「双语科普」365天里的汽车往事（11月27日-12月2日）

　　LaFrance Automobile sponsored the first hill climb run as a separate contest, at Chanteloup, near Paris. A little over a mile in length, the climb included several tight bends on a steep gradient. Although held in poor condition owing to heavy rain, only 3 of the 54 competitors failed to climb the hill. Fastest was Belgian Camille Jenatzy’s electric car with a time of 3 minutes 52 seconds.

　　America's first race featuring gasoline-powered automobiles was held in Chicago, Illinois, with six vehicles competing: two electric cars, three German Benz automobiles, and one American-made Duryea automobile. A few miles into the race, both electric cars broke down, leaving the Duryea brothers to contend with the three Benz vehicles. The German-built Benz cars, driven by two Americans and a German, were no match for the powerful two-cylinder Duryea automobile. After 10 hours, despite an accidental two-mile detour, Frank crossed the finish line with no other car in sight.

　　Aston Martin unveiled one of the most eagerly anticipated convertibles of the year, the V8 Vantage Roadster at the 2006 Los Angeles Auto Show. The car gained 200 pounds over the coupé, but Aston Martin claimed the car would have the same performance as the coupé. To compensate for the loss of the roof a new, super-stiff cross-member was added to the frame. The soft top can be raised or lowered electronically in 18 seconds and can be operated in speeds up to 50 km/h. It had the same 4.3-litre V8 from the hard top version producing 385 PS at 7000 rpm, 409 N·m at 5000 rpm & a top speed of 286 km/h.

　　The first Scout all-terrain vehicle rolled off the assembly line at International Harvester’s plant in the US. A versatile, affordable vehicle for both passenger and goods transportation, it was available in both two- and four-wheel drive and featured a 4-cylinder engine, with 3-speed, floor-mounted transmission. The Scout I (80: 1960-1965 and 800: 1965-1971) became the best-selling vehicle in International Harvester’s history, enjoying a full 10 years of production before being replaced by the improved Scout II in 1971.

　　The Ford Motor Company installed the continuous moving assembly line for the mass production of an entire car, reducing the time it took to build a car from more than 12 hours to 2 hours 30 minutes. Ford broke the Model T’s assembly into 84 discrete steps, and trained each of his workers to do just one. He also hired motion-study expert Frederick Taylor to make those jobs even more efficient. Meanwhile, he built machines that could stamp out parts automatically.In February 1914, he added a mechanised belt that chugged along at a speed of six feet per minute. As the pace accelerated, Ford produced more and more cars, and on June 4, 1924, the 10-millionth Model T rolled off the Highland Park assembly line.

　　The Ford Model A was unveiled in New York City’s Waldorf Hotel and in 35 other cities around the US, Canada and Europe. Powered by engine 40 hp a water-cooled L-head inline 4-cylinder with a displacement of 3.3 litres. The Model A's fuel tank was situated in the cowl, between the engine compartment's fire wall and the dash panel. It had a visual fuel gauge, and the fuel flowed to the carburettor by gravity. A rear-view mirror was optional.