Italy Travel: Hire a Car in Italy; Motor History and Fine Dining

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Posted on 30th May 2010 by admin in Motor Car

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Italy is a beautiful country but is one of those countries which you probably have some questions and preconceptions, before your coming to this special country. A place of olive oil, pasta, wine, ingroup and sunshine, roman ruins and renaissance palaces, Italy has a lot to give its tourists. Even though some of these conceptions are astonishing and interesting, it would be a shame if that was the only thing you come away with. Italy is certainly much more complex and stimulating than these concepts.

Italy is a country renowned for its style and love of fashion, nowhere is this truer than in the automobile industry. The designers of Italy have produced some of the most sumptuously styled automobiles ever prefabricated and with patrons such as Lamborghini and Ferrari this is not surprising. An saint tour for any automobile nut is to use a hire automobile to tour the wealth of museums that Italy has to offer the motoring enthusiast.

Turin is where the majority of the museums are situated, the Museo Dell’ Vehicle (Car Museum) is one of the oldest and has an eclectic collection of automobiles not only from Italy but from all over Europe. With plenty of parking it makes an saint excursion in a hire automobile when staying in Turin. Models contained in the collection include Bugattis, Austins, Citroens and Bentleys as well as Italian automobiles such as Alfa Romeos and Autobianchis.

What would be a tour of automobile museums in Italy without seeing a Ferrari? Modena is a short and pleasant drive in your hire automobile and will take to you into the motherland of Ferrari. The Galleria Ferrari is the officially sanctioned museum and grants visitors to get close to automobiles they have dreamed of since childhood. Not just road automobiles are exhibited with Scuderia showing off their racing credentials to full effect, enthusiasts will be enthralled by the engines and other parts.

The road automobiles on display offer a chance to see some of the most famous automobiles Italy has ever produced. Automobiles like the legendary 250 GT are in the collection and are the closest the average automobile enthusiast will get to them considering their extortionate price. Coming through to modern times the F50 and Enzo are also present, even though seeing them action is not always possible. The only downside to visiting this museum is covering the realisation that you must climb back into your hire automobile to drive home.

It is not just Ferrari that makes the automobile industry in Italy so stylish, when on your hire automobile holiday be sure to visit the Pininfarina Collection. This design home has designed some of the most gorgeous automobiles in history and its study is synonymous with grace and fine lines. The company has designed automobiles for a diverse selection of automobile manufacturers.

Past clients have included Maseratti, Honda, Cadillac and of course Ferrari. In fact the majority of seminal Ferrari’s have been penned by Pininfarina, the collection and accompanying museum gives and intent how this company has shaped the styling of automobiles throughout the world.

Your hire automobile tour however should not purely be limited to automobile museums however; the towns and villages of Italy are full of culture and history. The coastline is strikingly beautiful and gives bathers the chance to dip onto the warm waters of the Mediterranean.

The fine cuisine of Italy is heralded as some of the finest in the world and includes more than just pasta and spaghetti. Varying much from region to region there is a full array of rice dishes, fine red meats and of course pizza. The penchant for fresh herbs and olives runs throughout the cuisine and complements the wines perfectly.

Touring the vineyards would make up a brilliant hire automobile trip alone with fine reds and mellow whites it offers the wine enthusiast much. Again regions have their own specialities to suit the local cuisine. Chianti and Asti are two of the most famous varieties of wines in Italy but there is far more to the Italian wine making industry than these two classics.

Touring Italy in a hire automobile is an saint trip for those who want to sample the country. Of course automobile enthusiasts will be attracted by the long tradition of automobile manufacture and elegant styling, but Italy offers much more than this. As a romantic destination it is unparalleled while those who love the finer things in life will be spoilt for choice by the sumptuous cuisine and wine.

Find Italy travel and more useful information about travel tips at this travel directory.

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A Brief History of Bmw Motor Cars

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Posted on 29th March 2010 by admin in Motor Car

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The BMW story starts way back in 1913 with the formation of the Rapp-Motorenwerke company by Karl Rapp. The firm were engaged in the production of aircraft engines from a former bicycle works located near Munich. It was close to this plant that Gustav Otto established the Bayerische Flugzeugwerke AG aircraft works and in 1922 these two organisations merged to form BMW. The letters stand for: Bayerische Motoren Werke.

In their primeval years BMW produced mainly aircraft engines, but also some motorcycle engines. In fact the BMW badge is supposed to resemble a spinning aircraft propeller. It wasn’t until 1928 when BMW purchased a vehicle works at Eisenach/Thuringia that BMW began producing cars. Along with the works they purchased the licence to produce a small vehicle called the Dixi. The first automobiles produced by BMW at the plant were badged BMW Dixi, but the word Dixi was soon dropped. They introduced a new model called the BMW 3/15 DA-2 and the success of this vehicle enabled them to survive the great depression.

It was in 1936 that BMW introduced the type 328 roadster which swiftly became the most successful sports vehicle of the time. The 328, designed by Fritz Fiedler, featured a number of innovative features including a stylish, aerodynamic body shape. It used an inline 6-cylinder engine which gave the vehicle excellent performance and it was renowned for its excellent handling. The type 328 roadster accumulated a number of prestigious wins on the racing circuit and was nominated as vehicle of the century in 1999.

BMW’s involvement in aircraft engine production during WWII led to a 3 year ban on production at the end of the war. It wasn’t until 1949 that they were healthy to return to production which they did with the 250cc R24 motorcycle.

It was in 1951 that BMW introduced a spacious, 6-cylinder sedan called the 501. This was followed by the 502 which featured a lightweight alloy V8 engine. Later in the 1950s they began producing the BMW 507, a lightweight, V8 propelled sports car. This was the automobile they hoped would revive the sporting success they’d reached with the 328 roadster. But this wasn’t to be. They were losing money on each 507 that was produced and so production stopped in 1960.

Also during the 1950s BMW purchased the design and manufacturing rights to the Isetta which was to become one of the most successful microcars in the post WWII years. It was a time when cheap, short distance transportation was much needed and the 2-seater, with an economical 250cc engine, fit the stipulations nicely. Manufacturing rights for the Isetta were sold to various production companies around the world and these included the British Railways works in Brighton, UK.

The 1960s saw BMW enjoying a number of notable successes including the BMW 1500 which was a 1499cc, four cylinder touring sedan introduced in 1961. This was the first of the modern BMW sports sedans. They went on to produce a series of favourite sedans including the famous BMW 2002. This was a 2-door sedan that had been based upon the 4-door 1600. The 2002 was to be the forerunner of the BMW 3 series and production of this successful model continued until 1976.

By the 1970s BMW had cemented their reputation as an innovative vehicle manufacturing company. The 70s saw the introduction of the 3-tier sports sedan range consisting of the 3-series, 5-series and the 7-series. Between 1970 and 1993 BMW vehicle production quadrupled and turnover increased by 1700%.

The 1990s, after 1994, saw BMW take ownership of the British Rover Group. This was not a successful venture and in 2000 BMW disposed of Rover.

Today’s ‘beemers’ have retained their highly prestigious reputation for calibre and reliability. The company are taking steps to reduce the impact they and their motor automobiles have upon the environment so we can anticipate to see more innovative and exciting developments from the motor vehicle company who have not only survived two world wars and a big depression, but thrived.

By Tony Gee -

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