Walter De'Silva
Walter Maria de Silva (born 27 February 1951) is an Italian car designer and former head of Volkswagen Group Design, until 2015. Since beginning his car design career in 1972 as trainee car designer for Fiat's Style Centre, De Silva has also worked as a designer at I.DE.A Institute, and as head of design for Alfa Romeo, SEAT and the ' Audi brand group'. He is presently President of the Design Studio Walter De Silva Automotive. Career Fiat, 1972–1977 Walter de Silva began his career in 1972 at age 21, working for Centro Stile Fiat. I.DE.A. Institute, 1977–1986 After his experience at Fiat, Walter de Silva worked at the I.DE.A Institute in Turin, Italy for nine years under the direction of Franco Mantegazza and Renzo Piano. Alfa Romeo, 1986–1999 In 1986 Walter de Silva was recruited away from the I.DE.A. Institute to become head of Centro Stile Alfa Romeo. Walter de Silva remained in this role until 1999. At Alfa Romeo, de Silva led the renewal of the brand's design l ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lecco
Lecco (, , ; ) is a city of approximately 47,000 inhabitants in Lombardy, Northern Italy, north of Milan. It lies at the end of the south-eastern branch of Lake Como (the branch is named ''Branch of Lecco'' / ''Ramo di Lecco''). The Bergamasque Alps, Bergamo Alps rise to the north and east, cut through by the Valsassina of which Lecco marks the southern end. The lake, narrows to form the Adda (river), River Adda, so bridges were built to improve road communications with Como and Milan. There are four bridges crossing the river Adda in Lecco: the Azzone Visconti Bridge (1336–1338), the Kennedy Bridge (1956), the Alessandro Manzoni Bridge (1985), and a railroad bridge. Lecco was also Alpine Town of the Year in 2013. Lecco obtained the title of city on 22 June 1848, and was elevated to province by decree of the President of the Republic of 6 March 1992. Known for being the place where the writer Alessandro Manzoni set The Betrothed (Manzoni novel), ''The Betrothed'', the cit ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Bugatti Automobiles
Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. () is a French luxury sports car manufacturer. The company was founded in 1998 as a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group and is based in Molsheim, Alsace, France. The company makes a variety of two-seater and track-only cars. The original Bugatti automobile brand was established by Ettore Bugatti (1881–1947) in 1909 at Molsheim and built sports, racing and luxury cars. In November 2021, the company became part of Bugatti Rimac, a joint venture between Rimac Group and Porsche AG. Since 1 November 2021, the company has been led by Mate Rimac as chief executive officer of Bugatti Rimac. History On 22 December 1998, Volkswagen AG, a German automotive manufacturer now controlled by Porsche SE, established Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. as a French-registered, wholly-owned subsidiary. On the same day, the company took over the design and naming rights to Bugatti from Italian businessman Romano Artioli, who built supercars (such as the EB 110 and EB ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Volkswagen Golf
The Volkswagen Golf () is a compact car/ small family car ( C-segment) produced by the German automotive manufacturer Volkswagen since 1974, marketed worldwide across eight generations, in various body configurations and under various nameplates – including as the Volkswagen Rabbit in the United States and Canada (Mk1 and Mk5), and as the Volkswagen Caribe in Mexico (Mk1). The original Golf Mk1 was a front-engined, front-wheel drive replacement for the air-cooled, rear-engined, rear-wheel drive Volkswagen Beetle. Historically, the Golf is Volkswagen's best-selling model and is among the world's top three best-selling models, with more than 35 million units sold as of 2019. Initially, most Golfs were hatchbacks, with the three-door version being somewhat more popular than the five-door. Other variants include an estate (Variant, from 1993), convertible (Cabriolet or Cabrio, from 1979), and a Golf-based saloon called the Jetta, Vento (from 1992), or Bora (from 1999). The ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Murat Günak
