Jaguar began life as the Swallow Sidecar Company in 1922 and began by making sidecars for motorcycles before taking on higher goals of creating entire automobiles. The company was founded by William Lyons and William Walmsley, two motorcycle enthusiasts. Walmsley decided to leave in 1934 leaving Lyons to form S.S. Cars Limited. In order to [...]
BMW initially came about through the combination of three different manufacturing companies to make the public limited company Bayerische Motorenwerke (BMW). It was in 1918 that Rapp Motorenwerke was restructured and rebranded as BMW after merging with Bayerische Flugzeugwerke. The third company to make the new venture was Fahrzeugfabrik Eisenach. Rapp Motorenwerke This company was [...]
It was a New Zealander who gave his name to the racing team when he launched Bruce McLaren Motor Racing in 1963. Bruce was a driver for the Cooper team in Formula One winning three Grands Prix with the team and finishing second in the overall 1960 world championship. With Bruce eager to participate in [...]
Porsche is known for its sporty race cars, fast vehicles and sleek, elegant designs. The company started as a family business, with the Austrian father-son partnership of Ferdinand Porsche and his son Ferdinand, also known as “Ferry,” and later included Ferry’s son, Ferdinand Alexander (F.A.) and nephew, Ferdinand Piech. Like many other car companies, Porsche [...]
When you hear the name Aston Martin, images of luxury, class, elegance, and maybe even an old-school James Bond and British royalty probably come to mind. This brand is known for all of these things and more, and is one that has an interesting background full of success and fame, but most of all, of [...]
The British luxury car producers Rolls-Royce are one of the most recognisable brands in the world. The company was founded by two leaders of the motor car industry in Britain in 1904, Henry Royce and Charles Rolls. Although coming from completely different backgrounds, putting together their separate skills they unknowingly created an iconic British brand [...]
The Mercedes-Benz brand brings to mind a vision of quality and tradition. Not only are they one of the most well-regarded companies in the world, but they are also the oldest automobile brand that is still in existence today. From their beginnings, founders Gottlieb Daimler and Karl Benz have always been on the edge of [...]
There are many iconic sports cars manufacturers in the world. But, one that arguably stands out above the rest is Ferrari. The name is synonymous with style, high performance and motorsport. The Italian car maker has a long and rich history. Take a journey back in time with us as we discover what makes Ferrari [...]
1899 – 1909 The first vehicle to use a 4WD system was built in 1899. Ferdinand Porsche designed a battery powered model with electric hub motors at each wheel. In the following year it was presented to the public at the World Exhibition in Paris. Although this was the first 4WD design recorded in history, [...]
