http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com Welcome to our new weblog. On this site you will find an archive of articles and information, as well as news and feedback on a broad spectrum of topics. Thu, 02 Feb 2012 09:59:27 +0000 en hourly 1 http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/motoring/fiat-500-%e2%80%93-dolce-vita-personified/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=fiat-500-%25e2%2580%2593-dolce-vita-personified http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/motoring/fiat-500-%e2%80%93-dolce-vita-personified/#comments Mon, 02 Jan 2012 15:09:47 +0000 Michel Cruz http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/?p=899 Every now and again a car is launched that simply puts a smile on your face. Stepping around it, you can’t seem to get enough of its round, bulbous form, and once seated behind the steering wheel you just want to start the engine and let the fun begin… At Manifesto we like good design, and this fun little car-about-town proves the point that it doesn’t always revolve around the biggest or most expensive creations. Though measuring just 3,55 metres long by 1,63 wide and 1,49 high, the cinquecento is a well-proportioned bundle of good-natured fun. ]]> http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/motoring/fiat-500-%e2%80%93-dolce-vita-personified/feed/ 0 http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/motoring/mini-clubman-fun-on-four-wheels/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=mini-clubman-fun-on-four-wheels http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/motoring/mini-clubman-fun-on-four-wheels/#comments Fri, 10 Jun 2011 14:27:41 +0000 Michel Cruz http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/?p=743 So you may be more accustomed to seeing car reports on Ferraris, Lambos, Bentleys, Rollers and 300k Mercedes, but if articles like this are to do more than allow us to salivate over cars that only a privileged few can really afford then maybe it’s worthwhile to discover that there is a lot of driving fun to had in the affordable price bracket too. Which is why I decided to focus on the imminent launch of the Mini Clubman, expected to hit showrooms across Europe and America early next year. It seemed appropriate, too, as this pint-sized estate seems just the accessory to take shopping—it looks better on you than a designer handbag and it fits a hell of a lot more goodies too. ]]> http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/motoring/mini-clubman-fun-on-four-wheels/feed/ 0 http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/motoring/bentley-mulsanne/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=bentley-mulsanne http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/motoring/bentley-mulsanne/#comments Thu, 21 Apr 2011 10:20:50 +0000 Michel Cruz http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/?p=701 After decades in the shadow of Rolls Royce limousines, the Bentley has now emerged as a magnificent luxury vehicle in its own right. With the Mulsanne, Bentley is reviving the heyday of the marque. Not since the legendary Continental of the 1950s have Bentleys looked so good. The renaissance of the brand began with the beautifully styled and engineered Continental, no doubt inspired by its famous namesake. It is good to see that Bentley have built upon the success of that model to allow its design style to evolve into something truly special. That something is the Mulsanne, itself the bearer of a name laden with history, tradition and a reputation for motoring excellence.]]> http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/motoring/bentley-mulsanne/feed/ 0 http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/motoring/mondial-de-lautomobile/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=mondial-de-lautomobile http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/motoring/mondial-de-lautomobile/#comments Wed, 23 Feb 2011 15:34:26 +0000 Michel Cruz http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/?p=644 The biennial Paris Car Show is not just the oldest and one of the largest in the world, but also one of the most glamorous events on the annual car show circuit. The names are familiar to those of us who love cars. Earl’s Court, London, Geneva, Detroit, Frankfurt and Paris. Along with a growing number of Asian car shows these are the industry’s calling cards, the glamorous occasions when manufacturers from across the world show their imminent new models and the flights of fantasy that designers and engineers have moulded into physical shape. ]]> http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/motoring/mondial-de-lautomobile/feed/ 0 http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/freelance-writing/the-monty/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-monty http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/freelance-writing/the-monty/#comments Mon, 24 Jan 2011 12:16:29 +0000 Michel Cruz http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/?p=615 Though yachting, power boating, tennis and a host of other sophisticated sports feature prominently in Monaco, it is motor sport that above all runs in the veins of this principality. Over the years Monaco has built up a sporting tradition that far outweighs its size both in terms of area and population. Professional French League football club AS Monaco, the international athletics meets, tennis championships and offshore power boating competitions are fine examples of these, but if you mention sport and Monaco in the same breath the first association will undoubtedly be with motor sport.]]