Murat Günak (born 9 August 1957, Istanbul) is a Turkish car designer and former head designer of Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz. Career Günak studied design at Hochschule für Bildende Künste (Academy of Fine Arts) in Kassel and then studied at the Royal College of Art in London under Claude Lobo and Patrick Le Quément where he was awarded Master of Automotive Design and was sponsored by Ford. After graduation he worked at Ford in Germany for two years and then moved to Mercedes-Benz for 8 years. Gunak moved to Peugeot to become Head of Design in 1994 and then returned to Mercedes-Benz and DaimlerChrysler in 1998 as Vice President for all passenger cars. He joined the Volkswagen brand as Head of Design in April 2003 and took over as Head of Design of the Volkswagen Group on 1 January 2004, responsible for the design activities of all brands in the Group. He was replaced at Volkswagen by his former employee, Walter de'Silva in 2007. Through his consultant company ''MGMO Gm ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Bugatti
Automobiles Ettore Bugatti was a German then French automotive industry, manufacturer of high performance vehicle, high-performance automobiles. The company was founded in 1909 in the then-German Empire, German city of Molsheim, Alsace, by the Italian-born industrial designer Ettore Bugatti. The cars were known for their design beauty and numerous race victories. Famous Bugatti automobiles include the Bugatti Type 35, Type 35 Grand Prix cars, the Bugatti Royale, Type 41 "Royale", the Bugatti Type 57, Type 57 "Atlantic" and the Bugatti Type 55, Type 55 sports car. The death of Ettore Bugatti in 1947 proved to be a severe blow to the marque, and the death of his son Jean Bugatti, Jean in 1939 meant that there was no successor to lead the factory. With no more than about 8,000 cars made, the company struggled financially, and it released one last model in the 1950s before eventually being purchased for its airplane parts business in 1963. In 1987, an Italian entrepreneur bought th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Bentley
Bentley Motors Limited is a British designer, manufacturer and marketer of Luxury vehicle, luxury cars and Sport utility vehicle, SUVs. Headquartered in Crewe, England, the company was founded by W. O. Bentley (1888–1971) in 1919 in Cricklewood, North London, and became widely known for winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1924 24 Hours of Le Mans, 1924, 1927 24 Hours of Le Mans, 1927, 1928 24 Hours of Le Mans, 1928, 1929 24 Hours of Le Mans, 1929, 1930 24 Hours of Le Mans, 1930 and 2003 24 Hours of Le Mans, 2003. Bentley has been a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group since 1998 and consolidated under VW's premium brand arm Audi since 2022. Prominent models extend from the historic sports-racing Bentley 4½ Litre and Bentley Speed Six; the more recent Bentley R Type Continental, Bentley Turbo R, and Bentley Arnage; to its current model line, including the Bentley Flying Spur (2005), Flying Spur, Bentley Continental GT, Continental GT and Bentley Bentayga, Bentayga which are mar ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Volkswagen
Volkswagen (VW; )English: , . is a German automotive industry, automobile manufacturer based in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. Established in 1937 by German Labour Front, The German Labour Front, it was revitalized into the global brand it is today after World War II by British Army officer Ivan Hirst. The company is well known for the Volkswagen Beetle, Beetle and serves as the flagship marque of the Volkswagen Group, which became the world's largest automotive manufacturer by global sales in 2016 and 2017. The group's largest market is automotive industry in China, China (including Hong Kong and Macau), which accounts for 40% of its sales and profits. The name derives from the German words and , meaning . History 1932–1944: People's Car project Volkswagen was established in 1937 by the German Labour Front () as part of the Strength Through Joy () program in Berlin. In the early 1930s, cars were a luxury—most Germans could afford nothing more elaborate than a mo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Škoda Auto
Škoda Auto Akciová společnost, a.s. (), often shortened to Škoda, is a Czech automobile manufacturer established in 1925 as the successor to Laurin & Klement and headquartered in Mladá Boleslav, Czech Republic. Škoda Works became State ownership, state owned in 1948. After the Velvet Revolution, it was gradually Privatization, privatized starting in 1991, eventually becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of the German multinational conglomerate Volkswagen Group in 2000. Škoda automobiles are sold in over 100 countries, and in 2018, total global sales reached 1.25 million units, an increase of 4.4% from the previous year. The operating profit was €1.6 billion in 2017, an increase of 34.6% over the previous year. As of 2017, Škoda's profit margin was the second-highest of all Volkswagen AG brands after Porsche. History The Škoda Works was founded by Czech engineer Emil von Škoda in 1859 in Plzeň, then in the Kingdom of Bohemia in the Austrian Empire, and was originally a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Martin Winterkorn
