Auto News 5

Timing for the start-up of European production on the next generation Ford Mondeo is a 'critical variable' in the company's decision-making over its European capacity footprint, according to an analyst at LMC Automotive.

News 23 Oct, 2012

The Skoda Superb line-up has been expanded with the addition of a rugged, four-wheel-drive model

Pictures 23 Oct, 2012

News 24 Oct, 2012

We reveal the scale of underinvestment in roads, as £33bn revenue is gained but only £9bn spent

Industriall European Trade Union (IETU) says the emergency meeting called by Ford with its unions at 09:00 (CET) in Belgium tomorrow (24 October) could escalate into a wider Continent labour issue.

Following Maruti Suzuki's 50% hike in pay for its Gurgaon factory workers, Hyundai Motor, India's number two car maker, has agreed a 45% increase over three years for its plant staff.

Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus is recalling around 58,000 of its Canter light-duty trucks and Rosa small buses globally because of a faulty fuel filter tube.

BMW has, at long last, confirmed it will build a EUR200m (US$261m) car assembly plant in Brazil, scheduled to start production in 2014.

EXECUTIVE EDITOR ROGER HART: After one of the more hectic Mondays shipping the magazine (something like 40 pages were shipped to the printer) it was terrific to walk out to the parking garage and slip behind the wheel of a supercar.

Volkswagen has revealed its intention to join the burgeoning small SUV/crossover ranks with the Taigun concept unveiled at the Sao Paulo motor show in Brazil.

Faurecia, the French supplier controlled by PSA, cut its 2012 earnings outlook, saying it expects a sharp sales decline in Europe in the fourth quarter as a result of slowing automobile production.

Royal Bank of Canada has agreed to buy the Canadian auto finance and deposit arm of Ally Financial in a $4.1 billion deal to expand its vehicle-lending business at a time when loan growth overall is slowing in the country.

With European car sales likely to slip to their lowest level since 1995 as austerity measures reduce consumers' buying power, volume brands are offering average discounts of 20 percent in key European markets to try and sell their new cars.

France wants PSA/Peugeot-Citroen to appoint government and worker representatives to its board in return for a lending bailout, industry minister Arnaud Montebourg said.

Faurecia plays an important role in Volkswagen's 100kg weight reduction for the seventh-generation Golf compared with the previous generation of the car.

BMW will invest $261 million in a Brazil factory to boost sales in the fast-growing market and to counter Audi.

DTM organizers have released the 2013 calendar, with the first appearance of a race contested in Moscow.

The 2013 DTM calendar will feature eleven races instead of ten rounds so far, with the addition of this new destination, which had been already planned back in 2005 before the project was finally cancelled. The race will be presented on the brand new Moscow raceway.

The second important element of this calendar is the cancellation of the non championship round presented in 2011 and 2012 in the Olympic Stadium in Munich. The organizers, who aimed to award points in this event, finally could not realise their project.

The spanish round, presented in Valencia last season, should be located in Barcelona, but that point is still to be confirmed.

Hockenheim will again host the opening round and the final round of the championship, that will end on 20 October.

A race in circuit Gilles-Villeneuve in Montreal is still in talks for 2014.

2013 DTM calendar:
5 may: Hockenheim (Germany)
19 may: Brands Hatch (England)
2 june: Spielberg (Austria)
16 june: Lausitzring (Germany)
7 july : Norisring (Germany)
21 july: Zandvoort (Netherlands)
4 august: Moscow (Russia)
18 august: Nürburgring (Germany)
15 september: Oschersleben (Germany)
29 september: to be confirmed (Spain)
20 october: Hockenheim (Germany)

The next-generation Chevrolet Silverado 1500 will make a first public appearance during a special event in Detroit on December 13th.

For now, details about the full-size truck remain scarce. GM promises enhanced capabilities along with features such as jewel-like, projector beam headlamps.

The new Chevrolet Silverado will have its official world premiere at the Motor City's North American International Auto Show in January. Production will start next year.

Photo: Chevrolet

From GMM

Ferrari have admitted they are concerned crucial upgrades to the F2012 car will not work as expected.

Team boss Stefano Domenicali has said the Italian squad needs to find at least 2 tenths of a second to boost Fernando Alonso's chances of competing for the title against Red Bull's on-form new championship leader Sebastian Vettel.

With tester Davide Rigon at the wheel, Ferrari - with its 2012 car featuring a number of upgrades - reportedly ran a "secret" straightline aerodynamic test at the Idiada facility in Spain last Thursday.

Rear wing of the F2012. (Photo: Ferrari)

Alonso's teammate Felipe Massa admitted the team has had problems this year with the correlation of the data produced by its Maranello wind tunnel, which will be closed for a time during the winter for repairs.

"We are working on a lot of things in the development of the car," the Brazilian is quoted by Totalrace. "(But) we have had some problems with parts we have brought to the last few races not working when we go onto the track."

Totalrace said Ferrari is already working and checking data in Toyota's state of the art Cologne wind tunnel.

Stefano Domenicali, however, said he does not want the news to be interpreted as an "excuse" for Ferrari's recent development problems.

"That's part of the development process we are doing to improve the team, but I don't want to hear that it's an excuse for this championship. We need to keep pushing to make sure Fernando has the best car for the end of the season," he added.

Subaru is developing a turbocharged variant of the 2.0L engine that currently sits under the hood of its new BRZ sports coupe, Automotive News reports.

It will use a single twin-scroll turbocharger and direct injection to generate 280 horsepower (+80) and more than 250 lb-ft of torque.

Expect the turbocharged Subaru BRZ to debut as a 2014 model.

Source: Automotive News

Photo: Sébastien D'Amour