> http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/freelance-writing/the-monty/feed/ 0 http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/cars/an-auction-with-a-difference/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=an-auction-with-a-difference http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/cars/an-auction-with-a-difference/#comments Fri, 22 Oct 2010 11:52:18 +0000 Michel Cruz http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/?p=544 A day to make your eyes weep, the Spring Classics of Monaco auction will bring together around 100 of the finest cars in the world, ranging from exquisitely restored models from the early years of motoring right up to recent releases. While most cars on offer from the 1980s and upwards are either super-fast or ultra-luxurious, it is the legendary sports cars and limousines of the immediate pre-war and post-war periods that will attract most attention. These include the likes of the 1957 Mercedes Benz 190 SL Roadster, the 1954 Aston Martin DB2, the 1960 Maserati 3500 Vignale Spider and the 1937 Bugatti Type 57 Stelvio with bodywork by Gangloff, to name but a few. Among a mouth-watering list of Ferraris one of the most appealing is the sumptuous 1959 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spyder, of which just 104 were made, and far fewer survive today.]]> http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/cars/an-auction-with-a-difference/feed/ 0 http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/motoring/off-road-luxury/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=off-road-luxury http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/motoring/off-road-luxury/#comments Wed, 22 Sep 2010 08:25:36 +0000 Michel Cruz http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/?p=502 We have purposely not chosen to focus on the well-known models from the Land Rover, BMW, Mercedes and VW-Group stables, but have instead opted for the kind of mid-range models that are reasonably affordable yet attractive. The first candidate, Chrysler’s Jeep Grand Cherokee, is a successor to one of the most successful luxury four-wheel drives of recent times, while the Nissan Murano by contrast is a newer kind of jeep—round, sporty and young in its appeal. ]]> http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/motoring/off-road-luxury/feed/ 0 http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/cars/the-glory-of-the-prancing-horse/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-glory-of-the-prancing-horse http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/cars/the-glory-of-the-prancing-horse/#comments Tue, 07 Sep 2010 11:49:20 +0000 Michel Cruz http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/?p=475 In an issue dedicated to Italy we could not ignore the most famous maker of luxury sports cars in the world. After all, the very name Ferrari is synonymous with speed, power and beauty. To many, Ferrari’s are the stuff young dreams are made of. Ask an ambitious young man to describe his ultimate goals and they could often best be summed up in the form of a gleaming red bolide from the scuderia in Maranello, for Ferraris symbolise success, ambition and dynamism. These cars simply are brio on wheels. The recently opened Ferrari World in Dubai is a living testament to that.]]> http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/cars/the-glory-of-the-prancing-horse/feed/ 0 http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/cars/bentley-continental-supersports/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=bentley-continental-supersports http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/cars/bentley-continental-supersports/#comments Wed, 28 Jul 2010 13:27:36 +0000 Michel Cruz http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/?p=398 The combination of the names Bentley and sport may not have been heard much in the past few decades, but with the arrival of the superhot new Supersports that is set to change for good. True, think of Bentley and sumptuously crafted luxurious cars with a rather regal bearing come to mind, yet there was a time when the name was synonymous with both quality and speed. In fact, much of the enduring fame and pedigree of Bentley is built on its legendary racing successes of the 1920s and 30s, when the solid ‘Blower Bentleys’ swept all before them and beat even the Bugattis to win the 24 hours of Le Mans in four straight years from 1927 to 1930.]]> http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/cars/bentley-continental-supersports/feed/ 0 http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/cars/pininfarina-hyperion/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=pininfarina-hyperion http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/cars/pininfarina-hyperion/#comments Fri, 28 May 2010 11:31:08 +0000 Michel Cruz http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/?p=350 With the exquisite Hyperion – an ode to the sumptuous pre-war limousines – Pininfarina have truly outdone themselves. For once not designed to the brief of a large car manufacturer, but made to measure for a private client, this Rolls Royce-based car is the epitome of elegance and hand-built quality in our era. Take a [...]]]> http://michel-cruz.rimontgo.com/cars/pininfarina-hyperion/feed/ 0