self made millionaire; he made a fortune by building tractors from army surplus left by the Allied Forces back in 1945. He started this business from a small garage but soon was able to move to larger buildings because demand for his very powerful tractors rose.



He also started manufacturing oil burners and air-conditioning systems after his tractor plant started making lots of money, it turned out his second business also made big money so Ferruccio Lamborghini became one the wealthiest men in Italy. He could afford just about everything he wanted, including high speed GT cars like the Mercedes SL300 and Ferrari he owned alongside the Jaguar he liked very much.



But his Ferrari started giving problems with the clutch, the local workshop couldn`t fix this problem so Ferruccio decided to drive to Modena and confront Enzo Ferrari himself. But Enzo, who was known for his arrogance, told this `farmer` to take a walk, Ferruccio was furious and at that moment decided to show Enzo how he should build GT cars.



Of course this is a legend, and the truth about it could be a little different, it was obvious that Ferruccio had lots of money to spare and the GT car market was still open for new things, money could still be made by building high speed, well finished cars, so it is more likely this persuaded Lamborghini to start his own company.



The Lamborghini 350 GTV prototype was shown to the public on the Turin Auto Show of 1963, it was however not built in this new factory, because the tooling equipment wasn`t delivered yet, so Ferruccio decided to finish this car in a closed section of his Tractor plant in Cento di Ferrara.



In 1964 the first 350 GT`s were able to be completed in this new plant, Touring supplied the bodywork the chassis and the engine were mounted together with the leather interior.



The future of Automobili Lamborghini SpA looked very bright during the sixties, the 350 GT was succeeded by the 400 GT and the 400 GT 2+2, but the best move Ferruccio allowed his engineers to take was the design and construction of the Lamborghini Miura. The 350 GT and 400 GT 2+2 made the Lamborghini name known throughout the world, but the Miura made it legendary and the name alone made people dream of supercars and road-ready race cars.



The Countach was shown as the successor of the Miura and together with the Espada, these two cars kept the company alive through some very troublesome times. With the futuristic Countach, Lamborghini managed to build an extreme looking car that was usable on the road, this car made the name Lamborghini enter automotive history. Even if by some strange way, Automobili Lamborghini SpA was to disappear from the market, the name would stay known as one of the most extreme Italian car builders ever.



April 1994 brought a new president to the company, Michael J. Kimberly, former top manager for Lotus and Jaguar was attracted by the Indonesian owner to keep Automobili Lamborghini SpA at the top of the supercar market, one of his first decisions was to evaluate a plan to put the LM 002 back in production after it was halted in 1992, but the LM002 was never put back online.



But the long awaited open top version of the Diablo did go into production, the Diablo VT Roadster became an immediate success and sales for the United States started to boom, the US based subsidiary of Automobili Lamborghini SpA was renamed to ALUSA, standing for Automobili Lamborghini United States of America, and was headed by Robert A. Bramer. But things started to worsen and the ALUSA encountered financial problems from the start, they were unable to pay their supplies from Italy.



Towards the end of 1997 Di Capua started negotiations with Audi AG for the use of their 4.2-Litre V-8 engine together with the Audi A8 Quattro four-wheel drive to be used in the new `Baby Lambo` since developing an all-new V-10 engine seemed impossible at the time.



To start working Audi AG already invested DM 50,000,000 in the factory to get the research for the Canto back on its feet. Since the Audi AG takeover the future of this `small` factory is looking better every day, once again there is enough capital to develop the successor of the famous Diablo, and even a smaller `entry-level` follow-up to the Jalpa is under consideration. Some sources even state that during the first years of the next millennium, a new car will be designed like the Espada in its time, even a new off-road utility vehicle is still possible, things we can only wait for and hope everything keeps going in Italy without too many German influence from Audi AG.



Maserati - The Company was founded in 1914 by six Maserati brothers: Carlo, Bindo, Alfieri, Mario, Ettore and Ernesto. Based in Bologna, Italy, the brothers were racing enthusiasts and planned to craft race cars for private use. Mario, an artist, was believed to have based the company`s trident emblem on a statue of the mythological god Neptune found in a Bologna square.



Throughout the `20s and `30s, the Maserati brothers scored many wins around the globe in their custom-built race cars. In 1937, the surviving brothers sold their stake in the company to the Orsi family, who moved the company`s headquarters to Modena. A couple of years later, one of the automaker`s cars won the prestigious Indianapolis 500.



The company didn`t start building road cars until the A6 coupe, which was made from 1947-`57. With only 138 cars produced in that long span, most of Maserati`s money came from its other products: spark plugs and car batteries. The Maserati 3500 GT, fitted with a double-overhead-cam inline six, debuted in the mid-1950s.



By the 1960s, the automaker had shifted its focus from race cars to road cars. The company rolled out sexy models like the Mistral Coupe and the Sebring. But it wasn`t until 1966, with the introduction of the sleek Giugiaro-styled Ghibli, that Maserati fielded a truly powerful (330-horsepower V8) and sexy Italian sports car. In 1968, the marque was purchased by Citroën.