Martin Winterkorn (born 24 May 1947) is a German former business executive who served as chairman of the board of management ( CEO, ''Vorstandsvorsitzender'' in German) of Volkswagen AG, the parent company of the Volkswagen Group, as well as chairman of the supervisory board of Audi, and chairman of the board of management of Porsche Automobil Holding SE. He succeeded Bernd Pischetsrieder as CEO of Volkswagen AG in 2007. Prior to that, he had been chairman of the board of management at the Volkswagen Group subsidiary Audi AG. Winterkorn resigned from Volkswagen on 23 September 2015 after the Volkswagen emissions scandal came to light. He resigned as chairman of Audi on 11 November 2015, following the disclosure of further information regarding VW's gasoline-powered engines in connection to the scandal. Winterkorn also served on the board of supervisors for German football club Bayern München from 22 February 2003 until 18 December 2018. He is credited with fostering a succe ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Audi A5
The Audi A5 is a series of compact executive and grand touring coupé cars produced by the German automobile manufacturer Audi since June 2007. The A5 range also includes the coupe, cabriolet, and "Sportback"—a five-door liftback with a fastback roofline—derived from the Audi A4 saloon and estate models. Under Audi's internal platform numbering convention, the A5 is a member of the ''B-platform'' series of vehicles, sharing its platform designation with the A4 saloon and ''Avant''. The first generation A5 (''Type 8T'') belongs to the ''B8'' family, while the second-generation model (''Type 8W6'') is based on the ''B9''. Both generations are derived from the Volkswagen MLB (Modular Longitudinal Matrix) architecture. __TOC__ First generation (2007) Initial release When unveiled at the March 2007 Geneva Motor Show, the A5 marked Audi's return to the compact executive coupé market after the (B3/B4) Audi 80-based coupé ended production in 1996. On May 10, 2006, Aud ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Audi TT
The Audi TT is a production front-engine, 2-door, 2+2 sports coupé and roadster, manufactured and marketed by Audi from 1998 to 2023 across three generations. For each of its three generations, the TT has been based on consecutive generations of Volkswagen's "Group A" platforms, starting with its "PQ34" fourth generation. The TT shares powertrain and suspension layouts with its platform mates, including the Audi A3, like a transversely mounted front-engine, powering front-wheel drive or four-wheel drive, and fully independent suspension using MacPherson struts in front. The TT's first two generations were assembled by Audi's Hungarian subsidiary, one of the world's largest engine manufacturing plants, using bodyshells manufactured and painted at Audi's Ingolstadt plant and parts made entirely by the Hungarian factory for the third generation. The last of the 662,762 Audi TTs was manufactured in November 2023. Design Styling of the Audi TT began in the spring of 1994 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Audi Q7
The Audi Q7 is a crossover SUV made by the German manufacturer Audi, unveiled in September 2005 at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Production of this seven-seater SUV began in November 2005 at the Volkswagen Bratislava Plant in Bratislava, Slovakia. The Q7 was the first SUV sold by Audi and went on sale in 2006. Later, Audi's second SUV, the Q5, was unveiled as a 2009 model. Audi has since unveiled a third SUV model, the Q3, which went on sale in the third quarter of 2011, and a fourth SUV model, the Q2, which went on sale in November 2016. The Q7 shares a Volkswagen Group MLB platform and chassis with the Bentley Bentayga, Lamborghini Urus, Porsche Cayenne and the Volkswagen Touareg. The Q7 is the second largest vehicle from Audi, being surpassed by the Q6 since 2022. While the Q7 has been the flagship SUV in Audi's product portfolio, a top-of-the-line model with a lower roof, called the Audi Q8, was released in 2018. It was one of the vehicles involved in the Volkswagen em ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |