Auto News 5

Mattias Ekström left a strong impression in his first race of the NASCAR series at Sonoma (U.S. state of California). Full story...

There is no doubt that with the current CTS sedan, Cadillac succeeded in bringing their compact sports-luxury sedan within reach of the segment's best, notably the BMW 3-Series, the Infiniti G and the Mercedes-Benz C-Class. Full story...

French manufacturer Citroën has just announced that it will offer wireless Internet connectivity in all their vehicles. Using a WiFi box located inside the car, it works with a 3G/3G+ SIM card provided by the customer's choice of Internet carriers. That means anyone inside the car can access the web with their portable devices such as laptops, smart phones, etc. the WiFi connection works while driving and while idling, and by a measure of precaution, the roaming feature is deactivated so you don't end up with a huge bill, since hooking up to another carrier than yours is very costly in roaming charges. Since last March, WiFi has been available in the C3 Picasso and C4 Picasso people movers as well as the New C3 and sporty DS3 hatchbacks. By the end of the summer, the rest of Citroën's model range will get it. The WiFi accessory is offered for 500 euros, or about $640 CDN. Full story...

F1 drivers must follow even the rules of the road, the FIA declared on Wednesday. Full story...

Police are looking into a boat crash involving former formula one driver JJ Lehto. Full story...

The FIA has announced that next year's World Rally Championship will be made up of 13 rounds, and that all tyre manufacturers will be able to supply the series - not just one. Full story...

Pirelli will supply four different dry tyre compounds to formula one teams in 2011, the Italian company has announced. Full story...

Michelin never applied officially to become formula one's new tyre supplier. Full story...

Toyota is searching for a new vice president of purchasing for North America to replace Chris Nielsen, who is being transferred to run the automaker's San Antonio, Texas, assembly plant. Full story...

The chief test driver for the Lexus LF-A sports car was killed in a crash on a public road near the famed Nuerburgring where a prototype of a special Nuerburgring edition of the car has been undergoing testing, according to sources in Germany. Full story...

Hiromu Naruse, the chief test driver for the Lexus LF-A sports car, was killed on Wednesday in a crash on a public road near the famed Nürburgring where a prototype of a special Nürburgring edition of the car has been undergoing testing. Full story...

Japanese-French alliance is a key strategy in gaining scale, sharing development and cutting costs, and will tap joint battery factories in North America, Europe and Japan -- with the aim of achieving output of 500,000 battery packs by 2013. Full story...

CarMax Inc.'s net income more than tripled during its most recent quarter that ended May 31. But floor traffic and sales are still below pre-recession levels, CarMax President Tom Folliard cautioned today. Full story...

By Design: Morgan Roadster

Still young at seventy-five.

You may think that the Porsche 911 (now in its forty-sixth year) is long-lived. If you're into automotive esoterica, you'll know of India's Hindustan Ambassador, resplendent with the clumsy curves established in 1956 by Austin-Morris. But the Ambassador is a mere gawky adolescent compared with the doyen of currently available cars, the Morgan roadster, which came to market seventy-five years ago.

Photo Gallery: Morgan Roadster - Car Design Analysis - Automobile Magazine

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In News Brake: Pirelli emerges as the winner for Formula One tires, the Honda CR-Z is priced, and we test-drive the 2010 Nissan Altima coupe . . . But Wait, There's More! Full story...

A Senate bill proposes that the federal government spend up to $10 billion to encourage sales of electric vehicles. The bill introduced by Sens. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., and Jeff Alan Merkley, D-Ore. Full story...

Orphaned Concept Cars

Not all dream cars become reality -- but some do predict the future.

If we buy into the cliché, the sleek, glitzy concept vehicles sitting on revolving turntables at auto shows across the globe are supposed to be the cars and trucks of tomorrow. What happens, then, if the company that sunk millions of dollars into the project turns insolvent shortly thereafter?

Photo Gallery: Orphaned Concept Cars - Automobile Magazine

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The nation's fourth-largest dealership group said today that it would take a $1.4 million asset impairment charge in the second quarter to write down the value of other domestic dealerships. Full story...

The dealer lobby accused Senate negotiators of trying to slip an expansion of dealer oversight into a bill to create a consumer finance agency on the eve of a conference committee vote. Full story...

General Motors is talking to financial institutions to try and make more auto loans available to buyers. Full story...