Throughout the 1970s, Maserati made the most of its partnership with Citroën, using some of that company`s suspension and steering components in Maserati cars such as the V8 Bora and V6 Merak models. The decade`s fuel crisis took its toll, though, wreaking havoc and killing demand for the sort of gas-guzzling sports cars that were Maserati`s specialty. Citroën was driven into bankruptcy and Maserati was placed in liquidation.



In 1975, the company was purchased by Alejandro de Tomaso, an Argentinean who had a previous life as a successful race car driver. He quickly rolled out a new model, the Quattroporte III, a four-door luxury sedan.



The 1980s were an especially dark time for Maserati. Its main model for the U.S. market, the Biturbo, was bland and notoriously unreliable. In 1991, the company stopped importing cars into the U.S. completely. Fiat bought Maserati in 1993 and variants of the Biturbo continued to be produced until the factory closed in 1997 for a total refurbishing. During this time, Ferrari bought 50 percent of Maserati; Ferrari went on to acquire full control of the marque. After the factory`s rebirth, Maserati started production of a pair of world-class cars, the current two-seat Spyder roadster and the four-seat Coupe. With powerful V8 engines, the availability of an F1-style gearbox, styling by Giugiaro and vastly improved build quality, the new Maserati cars were introduced to the U.S. market for 2002 and have restored prestige to this Italian sports car company.



In 2005, Maserati was split from Ferrari but remained within the Fiat fold. That year also saw the reintroduction of the Quattroporte luxury sport sedan, which is now accompanied by the voluptuous GranTurismo coupe. Today`s Maseratis may lack the brand recognition of the marque`s Italian rival, but they hold the advantage of being considerably more affordable while still offering sexy Italian styling and supercar performance



Mercedes-Benz - The invention in the 1880s of the high-speed engine and the automobile allowed Gottlieb Daimler and Karl Benz (independently of one another) to lay the foundations for motorized road transportation. With the help of financial backers and partners, they invested their private funds in their own enterprises in Mannheim, Germany: Benz founded the firm Benz & Cie. in October 1883, and Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (DMG) was formed in November 1890.



In order to gain publicity and a certain distinction for their products, both companies sought a suitable trademark. To begin with, the inventors used their own names – “Benz” and “Daimler” – which vouched for the origin and quality of the engines and vehicles. The trademark of the Mannheim-based company Benz & Cie. remained unchanged, except that in 1909, the cog wheel symbol which had been used since 1903 was replaced with a laurel wreath surrounding the name Benz. But the turn of the century brought a completely new brand name for products from Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (DMG) in Cannstatt: “Mercedes” - a Spanish girl’s name meaning ‘grace’ – was the name of the daughter born in 1889 to the Austrian businessman, Emil Jellinek, who had homes in Baden near Vienna and Nice.



The first vehicle to be fitted with the new engine, a 35-hp racing car, was delivered to Jellinek by DMG on December 22, 1900. This first ‘Mercedes’, developed by Wilhelm Maybach, the chief engineer at DMG, caused quite a stir at the beginning of the new century. With its low centre of gravity, pressed-steel frame, lightweight high-performance engine and honeycomb radiator, it featured numerous innovations and is regarded today as the first modern automobile.



The Nice Week in March 1901, during which the Mercedes vehicles were found to be unbeatable in virtually every discipline, attracted enormous publicity for Jellinek and the Mercedes.



The origin of the star-DMG now had a successful brand name, but still lacked a characteristic trademark. Then Paul and Adolf Daimler – the company founder’s two sons, and now senior executives at DMG – remembered that their father, who had died in March 1900 shortly before his 66th birthday, had once used a star as a symbol.



The three-pointed star was supposed to symbolize Daimler’s ambition of universal motorization – “on land, on water and in the air”. Over the years, various small additions were made. In 1916, the tips were surrounded by a circle, in which four small stars and the word Mercedes were integrated, or alternatively the names of the DMG plants at Untertürkheim or Berlin-Marienfelde.



The period of inflation after the First World War meant a difficult time for sales – especially of luxury goods such as passenger cars – and had serious repercussions on the automotive industry.



Only financially strong companies with well-established brands were able to survive – although even these were frequently forced into mergers and cooperative ventures. It was in this way that the former rivals, DMG and Benz & Cie., formed a syndicate in 1924 in order to standardize design and production, as well as purchasing, sales and advertising, and thereby remain competitive.



Like the coupé version, the new Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Roadster once again unites the legend of the successful SLR racing models from the 1950s the 3000SL with the innovative technology of modern Formula 1 vehicles from the Vodafone-McLaren-Mercedes team. Typical stylistic elements, such as the arrow-shaped tip of the Formula 1 Silver Arrow, establish a visual link with the racing cars. The SLR leg-end of the 50s lives on stylistically in the distinctive lateral louvers, side pipes behind the front wheels and the wide-opening gull wing doors.



