Auto News 5

I've heard numerous times in my career that we city folks are not well-equipped to evaluate pickup trucks. Although I would have agreed with the naysayers up until recently, today, in 2011, I say nah! And here's why. These so-called work trucks have never been more civil, posh and comfortable. Unless specified with the very minimum levels of kit, pickups are now as luxurious as many luxury cars.

The pole sitter at the recent Indy 500, Canadian Alex Tagliani, will compete in August to the NAPA 200 Auto Parts in Montreal, thanks to the support from the Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge and Ram Quebec Dealers.

Volkswagen is and always will be proud of their GTI -- and with reason. The Beetle may have put the people's car on the map, but the GTI brought the brand to everyone's lips.

Pirelli has admitted a rule tweak could have ensured an exciting finish to the weekend's Monaco grand prix.

French rally driver Sebastien Loeb cancelled out an overnight deficit of 47.7s to Citroen team-mate Sebastien Ogier to win Rally Argentina for the sixth time in his career.

Tony Fernandes has denied he will have to change the name of his formula one team.

Briton Dan Wheldon collected a cool $2.5 million for winning the Indianapolis 500 last Sunday.

The FIA is keeping a close eye on the aftermath of Lewis Hamilton's Monaco grand prix.

Audi is set to present the A1 clubsport quattro at the 30th edition of the Wörthersee Tour, a major meeting for Audi, Seat, Skoda and VW fans which takes place from June 1 to 4, 2011. This one-off model is a track-eating beast designed to rival the top performance cars in the world.

Bahrain is ready to host a formula one race, the chairman of the island Kingdom's grand prix circuit declared on Tuesday.

The 2011 Formula 1 Grand Prix of Canada will be held next week, June 10-11-12 on the Gilles-Villeneuve circuit in Montreal. Here's the schedule of a busy weekend.

PHOENIX, Arizona - Heat waves shimmering off the hot tarmac, a group of automotive media gathered at Firehawk raceway watched two identical Honda Civics free-roll down gigantic Hot Wheels-style ramps. Since we're here to learn about the newest Bridgestone Ecopia EP422 low rolling-resistance tire, we're only marginally surprised to see the Ecopia-clad Civic coast to a stop about 25 metres further than the vehicle clad in conventional Bridgestone Turanza tires.

Audi green light for small electric car, reviving legendary badge and set for Frankfurt show debut

Renault has appointed Carlos Tavares, Nissan's top executive for the Americas regions, as its new chief operating officer. Tavares will assume his new duties by July 1, Renault statement.

Renault has appointed Carlos Tavares, Nissan's top executive for the Americas since 2009, as its new chief operating officer.

Volkswagen is to formalize its offer for German truckmaker MAN in the coming days, marking another milestone in the German automaker's bid for global dominance.

Renault has tapped Carlos Tavares, Nissan's top executive for the Americas region, as second in command to CEO Carlos Ghosn, media reports said.

Volkswagen wants to start producing its Tiguan model in North America, to help cut costs, a German magazine reported, citing management sources. The Tiguan is currently only produced in VW's Wolfsburg plant in North Germany.

A string of bad luck that spooked the market in May is expected to fade away in time for the 2011 sales recovery to get back on track later this summer.

California Superstores, a new dealership group owned largely by a New York hedge fund, is buying up former Chrysler Group dealerships and at least one existing store in California.