THE HISTORY OF THE AUTOMOBILE

(E) Most people have never heard of Cisitalia, but without it today’s cars would look very different. It was the first car to establish leading Italian stylists. Its hood was lower than its front wings; its headlights blended into the body rather than being freestanding; and its unadorned, low-slung profile broke away from the bulky, traditional look that cars still retained. Its wings, for instance, were totally integrated into the bodywork rather than suggesting old-fashioned fenders, but its overall shape was utterly harmonious. Critics soon recognized its masterpiece status. Thanks to extremely slippery aerodynamics, the car topped 161kph. It was a single-seated racing car with Fiat front suspension and engine. In 1949, Cisitalia faced bankruptcy due to over-ambitious plans for a Porsche-designed car.

Hudson was among the last of the American ‘independents’ – carmakers that struggled and ultimately failed in the face of the mighty Ford, General Motors and Chrysler. Its cars were mostly unremarkable. They were nicknamed ‘Step Down’, because driver and passengers stepped down into their seats due to a unitary-construction method. Instead of the body being bolted on top of the chassis, the floor pan was suspended from the bottom of it. All the occupants sat within the chassis side members, which acted as a strong, encircling perimeter frame. As a part of the design, the chassis extended around the outside of the rear wheels. Hudson’s stylists then came up with sleek and handsome bodywork that made a 1948 Hudson the ‘car to own’. The range went from the budget-priced Pacemaker to the Commodore.

TASCO is an acronym for The American Sportscar Company. It featured an enclosed cockpit like that of a light aircraft. Above the heads of driver and passenger were lift-out glass panels in the first-ever rendering of the ‘T-bar’ roof. The cast-magnesium wheels were fully enclosed in their own fairings. The front two were made from fiberglass and turned with the wheels. Gordon Buehrig, an extremely talented stylist who had worked all over the American car industry, but was most closely associated with the 1935 Auburn Speedster and 1936 Cord 810. Buehrig was never happy with the TASCO, saying it was designed by the investors. No doubt, car and design students today would disagree.

1. Answer these questions:

a) What do you remember about Cisitalia?

b) What can you say about its headlights, profile and wings?

c) How could Cisitalia top 161kph?

d) Why did the company face bankruptcy?

e) Can you tell anything about ‘independents’?

f) Is there anything interesting about Hudson’s ‘Step Down’ in the text?

g) What is TASCO?

h) What have you found out about its cockpit, panels and wheels?

2. Make sure that you know how to pronounce and translate these terms:

Hood, wings, headlights, fender, masterpiece status, slippery aerodynamics, single-seated racing car, over-ambitious plans, chassis, floor pan, sleek and handsome bodywork, enclosed cockpit, lift-out glass panels, roof, fiberglass fairings, car industry.

3. Match the words with their definitions:

4. Complete the multiple choice test:

1. This gear is used when the car stops for a short time, like at traffic lights.

A) neutral gear B) reverse gear C) first gear

2. From the change gears the movement is transmitted to the back axle by…

A) camshaft B) crankshaft C) propeller shaft

3. This gear is used to increase the speed of the car.

A) first gear B) second gear C) top gear

4. This gear is used to start the car moving.

A) first gear B) second gear C) top gear

5. The piston rings rub against …

A) the cylinder walls B) the crankshaft C) propeller shaft

6. This gear is used when the car goes backwards.

A) reverse gear B) rear gear C) back gear

Date: 2015-12-17; view: 879