By 2040 the UK Government hopes to completely ban the sale of pure petrol and diesel cars. Yet look at the statistics for 2018 and you鈥檒l see that a mini-revolution has been brewing. While diesel models used to account for nearly half of all British new car sales, registrations are down by 29.8 per cent and now stand at one third, and falling. The petrol-powered Mercedes GLC 250 therefore seems like a car appropriate for the times. It鈥檚 a relatively new addition to the GLC line-up; aimed squarely at buyers nervy of diesel鈥檚 demise. On paper at least, it fills a neat, emerging gap in the market, and out on the road it feels like a pretty convincing option. Using Mercedes鈥?latest 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo petrol engine, the GLC 250 injects a bit more refinement into the 鈥榚veryday鈥?(sub-AMG) end of the GLC line-up, which previously was a diesel-only zone.
Add the optional Air Body Control suspension set-up on our car (a 拢350 option), and the 250 immediately becomes the quietest and most comfortable member of the GLC pack. With the brand鈥檚 mid-size SUV a less dynamic proposition than a BMW X3, Jaguar F-Pace or Porsche Macan, the petrol motor feels perfectly at home here. You probably won鈥檛 miss the extra grunt of the 250 d model, either. While the petrol version鈥檚 350Nm torque figure leaves it 150Nm down on the diesel, it weighs 120kg less - and as such it outguns its sibling from a performance perspective. Every version gets the same high-quality interior, with enough space for all the family and their luggage. While the infotainment system is starting to show its age alongside more modern Mercedes models such as the G-Class, it鈥檚 still packed with tech. This version costs around 拢1,000 less than its diesel-powered GLC 250 d twin, and sits in a lower Benefit-in-Kind (BiK) company car tax band, too. But there鈥檚 no avoiding the fact that the petrol GLC will cost more to run. Official fuel economy of 37.2mpg puts it near enough 10mpg shy of the entry-level 220 d. Even the 250 d will officially return more than 45mpg - so while the petrol car is an enticing proposition, it鈥檚 likely only to find favour with lower-mileage motorists.
The Lamborghini compani ! The company, named after Lamborghini, is a "daughter禄 Audi and "granddaughter禄 VW. Speaking figuratively, the firm Lamborghini compared to a giant concern Volkswagen - is a grain of sand in the desert. But such is tiny by modern scale "small factory" has quite a good chance in the market, because it produces a supercar capable of speeds up to 350 kilometers per hour. Of course, there are many people who call these speeds madness, and lead many arguments against an unimaginable amount of "horsepower". But more than a hundred years, there are many fans of Lamborghini, who look forward to "publication" of each new model with a bull in the logo. By the way, this is not quite the bull bull - is Taurus - the sign under which the company's founder was born Ferruccio Lamborghini. One who will be in the region of Emilia-Romagna, once confronted with the fact that Italians are so fond of-Northerners: Parma ham and mortadella sausage, lasagna and tortellini, Giuseppe Verdi and Federico Fellini.
But the most important - it is here in Emillii-Romagna, is the heart of the Italian automotive industry. Moreover, it is not about the city of Turin - the capital of auto giant FIAT. Here, not far from the towns of Modena and Bologna, to produce cars that make the heart beat faster real motorists - Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maseratti and a dozen little-known models, such as Osca, de Tomaso, Stanguellini, Volpini, Serenissima and others. These cars are built, as a rule, in the backyards of firms producing racing cars. Lamborghini takes a special position in the region. History of this company is interesting because it occurred differently than, for example, Opel, which has grown from a bicycle factory, or Daimler, whose roots go back to the tiny motor chaise. Here the decision was easy. Lamborghini. Basta. It is clear that this approach to the problem of "outside" remains the economic calculations, the decision was taken under pressure just emotions. Here we make a small detour before you talk about what prompted Lamborghini audacious idea to briefly introduce you to his biography. One legend begins, the early morning hot summer in 1962 at the entrance to the office of Enzo Ferrari in Maranello stopped car Ferrari 365 GT. From it came Ferruccio Lamborghini and went straight to the reception chief. The visitor is struck by the bright red - the colors of Ferrari - suspenders, explained to the secretary that he wanted to speak with Ferrari about the shortcomings and weaknesses of his car. And discuss face to face - as is common in the circles of these entrepreneurs. The secretary went in to his boss, I forgot to close the door, so the visitor became an involuntary witness the conversation.