Car History – Page 2 – Autoprova

The Villa Trasqua team’s 1929 Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 Super Sport driven by the duo of Vesco and Salvinelli took the top step of the podium

The 42nd edition of the 1000 Miglia has been run beautifully again. The “Mille” is a race which has a very special place in my heart, as I have participated in it forming a team with my father in the official Mercedes Factory team, at the wheel of a works car. In the Mercedes team entry was then also Stirling Moss, and you can imagine that being in the same team, talking to him and wearing the same Mercedes Team racing overall as the celebrated champion was the pinnacle of what we would ever experience in our motoring life. I still have and cherish the Mille Miglia Shopard Watch with our entry number, 147, engraved in the back.

The Lancia Autrelia’s of the Automobile Club di Brescia were then the car on the winners podium, and now today Alfa Romeo’s undisputed dominance of the 1000 Miglia continues.

The 1927 Lancia Lambda Casaro VII Serie, crewed by Fontanella and Covelli, won the silver medal.

The route of the Mille Miglia is in itself totally epic…

From Brescia it went for the first time in 76 years also to Turin, then from Genoa and the beaches of Viareggio to Via Veneto in the heart of Rome, then returning north via Siena, Ferrara and Lake Garda, to end with the traditional parade on Viale Venezia in Brescia, where it all began back in 1927.

Once again this year, the pass-by of this epic “traveling museum” aroused enthusiasm and curiosity among the throngs of spectators who crowded the route of over 2,000 km.

Also remarkable was the participation of the Alfa Romeo Junior, the new compact car that brings Alfa Romeo sportiness back into the largest segment in the European market.

The New Lancia Ypsilon finished at the third position participating for the first time at the 1000 Miglia Green. And this on the very same days the model became available at Italian dealerships! Needless to say that we are keen to drive both cars soon…

As you will recall, I mentioned this already earlier in my columns, I have been a Lancia owner for four years, driving a dark midnight blue Lancia Dedra. It NEVER missed a beat, come what may and accompanied me in many iconic European places and cities. After that, I drove for half a year a Lancia Gamma, which also was fast, reliable and full of panache.

But back to the Mille Miglia: what a fantastic event, it still moves my heart.

Hans Knol ten Bensel

*The “Ur” Golf, which looks still quite “modern”, 50 years later.*

Many people will say that things are changing rapidly, and many things have disappeared or are not what they used to be. Well, we can be sure of one thing: the Golf, the heart of what Volkswagen as a car manufacturer stands for, is still amongst us.

Indeed, during five decades already, the Golf still accompanies us in our automotive life. Since 1974. Then your servant got married, and drove indeed the first Golf as a test car, and has the fondest memories of this first series, especially when testing the Golf GTI. This sporting Golf created nothing short of a legend. 50 years later, the sporting sound of its 1,6 liter 110 HP engine still seduces, as does its handling and acceleration.

The stuff of eternal legends: the Golf GTI

To me, even this very first series is still a “young” car. The straight-line design created by Giorgetto Giugiaro is timeless, the proportions are just right, the “Ur” Golf still looks good from any angle. Just read further…

Hans Knol ten Bensel

An instant hit…

The Golf set out to win hearts. The Golf quickly became a true “Volkswagen”, and the first million units were sold as early as 1976. Now, more than 37 million Golf’s have hit the road.

Over the decades, the portfolio has been expanded to include further variants: besides the GTI, there was also the Golf Cabriolet or Golf Variant, or many others.

With each new model generation, state-of-the-art technologies, safety concepts and convenience features have been incorporated into the compact class. The Volkswagen Golf has thus democratised not just technologies such as the monitored catalytic converter and anti-lock braking system, but also airbags, cruise control and electronic assist systems as well as mild and plug-in hybrid drives.

In the anniversary year 2024, Volkswagen will present the evolutionary development of the eighth Golf generation. It will impress with visually refined features, new assist systems and powertrains, and also next-generation infotainment systems and software. The world premiere of the new Golf is just a few weeks away, with pre-sales scheduled for spring 2024.

Keeping history alive Volkswagen Classic will also accompany the Golf in its anniversary year and will present historic Golf models from the Volkswagen collection on numerous occasions. First rendez-vous is in Paris. From 31 January to 4 February 2024, the Golf Generations I to VII will enhance Volkswagen France’s presence at the “Salon Rétromobile” show in Paris.

Directly afterwards, from 2 to 4 February 2024, Volkswagen will show a Golf I and the unique EA 276 concept car – the Golf predecessor from 1969 developed in Wolfsburg – at the “Bremen Classic Motorshow”.

A long history… with a touch of NSU

In this first report we will focus on the first series. The concept was nothing less than a complete technical revolution for Volkswagen. They had already acquired NSU in 1969, and so the technology of in-line engines was already present in the group, with the VW K70, originally an NSU design, and the famous Prinz 1000 to 1200 TT’s. The K70 was also a front wheel drive car, and the art of “Leichtbau”, or making light bodyworks, was also already acquired with this car.

Technical forerunner of things to come: the in line 1000/1200 cc four cylinder of the NSU Prinz in the late sixties, still air cooled however…

So the beacons were set in terms of technical product design and manufacturing engineering, to make a mass produced light car with transverse 4 cylinder in line engine.

The new Golf was light, some 165 kg lighter as the Beetle. The styling was done by Italdesign under the direction of Giorgetto Giugiaro. The first Golf is also beautifully compact: only 370 cm long. It had some good power, a healthy 50 HP with the basic 1100 cc engine, and 70 HP with the 1,5 litre engine. So the performance was something the Beetle could only dream of. The chassis, suspension and handling were also in another league. On top of it all, the Golf was cheaper to produce, but cost 600 Euros more than the last Beetle 1303…

In 1976 came the Diesel and the GTI version, and as I said, from that moment on, the “modern” VW was a fact…

More soon about the Golf history…

Hans Knol ten Bensel

Category: Car History

Alfa Romeo victorious again in the 1000 Miglia 2024…

The VW Golf is now 50 years with us!