Auto News 5

The little-known Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery company expects to complete the deal to buy GM's Hummer brand by October, Yang Yi, the company's general manager, has said. Full story...

Does the sale of Opel-Vauxhall to a Magna-led consortium create an orphan automaker that will struggle to compete? Perhaps something more complex and clever is afoot, writes Mark Bursa. Full story...

General Motors' plans for the Mercosur region will not be affected by the parent company's bankruptcy in the US due to the local unit's legal and financial independence, GM Brazil and Mercosur president Jaime Ardila said. The plan to invest US$2.5bn here from 2007 to 2012 in two stages remains unchanged. Full story...

Saab said on Monday it is likely to unveil its new owner this week, and that three quarters of its creditors had agreed to a proposed writedown of the brand's debt. Full story...

General Motors' Saab said it was likely to announce its new owner this week and that three quarters of its creditors had agreed to a proposed writedown of the money-losing brand's debt. Full story...

New partners Brembo and SGL Group predict that demand for carbon ceramic brake discs will rise sharply once they find ways to reduce the high cost of a component. Full story...

Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery, the surprise winning bidder for bankrupt General Motors' Hummer brand, said the deal should be wrapped up before October. Full story...

General Motors will cut its senior executive pension plans by up to two-thirds as part of its bankruptcy restructuring, CEO Fritz Henderson told a U.S. House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on Friday. Full story...

New partners Brembo and SGL Group predict that demand for carbon ceramic brake discs will rise sharply once they find ways to reduce the high cost of a component. Full story...

A majority of members of the two families controlling Porsche back a deal for the Gulf state of Qatar to acquire a 25 percent stake in the luxury car maker, a German magazine said. Full story...

General Motors is trying to cement an agreement with Magna International to buy its European unit, Opel, but is willing to broaden discussions if necessary, GM CEO Fritz Henderson said. Full story...

Koenigsegg Automotive believes it can rescue General Motors' loss-making Saab unit, a co-owner of the Swedish luxury sports car maker said. Full story...

European car scrapping schemes are aiding a shift to smaller, cleaner cars but environmental campaigners say they fall short of pledges to create a greener economy during the recession. "It's definitely a missed opportunity. Full story...

Credit crunched travelers hoping to dodge transport fares by sticking up their thumbs may be in for a long wait, as a new study shows that three-quarters of Britons would not consider picking up a hitchhiker. Full story...

Just a year after the celebrations for the Centenary and as ever a synonym of refined technologies and high performance engines, Alfa Romeo announces the marketing from September of the Alfa Romeo MiTo with 1.4 Turbo petrol MultiAir engines, the revolutionary technology developed and patented by FPT - Fiat Powertrain Technologies. Full story...

According to NASCAR Chief Executive Brian France, foreign manufacturers have expressed their interest in joining professional stock car racing in North America and talks with several companies have been ongoing for a long time. Full story...

New rumours have arisen linking Coca-Cola with a sponsorship foray in formula one. Full story...

Having secured a spot on the 2010 grid, new formula one entrant Team US F1 expects to select drivers for the North Carolina-based outfit "pretty soon". Full story...

Porsche AG, Stuttgart, is proudly presenting its history "in motion": In a 2 ½-film "The Porsche Way", the Company presents its entire history from the early years up to the present day on one full-coverage DVD. Starting with the lifetime achievements of Ferdinand and Ferry Porsche, the film focuses in eight chapters on the development of the famous sports car manufacturer, proceeding from one decade to the next. "This is the first time that a car maker is presented so exhaustively on a DVD", says Dieter Landenberger, the Director of the Porsche Archives. Full story...

It has been over one year since BMW Manufacturing announced it would invest $750 million in its upstate South Carolina factory to add 1.5 million square feet. Since that time, design, engineering and construction crews have been busy constructing the new 1.2 million square foot assembly facility and have added 80% or 300,000 square feet to the existing paint shop. Full story...