7. Decide whether the following statements are true or false.

1. The idea of a car was given rise as early as the 13^th century by Roger Bacon.

2. The inventor Nicolas Cugnot built a steam-driven engine capable of carrying twenty-three passengers.

3. Arnold Peugeot produced his first motorcar in 1890.

4. The origin of the automobile can be traced to the USA.

5. Henry Ford began mass-producing cars.

6. Ford also introduced the assembly line.

7. US automakers produced small-sized cars.

8. Volgas were rugged cars for exporting abroad.

9. Volgas were built at the factory beside the largest river in Russia.

10. Between the 1970s and ‘80s Japanese manufacturers started to export their mall cars throughout the world.

11. Nobody is concerned with safety and pollution.

8. Answer the questions to text b.

1. When was the idea of a car given rise? Why did it happen so early in the history of the mankind?

2. Who was the inventor of a steam-driven carriage? What were the advantages and disadvantages of that vehicle in comparison with modern cars?

3. What is the four-stroke engine? Who made studies on this type of engine and what are its merits?

4. What proved that fuel could be ignited without a spark?

5. What’s peculiar to the internal combustion engine? Who was the designer?

6. Why did automobiles become a major form of transportation first in the US but not in Europe?

7. What did Charles Kettering contribute greatly to?

8. What did Henry Ford contribute greatly to?

9. What are the most popular German cars? When did they appear? Why are they adored by so many generations?

10. How did Ford revolutionize the car industry?

11. What is Model T?

12. What do you know about Volgas? Why are they not so popular as they used to be 20 years ago?

13. What changes did the automobile undergo and why?

14. Are diesel engines used today?

15. Which do you prefer: German or Japanese cars?

9. A) Read and translate the following adjectives describing cars;

b) Pick out some more descriptive adjectives from texts A and B

(7 words);

c) Try to find picturesque illustrations to all the adjectives;

d) Arrange the adjectives according to the closest synonymous groups: a) looks, b) quality, c) other features.

Antique, bespoke, exotic, nice, home, new, numerous, new brand, cheap, most expensive, sport, fastest, slow, popular, hot rod, easy-to-drive, difficult-to-drive, hybrid, electric, ethanol, gasoline, green, economic, movie, comfortable, convenient, environmentally-sound, environmentally-friendly, energy-saving, natural gas, diesel, bio-diesel, old-fashioned, favourite, beautiful, funny, modern, retro, old.

10. Match the terms with their definitions.

a) antiknock, b) knock, c) assembly line, d) combustion, e) fuel,

f) ignition, g) spark, h) ethanol

1. A substance added to fuel for an internal combustion engine to minimize knock.

2. The act or process of burning.

3. Combustible matter used to maintain fire.

4. Making a tapping or thumping noise.

5. Electrical mechanism for setting the mixture of explosive gases on fire.

6. Tiny glow from a burning substance.

7. Stage of mass production in which parts of a machine move along for fixing together.

8. C₂H₅OH is an alcohol, which has a functional hydroxyl group (OH).