Auto News 5

Nissan Motor Co. will sell the Leaf electric car for a base price of $32,780 in the United States and begin taking orders on April 20. Full story...

One of China's most senior female bankers, two top Swedish industrialists and a childhood friend of London's mayor led the Rothschild team that helped Geely seal China's biggest-ever overseas autos takeover. Full story...

At Automotive News Europe we are working on our next European market segmentation analysis and an old problem has resurfaced -- where do near-premium brands belong? Full story...

China's Zhejiang Geely Holding Group has lined up total financing of $2.7 billion to back its purchase of Ford Motor Co.'s Volvo car unit, sources said. Full story...

Nissan said it would sell its battery-powered Leaf hatchback starting at 3.76 million yen ($40,640) in Japan. Full story...

Renault's head of design Laurens van den Acker believes electric cars could revolutionize automotive design, making the car once more the symbol of progress. Full story...

Tesla extended its agreement with Lotus to help bridge a gap in the production and sales of its only car, the Roadster. Full story...

High performance brake supplier Brembo has issued a press release explaining the reason for Sebastian Vettel's retirement during the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne last Sunday. Full story...

When he got off of his McLaren-Mercedes after the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday, British driver Lewis Hamilton was fuming. He was convinced that the second pit stop for tires requested by the McLaren team had just cost him a place on the podium. Full story...

Canadian race car driver Alexandre Tagliani drive a strong race in the opening round of the 2010 IZOD IndyCar series, battling with the leaders in Brazil until a rival punted him out of the race. Full story...

Lotus is expected to shortly confirm a new sponsorship deal with Maxis, a leading Malaysian mobile network. Full story...

According to Niki Lauda, Red Bull could look back on the first two rounds of 2010 and rue precisely where the team blew the world championship. Full story...

Forget a scheduled knee surgery; or even a four-tire gamble on a late race pit stop. Virginia native, Denny Hamlin, crushed the competition overcoming any perceived disadvantages at the rain-delayed Martinsville Sprint Cup race. Full story...

Calgary - Laval University for the second year in a row won the grand prize in the "Prototype" category at the 2010 Shell Eco-marathon Americas this past weekend in Houston, Texas. The student-built, fuel-efficient vehicle achieved the farthest distance using the least amount of fuel with an astonishing 1,057.5 kilometres per litre, or 2,487.5 miles per gallon. Full story...

Le Ann Hinkle, a former participant in the Project Driveway fuel cell demonstration program, will be back behind the wheel for at least six months more of zero emissions driving after getting the keys to the updated Chevy Fuel Cell vehicle on Monday from Jim Campbell, U.S. vice president of Chevrolet Marketing. Full story...

Auburn Hills, Mich. - The next chapter in the storied racing history of the Dodge Viper is being written as the first 2010 Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR-X rolled off the assembly line at the Conner Avenue Assembly Plant in Detroit on Monday, March 29. Built for road racing enthusiasts, the Dodge Viper ACR-X combines the best performance attributes of the record-setting, street-legal Dodge Viper ACR (American Club Racer) and the safety equipment of championship-winning Viper Competition Coupe. Full story...

Tesla Motors has delivered its first car to a customer in Spain, and the new owner charges his Roadster exclusively with renewable energy. Full story...

The Garia Edition Soleil de Minuit is priced at $52,000 / E39,000 and will be revealed in Monaco in April 2010. Designed exclusively for the world's greatest luxury show Top Marques Monaco 2010, The Garia Soleil de Minuit is the most expensive golf car ever made by a manufacturer. Full story...

General Motors Co. (GM) today announced a five-year partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to help develop the potential of the jatropha plant as a sustainable biofuel energy crop. Traditionally considered a weed, jatropha plants produce an oil that can be refined into biodiesel. Full story…

Nissan North America, Inc. (NNA) today announced U.S. pricing for the 2011 Nissan LEAF electric vehicle, which becomes available for purchase or lease at Nissan dealers in select markets in December and nationwide in 2011. Nissan will begin taking consumer reservations for the Nissan LEAF April 20. Full story...