Auto News 5

Customers trialling the new electric MINI around the world don't want to give them back, the company says. Full story...

BMW is highlighting buoyant prospects in the Chinese market in what it concedes is a still tough global market environment. Full story...

When it comes to new-car sales in Europe, the real race is between the Renault and Ford brands for second place. Ford finished 2009 as Europe's No. 2 seller, but Renault is poised to take the spot in 2010. Full story...

Zhejiang Geely Holding and Ford Motor Co. said they were still on track to sign a deal this month for Ford's Volvo cars unit, after a Chinese newspaper said Geely's planned $2 billion purchase faced hurdles. Full story...

Zhejiang Geely Holding and Ford Motor Co. said they were still on track to sign a deal this month for Ford's Volvo cars unit, after a Chinese newspaper said Geely's planned $2 billion purchase faced hurdles. Full story...

Saab has named former Volkswagen executive Adrian Hallmark its executive director of sales. Hallmark, 47, will be counted on to help Saab try to rebound from its near collapse earlier this year. Full story...

Transmission technology company Torotrak has appointed Dr Quanbao Zhou as chief engineer, research and development, in the face of what it calls 'growing demand from clients for engineering application work across a diverse range of market sectors'. Full story...

Japanese vehicle manufacturers have offered to resume automatic annual pay hikes this year - as demanded by labour unions - after freezing rises last year amid the recession. Full story...

Le Mans is on the horizon, so this weekend’s 12 hours of Sebring is the perfect warm-up for June’s race

Full story…

Alcoa Auto Wheels says it is providing advanced lightweight wheels for Aston Martin's V12 Vantage. Full story...

Saab's US sales subsidiary has announced that its headquarters will reside in Royal Oak, Michigan, creating or retaining approximately 2,000 jobs in North America. Full story...

Honda in the US has said it will recall about 412,000 vehicles due to a problem that causes the brake pedal to feel 'soft'. Full story...

BMW is putting the pedal to the metal this year with the launch of 17 new models before the end of the year. Full story...

BMW forecast a hefty rise in 2010 pretax profit with better results across its entire business, boosted by new car models such as its popular BMW 5 series. Full story...

Potential taxation issues concerning vehicle electric power generation must be urgently addressed, according to BMW’s sales and marketing head speaking to just-auto in Munich. Full story…

BMW AG is working on a new front-wheel- and four-wheel-drive vehicle architecture that will underpin a new range of entry-level BMWs as well as next-generation Mini models. Full story...

Auto Express talks to McLaren boss Ron Dennis about the MP4-12C and the company that will build it, McLaren Automotive. Full story...

What is it? Full story...

The acceptance letters went out this week for the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, the vintage racing weekend formerly known as the Monterey Historics, and it looks as if you'll get your money's worth out of this year's event. Full story...

The Renault-Nissan alliance has inaugurated its US$990m plant at Chennai in India which is due to start production in May, building the redesigned Nissan Micra (March) previously assembled in Japan and the UK. Full story…