Auto News 5

Ganassi's Scott Dixon has taken pole position of the 2009 IndyCar race presented at the Twin Ring Motegi in Japan after his final effort was enough to displace Mario Moraes (KV Racing) for a surprise top spot. Full story...

Interestingly, the previously-powerful Briatore's departure from formula one has opened the floodgates to open criticism of the flamboyant former Renault boss. Full story...

Next year's World Rally Championship events have been agreed following a decision of the WRC commission today to approve the application of the candidate rally in Bulgaria. Full story...

2009 WSBK leader Ben Spies has decided not to wait until 2011 to move to MotoGP, and will instead partner fellow Texan Colin Edwards at Tech3 Yamaha next season. Full story...

Affalterbach - Pole position for the new E 63 AMG Estate: the high-performance estate develops 386 kW/525 hp, accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.6 seconds, offers a maximum luggage compartment capacity of 1950 litres - all with a relatively low fuel consumption of 12.8 litres per 100 km (combined, provisional figures). With these dream figures, the new E 63 AMG Estate adds up to an extraordinary combination of driving dynamics, high utility value and superb efficiency. Full story...

Diminutive but distinctive, Toyota's iQ is capturing the spotlight at the Frankfurt motor show with two bold new design studies that further prove responsible, sub-100g/km motoring doesn't have to be dull. Full story...

FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif., The award-winning Elantra enters 2010 an improved weapon against gas prices, with the all-new Blue model achieving an estimated highway fuel economy rating of 35 miles per gallon. Smart engineering enhancements to the rest of the 2010 Elantra lineup improve fuel efficiency by up to four percent. These new fuel economy numbers give Elantra an advantage in price-per-MPG ratio, making it an even stronger value for 2010. Full story...

The AirAsia airline chief Tony Fernandes has revealed he does not plan to be the new Lotus outfit's long-term team principal. Full story...

An electric-powered Ford Focus is ready to race tonight on "The Jay Leno Show" (NBC, Monday through Friday, 10-11 p.m. ET) in a segment called "Green Car Challenge." Tuned to perform on a racetrack that was specifically designed for "The Jay Leno Show," the battery-electric Ford Focus will be the car used throughout the first season. Full story...

Peter Sauber has refused to rule out returning to the pitwall as the boss of the Qadbak-owned "Sauber-Ferrari" team in 2010. Full story...

The likely return to the F1 calendar of the Canadian grand prix continues to confuse, after another day of confirmation swiftly followed by denial. Full story...

Juan Pablo Montoya, the ex-Formula One driver, and Jeff Gordon, who drove Montoya's F-One Williams at an exhibition at Indianapolis, expressed novel reactions to the controversy roiling the Formula One circuit Full story...

South Korea has taken another step towards hosting a round of the formula one world championship. Full story...

It's hard to imagine the level of care required of the Mustang's designers when penning the 2010 makeover. Some very stiff competition had arisen in the form of the Challenger and Camaro-- but Ford's revised superstar still had to carry that signature Mustang look. One wrong swipe of the pencil would put fans, loyal owners and the general public into a state of upheaval. Full story...

The chairman of Japan's key automaker group on Thursday current tax breaks for fuel-efficient cars have been effective in boosting sales and urged the new government to maintain them until March 2012 as planned. Full story...

The auto industry will continue to struggle because it has not cut its production capacity enough, Fiat chief Executive Sergio Marchionne told Reuters TV. Full story...

Geely Automobile Holdings has approached Magna International about a potential partnership involving Opel, a media report said. Full story...

Nissan's powertrain assembly plant in Decherd, Tennessee, on Thursday (17 September) completed the first engine for export to Japan where it will be installed in the redesigned Infiniti QX56 full-size sport utility vehicle. Full story...

Boosted by the Chinese government's consumer incentives, Nissan Motor Co believes its sales in the country to jump 18% ahead of its original targets of 570,000 vehicles in 2009. Full story...

Magna's planned buy of a majority stake in shows carmakers have lost the upper hand in the industry by outsourcing development work to suppliers and relying on them for technology, GM vice president Carl-Peter Forster said in Frankfurt. Full story...