Auto News 5

European new-car sales in May continued to reflect weak consumer confidence in the crisis-hit region, dropping 8.4 percent to 1.15 million vehicles, with PSA, Renault, Opel and Ford the carmakers hit hardest by the downturn.

China BAK Battery says it will supply high-power batteries to Brilliance Auto Group, delivering a sample order of five lithium-ion units next month for testing.

ContiTech Vibration Control is to acquire the moulded brake components business from Freudenberg Sealing Technologies, Weinheim.

It's hard to believe that it's been 15 years since the original Porsche Boxster bowed, but as Ferry himself was fond of saying, and#8220;Die Zeit vergeht, wenn man Spaß!and#8221; (and#8220;Time flies when you're having fun!and#8221;)

Ford UK's Unite union employees are to strike for two days from 18 June in protest at what they claim is the automaker's plan to close a final salary scheme to new starters - a move the automaker strenuously refutes.

Eaton Corporation today has signed a distributor agreement with the Cosworth Group in the UK, to supply TVS supercharger (Twin Vortices Series) and other roots-type Superchargers to the European automotive market.

Saab's main blue collar union has broadly welcomed the automaker's purchase by Chinese/Japanese/Swedish consortium, National Eclectic Vehicle Sweden (NEVS), although it will almost certainly be the labour body's white collar colleagues who are hired first.

The production start-up for the new V40 also means the end of the line for the Volvo S40 and V50 at the firm's Ghent plant in Belgium.

South Koreans will be drinking cheaper coffee and Colombians driving cheaper cars once a free trade agreement (FTA) agreed between the both countries takes effect.

BMW group's Rolls-Royce Motor Cars has appointed seasoned China executive Henrik Wilhelmsmeyer as director of mainland China from 1 July.

PSA plans to sell at least 50 percent of its profitable Gefco trucking unit, more than previously discussed, as it seeks to raise cash amid slumping sales in Europe.

Fiat is cutting investments in Europe by 500 million euros ($632 million) on expectations that the region's auto market won't recover in the second half.

Hyundai will boost output 20 percent to 300,000 units this year at its plant in Nosovice, Czech Republic, to meet strong demand for its new i30 model line. The South Korean automaker started production of the i30 compact wagon today.

Exhaust fumes from diesel engines causes lung cancer, a World Health Organization agency said for the first time, citing a review of studies.

Renault's decision to cancel next month's press event for the launch of its new Clio is just one of many cost-cutting moves that the automaker will make as it seeks to weather the worsening storm in Europe's car markets.

With three new SUVs, a key soccer sponsorship plus an expanded dealership network, Chrysler Group's Jeep brand aims for sales of 125,000 units in Europe by 2015.

Automakers may be obsessed with cutting vehicle weight, but they are happily packing on pounds in one place. Giant sunroofs and skylights dominate many new-vehicle cabins.

With three new SUVs, a key soccer sponsorship plus an expanded dealership network, Chrysler Group's Jeep brand aims for sales of 125,000 units by 2015.

Renault is counting on its quirky battery-powered Twizy to help win share from Peugeot, Smart, BMW and Volkswagen in Europe's fast-growing car-sharing sector.

As automakers look for lighter materials to improve fuel economy, Alcoa's director of automotive marketing, Randall Scheps, predicts that demand for aluminum within that sector will be at least twice as strong by 2025.

Photo: Audi

"We have every car maker calling us, wanting to increase their aluminum content, wanting to start new R&D projects about how they can convert bodies from steel to aluminum, wanting to convert hoods and doors from steel to aluminum," he says.

Scheps believes that this transition will more than double aluminum's overall rate of consumption in vehicle fleets from 11.5 million tons in 2011 to 24.8 million tons by 2025. BMW, among other manufacturers, has steadily been increasing its use of the metal in recent years.

In an effort to meet the growing demand, Alcoa has invested $300 million in expansion projects at its Davenport, Iowa plant.


_{Source: Automotive News}