Auto News 5

Volkswagen of America will need to expand its dealer network after 2014, said Jonathan Browning, Volkswagen Group of America's CEO. The extra dealers will be needed to achieve VW's goal to sell 800,000 units annually in the United States by 2018. Full story...

European battery producer Saft and its automotive partner Johnson Controls are in talks with a number of local companies to enter the Chinese market for electric vehicles. Full story...

The strong demand for General Motors shares that emerged from U.S. Full story...

General Motors Co.'s $20 billion initial public offering will benefit creditors of the former GM, who made about $5 billion on the IPO and can buy millions of new shares for as little as a third of today's price. Full story...

Honda, the only automaker currently selling a natural gas-powered car to U.S. consumers, plans to expand sales to most of the 50 states next year, up from four now, U.S. Executive Vice President John Mendel said. Full story...

The Design Challenge is among the most popular car design contests in North America. Now in its 7th year, the theme for the 2010 Design Challenge is to envision a lightweight, four-passenger vehicle that is comfortable, that delivers satisfactory driving performance with sacrificing styling. And most importantly, the vehicle must not exceed 1,000 pounds. Quite a challenge indeed. Full story...

Toyota's reign as the number one manufacturer might not last much longer! In a press release, Volkswagen has announced that they invest an enormous sum of 72 billion dollars CDN in order to dethrone Toyota as the bigger global automaker. Full story...

General Motors of Canada's manufacturing locations in Oshawa, St. Catharines and Ingersoll, Ontario will each host an open house event by the end of 2011 as part of a broader GM initiative in the United States. Each GM plant location will choose a date for their facility and invite community members to attend to learn more about the people, the products and the manufacturing processes used to deliver the highest possible quality. Full story...

First our plastic grocery bags made way for reusable fabric ones, and now the eco-friendly trend has reached the tire industry. Full story...

The sky, space in fact, is the limit! The electrification of the automobile will bring tremendous change with benefits that far outweigh the downsides. I'm talking about performance, handling, the all-important fun-to-drive factor and, as a bonus, no emissions from the tailpipes. Full story...

HERNDON, Va. - The Autonomous Audi TTS Pikes Peak research car achieved its initial goal of completing the 12.42-mile course of the world-famous Pikes Peak International Hill Climb race in Colorado without stopping and without a driver behind the wheel. Full story...

Chrysler Canada is pleased to invite Canadian consumers to place a reservation for a limited edition version of the iconic Fiat 500. At 12:01 a.m. on November 23, Chrysler Canada will open up an online program for Canadians to reserve a Fiat 500 Prima Edizione model. A special production run of 500 vehicles will be offered to Canadians at www.fiatcanada.com for a $500 deposit. Full story...

Brazilian driver Felipe Massa of the Scuderia Ferrari topped the first day of Pirelli tire testing in Abu Dhabi, the first time that Formula 1 teams have tried the Italian manufacturer's new 2011 tires. Full story...

'Proton 1Malaysia' has been touted as a possible new name for Tony Fernandes' Lotus Racing formula one team in 2011. Full story...

The DTM series is now looking for a new tire supplier to replace Dunlop after 11 years of collaboration. Full story...

The author of a newspaper column erroneously attributed to former two-time F1 World Champion Mika Hakkinen has been dismissed. Full story...

It all comes down to this. After 35 races featuring 10,511 grueling laps of racing, the final 267 laps at Homestead-Miami Speedway will determine the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion. Full story...

Team orders will be "regulated" rather than allowed in formula one, FIA president Jean Todt has revealed. Full story...

Jean Todt has vowed to push hard to improve the spectacle of overtaking in formula one. Full story...

Giedo van der Garde has won a long legal battle with Force India. Full story...