Facebook has been flooded with hashtags in recent weeks, with hundreds of thousands of social media users showing off their personal photos today and 10 years ago. We decided to show you how automotive life has changed over the past 10 years.
According to these two five-year plans, the automotive industry is perhaps the fastest growing. Ten years ago, the production hybrid model was almost the only Toyota Prius.
Pure electric vehicles were talked about like flying saucers, and Tesla had a hard time showing off its first prototype.
In 2009, there was no such passion for crossovers, and the cars were normal — sedans, vans and hatchbacks. The fashion for modern Jeeps such as SUVs and SAVs was still in its infancy.
In 2009, the Trakia highway was only ready between Sofia and Stara Zagora, while Lyulinskoye Highway (now part of Struma) is still under construction. The price for the cheapest gasoline was about 1.50 levs, and for diesel fuel — about 1.60 levs. Ten years ago, environmentalists and MEPs did not pursue oil vehicles. In Sofia, most of the buses were redesigned for leaky Mercedes.
The BMW 3 Series has been in production since 1975. 10 years ago, one of the most iconic models of the Bavarian brand was in its fifth generation, or rather in an updated version.
This year we will see the seventh version of the third series on the roads, which for a luxury representative is frankly revolutionary both in design and inside.
The second generation of the smallest model of Mercedes — A-Class is fundamentally different from its current latest version.
The curious thing about this little Mercedes is that it gained popularity by becoming the first model of the brand that did not pass the “moose” test and was knocked over by journalists on the track.
Of course, the Germans immediately took measures to prevent this from happening again.
The Peugeot 308 has been in production since 2007 and is a direct competitor to the Volkswagen Golf. The second generation of the model has been upgraded to last year and features a revolutionary i-Cockpit-branded interior. It features a 12.3-inch digital display, a separate 8-inch touch screen, and an automatic electric transmission control system. A characteristic feature of this interior is that the instrument panel is located above the flattened steering wheel, and the driver is closer to the floor.
Porsche revolutionized luxury brands 17 years ago with the launch of the Cayenne. It was the first SUV of the German company, as well as the first 5-door car. Currently, the third generation of the luxury crossover is available, and for several years now it has been available in a hybrid version, which can also be charged from a wall outlet.
Ten years ago, the Togliatti plant continued to rely on such a model as the VAZ-2107. Lada, which is a modernized luxury version of the VAZ-2105, a model that uses the basis of the Fiat 124, which won the car of the year in Europe in 1966. VAZ-2107 was assembled from 1982 to 2012 in Russia. 10 years later, one of the hits of VAZ was the Lada Vesta model, which definitely changed the image of cars of this brand.
Ford Focus is the company’s most revered model in Europe. The ideological successor to the Escort has been produced for four consecutive generations since 1998. The last option was presented a few months ago and will still conquer the markets, including the Bulgarian one. In 10 years, the Ford Focus has grown bigger and more muscular, and now relies on the famous Ecoboost engines that have quickly established themselves as the gas engine of the future.
The Citroen C4 is one of the clearest examples of how the tastes of most buyers have changed in just 10 years in terms of car shape. The French model in a very short time turns from a conventional compact hatchback into a modern crossover called the C4 Cactus. Consumer reeling towards «lifted» cars has led the company to halt its C5 luxury sedan, replacing it with the large C5 Aircross SUV.
Ten years ago in Sofia, many of the buses were half a century old, recycled and imported from Germany, spewing suffocating smoke from the exhaust gases. Socialist Icarus also moved. Now the hedgehogs have been replaced by Chinese electric buses and new eco-friendly flights powered by natural gas. Most of the trolleybuses have also been replaced.