Search results for ‘ fast cars ’ - 74 hit

Ferruccio Lamborghini – a Famous Taurean

Ferruccio Lamborghini was born in a village near Bologna, Italy in 1916. His astrological sign was Taurus the bull. Although his parents were farmers young Ferruccio did not inherit their love for the land. Instead, he was fascinated by things technical and enjoyed working on his father’s tractors.

He graduated from a technical university in Bologna and went into the Italian Air Force during World War 2. He was stationed at Rhodes, Greece where he was in charge of the transport section. In 1944, Lamborghini was taken prisoner by the British and assigned to work in the motoring department.

At the end of the war, Lamborghini was released and returned to his hometown. At this time, he saw that Italian farmers were desperately in need of tractors. Using war surplus materials, he started building tractors for his neighbors in his garage. However, his business prospered and he soon needed to relocate to larger quarters. He was now known for building the best tractors in Italy. He then opened a second factory, which produced air conditioning and heating equipment.

In addition to becoming a wealthy man he was also developing an interest in and love for fast cars. Among others, he owned a Mercedes, a Jaguar and a Ferrari. However he had clutch problems with the Ferrari and went to Enzo to complain. At this point there are some discrepancies among the reports. Some say that when he approached Enzo, Enzo refused to see him, which angered Lamborghini. Other sources report that Enzo did see him but refused to listen and told him something to the effect that a tractor manufacturer had no business criticizing a Ferrari and he should return to tractors. However, whatever story is true, the episode angered Lamborghini and he determined to get even with Enzo.

First, he solved his clutch problem by installing a Borg and Beck clutch on his Ferrari. Then he decided to start manufacturing automobiles with the goal of surpassing Ferrari and proving that a super car did not have to be as temperamental as the Ferrari.

He employed Gianpaolo Dallara and Bob Wallace who had originally been engineers for Ferrari to help him with his new project. The first model to be produced was the Lamborghini 350 GT, which proved to be superior to the Ferrari in every detail. Another model soon followed and then came the legendary Miura.

The Lamborghini crest originated from Ferruccio’s astrological sign, the bull and the Miura’s namesake was Don Eduardo Miura, a famous European breeder of fighting bulls. The Islero was then named for the Miura bull that killed Manolete, the famous matador. Espana means sword and the sword is the matador’s weapon. Jarama was an area that was famous both for bull fighting and motor racing.

The Countach put an end to the legacy of bulls. Countach is not literally translatable but the closest meaning is wolf whistle and it has no connection to bull fighting.

Lamborghini sold out his varied interests in the 70’s and retired in Perugia. He started what would become a very successful winery. His wine was called ‘Blood of the Miura.’

2010
08/29
CATEGORY
Car Reviews
TAGS



Write comment

You Need To This About The Porsche Boxster

The Porsche Boxster and Boxster S are fast, powerful cars and most of all the best-handling production roadsters on the planet. Introduced in 1996, it remained essentially unchanged, other than moderate horsepower and interior-options tweaks. That’s what Porsche usually does with the successful models: it retains car look and configuration for ages. A more powerful second-generation Boxster was introduced in 2005 and it keeps Porsche’s conservative evolutionary path. Like its precedent, it is a mid-engine, six-cylinder two-seater that looks like Porsche Spyder. Still, over half of Boxster`s structure and electronics are borrowed from the 911 Carrera. The 2005 Boxster looks sprightlier than its 2004 equivalent, thanks to the revision of the torque and the 15 added hp and the extra power coming on strongly between 2000rpm and 4000 rpm. The 2005 Boxster S virtually equals the acceleration and top-speed performance of Porsche’s expensive 911 Carrera. The Boxster exhaust has been tuned to play a distinctive tromboning wail like no other car. This is a amazing thing thinking that both engines are smaller versions of the six-cylinder in the Carrera.

The transmission for base Boxters is five-speed manual but the optional variant offers a six-speed. Both models can also be fitted with a five-speed Tiptronic, the superb Porsche-designed automatic transmission that began the trend toward manually shifted automatics.

The bodywork and the interior of the Boxster are of high quality, but considering that there’s noting tricky or purely decorative, we can definitely say that these are not opulent cars. Still, the interior has been improved since the old car was often criticized for being to cheap-looking. The center console has been upgraded with revised switch-gear and titanium look paneling. The seats are more supportive and body-shaped in the new version, making them look absolutely superb. Unlike other roadsters, the Boxster has no problem swallowing luggage for a long trip: it has two trunks, a small one in the rear and an amply deep one under the front hood.

One of The Boxster`s best qualities is the powered convertible top, very quick to retract or re-erect. In the new Boxster, the top can be operated at speeds up to 30 mph. The triple-layer padded cloth tops (with a heated-glass rear window) is as weather-tight and quiet as most metal roofs.

The Boxster is called a mid engine-car. The reason is that the sweet six-cylinder engine is mounted behind the seats, just fore of the rear axle. So if you wand to see what’s under the hood once in while, well…you can’t do that with The Boxster. The only way to see the engine is from underneath or by meticulously removing body panels, which mechanics must do to service the engine. But, the good news is that having the engine mounted closer to the center of the car makes for better weight distribution. And that’s what makes the car handle so well.

Having spent months of research on different subjects, for independant companies, Andrew Manifield has decided to publish his articles on many subjects at his own website, visit to learn more.

http://www.qualified-publishing.co.uk/porsche

2010
08/21
CATEGORY
Car Reviews
TAGS




Write comment