The new Roadster benefits technically from the many years of experience of Mercedes-Benz and its Formula 1 partner McLaren. Apart from two aluminium engine frames, its body is made entirely of carbon-fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) materials, making the vehicle an exception among high-performance sports cars. Especially for the Roadster, complex carbon-fibre technology has been intelligently further developed for the monocoque chassis.



The result is low weight, exemplary energy absorption and, therefore, extremely high occupant safety as well as a degree of torsional stiffness hitherto unattained in open-top vehicles. This leads to outstanding ride characteristics of the kind otherwise found only in closed-top super sports cars.



Porsche - The very first Porsche, a hand-built aluminium prototype, was completed on June 8, 1948. The history of Porsche automobiles goes back much farther, however, all the way back to 1900 when Dr. Ferdinand Porsche introduced his first design, a Lohner-Porsche.



In the ‘30s a Ferdinand Porsche designed a very innovative: a V-16 4.5-liter engine placed ahead of the rear transaxle, tube frame, aluminium skin weighing 99 pounds, gas tank between the cockpit and the engine (in the centre of the car so that weight gain or loss with gas load did not unduly impact handling), a front suspension of torsion bars and trailing arms, and a rear suspension of swing axles, semi-elliptical springs, and tube-type shocks.



In June of 1934, the Third Reich signed a contract to build prototype Volkswagens. By the winter of 1936, three prototypes, the VW3, had been built in the garages of Professor Porsche`s home. In early 1937, the Nazi `oversight` organization, the RDA (Reichverband der Deutschen Automobilindustrie) recommended further development and that 30 additional prototypes be built by Daimler-Benz. During the testing of the VW3O, the Reich selected an estate northeast of Hanover to become the site of the Volkswagen factory. "Die Autostadt" was born; today it is Wolfsburg, still the worldwide headquarters of Volkswagen.



During the winter of 1947-48, a Zurich car distributor ordered five Porsches and the Type 356 was put into production in the old saw mill in Gmund. Built entirely by hand, these cars adopted a more Volkswagen-like layout in order to have vestigial back seats: the engine was moved behind the transaxle



1963 – To date The Porsche 911 is one of the few cars that have such a long history. In the more than 30 years the 911 exists, over 50 different models have been available. It`s about precision at speed, not the actual speed itself. Through continuous improvements and cosmetic changes Porsche kept the 911 up-to-date



Rolls-Royce - Phantom Drophead Coupé is a British handmade convertible manufactured by Rolls-Royce that debuted at the 2007 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan. The platform is based on the 2003 Rolls-Royce Phantom and has styling heavily derived from the 100EX, a concept car unveiled to celebrate the company`s centennial in 2004. It is currently the most expensive Rolls-Royce model



The exterior remains faithful to the marine-nautical theme of the 100EX. The two-door four-seat convertible features rearward opening coach doors and a two-tone colour scheme that delineates between the upper and lower bodywork and frames the teak wood panelling of the convertible`s tonneau cover. Unlike the 2004 concept car, however, the production unit eschews the EX`s aluminium bonnet in favour of more easily maintained stainless steel.



The front fascia takes its cues from the 100EX but with the crucial difference of the middle bodywork/raised bonnet/grille assemblage terminating midway down the face rather than continuing downwards and bisecting the front bumper. The headlamps are also taken straight out of the 100EX/101EX concept and are similar to the Phantom`s. The deep set rectangular high beams are light-emitting diode (LED) units while the round "faux-fog lamp" driving lights are projector-style xenon arc lamps. The exterior is available in more than 44,000 colour combinations.



It combines aluminium technology and hand-crafted materials. All in all, the car continues Rolls-Royce`s current design theme, premiered on the Phantom, combining features of luxuriant 1930s Art Deco with cold 21st century "techno-modern".



The interior is a modern avant-garde reinterpretation of the traditional English gentlemen`s clubroom with stylistic influences ranging from minimalism to Art Deco. Perhaps the car`s main design showcase is the yachting-inspired wood veneering that wraps around the 8/9ths top portion of the cabin from coach door to coach door and terminating in a crafted convertible tonneau cover, hand-finished in nautical-grade teak wood panelling sandwiched between an interior band of contrasting hardwood and the bare stainless steel motif of the car`s upper exterior bodywork.



Similarly with the 100EX and 101EX, the dashboard and the steering wheel are straight out of the Phantom.

Like other current Rolls-Royce models, the hood ornament, the Spirit of Ecstasy, is retractable with options to have it automatically retract into the bonnet whenever the car is locked or whenever the driver so chooses; the option is selected in the glove box as with the Phantom sedan.



Information resource-



1. Wikipedia

2. The Automotive Century: Most Influential People

3. The History of BMW

4. Ferrari History

5. The History of Maserati

6. Chevrolet Corvette History – Edmunds

7. History Of Bentley Auto, by Irving Robbin

8. Mercedes-Benz Automobile - By Dr. Josef Ernst

9. The Cat`s Meow: A History of Jaguar - Kristen Hall-Geisler,

10. The history of Automobili Lamborghini SpA