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A car or automobile is a wheeled passenger vehicle that carries its own motor. Most definitions of the term specify that automobiles are designed to run primarily on roads, to have seating for between one and six people, typically have four wheels and be constructed principally for the transport of people rather than goods. This definition includes cars and smaller SUVs - but not motorcycles, buses, trucks or vans. The term automobile is derived from Greek auto- ("self") and Latin 'mobilis' ("movable"), referring to the fact that it "moves by itself".

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The Simca Vedette is a large car, manufactured from 1954 to 1961 by the French automaker Simca, at their factory in Poissy, France. The Vedette was Simca's largest model at that time and it spawned a more economical version, the Simca Ariane.

Simca acquired the Poissy factory from Ford France (Ford Société Anonyme Française, the French subsidiary of the Ford Motor Company), along with the model line, in 1954. The Vedette was therefore initially still marketed as the Ford Vedette.

The Vedette was manufactured in Poissy until 1961 and the Ariane until 1963. After that, production continued in Brazil, where the Vedette finally evolved into the Simca Esplanada, following Simca's takeover by Chrysler. (more...)

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1975 Chevrolet Corvette convertible

Did you know...

...that the racing version of the Dauer 962 Le Mans, winner of 1994 24 Hours of Le Mans, is a roadcar converted from a Porsche 962 racecar, which dominated Le Mans, Group C and IMSA during the 1980s.
...that the 25 Millionth VW Golf rolled off the production line in Wolfsburg in March 2007. The first Golf started production in 1974, 33 years later the 1.4 litre TSI version became the 25 Millionth car.
...that the nearly identical Ford Model T engines were produced for exactly 12,000 days, making this the longest-produced engine?
...that the first production turbocharged cars were General Motors' A-body 1962 Chevrolet Corvair and Oldsmobile F-85?
...that Jeep introduced the 1993 Grand Cherokee and 2007 Wrangler in the same way — by driving them through a plate glass window?
...that a small number of Renault 20s, badged as Dacia 2000, were made in the 1980s by Dacia in Romania for Romanian communist dignitaries of that time?
...that the Autobianchi Primula was the Fiat's first automobile with the front-wheel drive, transverse engine setup and rack and pinion steering?
...that the Plymouth Sundance is a liftback, even though the outside appearance might suggest that it is a sedan?

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Category:Automobiles

Car news

Ford Motor Company announced the sales of its Jaguar and Land Rover operations

2008-03-26

March 26, 2008 Ford made an announcement its agreement to sell its Jaguar and Land Rover operations to Indian car maker Tata Motors. The total price is around US $2.3 billion in cash. Lewis Booth, executive vice president, Ford Motor Company says "This is a good agreement".

Source: [1]

Selected biography

Nicolaus Otto

Nikolaus August Otto (June 14, 1832 Holzhausen, Nassau - January 26, 1891 Cologne) was the German inventor of the internal-combustion engine, the first engine to burn fuel directly in a piston chamber. Up until his invention, all engines were external-combustion engines and fuel was burned in a separate compartment.

In 1864, Otto co-founded an engine manufacturing business in Cologne. Along with his business partner Eugen Langen he established “N.A. Otto & Cie.”. This company exists today as “Deutz AG”, who boasts the fact that they are the world's oldest engine manufacturers, with over 140 years of experience. (more...)