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News 1 Oct, 2012

SEAT has revealed prices and specs for its all-new Leon, ahead of first deliveries in March 2013

First Drive: 2013 Chevrolet Malibu Turbo

If the newly turbocharged 2013 Chevrolet Malibu proves anything, it's that people at Chevy have figured out how to subvert the Office of Management and Budget.

If the newly turbocharged 2013 Chevrolet Malibu proves anything, it's that people at Chevy have figured out how to subvert the Office of Management and Budget. The Malibu turbo's apparent innocuousness would well suit a technocrat, one, for example, who tabulates the effectiveness of government subsidies for a car company like Fisker, and finally recommends pulling the plug.

Photo Gallery: First Drive: 2013 Chevrolet Malibu Turbo - Automobile Magazine

Photo Gallery: First Drive: 2013 Chevrolet Malibu Turbo - Automobile Magazine

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Don Esmond was known for an easy smile, quiet demeanor and low-key public persona during his 30 years at Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. He was content to blend into the team effort.

Threatened by a chronic shortage of engineers -- exacerbated by years of industry restructuring -- auto companies are having trouble filling job vacancies in Detroit now that the industry is coming back to health.

As bad as European auto sales have been this year, they're about to get worse. That was the verdict from industry executives gathered at the Paris auto show last week.

General Motors and Ford Motor Co. are jointly designing nine- and 10-speed automatic transmissions for broad use across their vehicle lineups in a bid to boost fuel economy.

For years, Toyota Motor Corp. has put hybrids at the center of its powertrain technology strategy, all but oblivious to the rapid fuel economy advancements rivals have made in the humble gasoline engine.

Texas Chevrolet dealer Rox Covert is in truck country. But you wouldn't know it from the way customers snapped up all 16 Spark minicars he had on his lot since August.

BMW, known for high-performance engines, is considering a three-cylinder powerplant for vehicles sold in the United States.

BMW will develop 10 to 12 compact models based on its new front-wheel-drive platform, said Ian Robertson, board member for sales and marketing. The platform, known as UKL, debuted on the Concept Active Tourer at the Paris auto show.

Augusto Farfus (BMW) took his first DTM victory ever in Valencia, as Bruno Spengler (BMW) inched ever closer to championship leader Gary Paffett despite a drive-through penalty.

Tension was high before the start of the race, as the three championship contenders, Gary Paffett (Mercedes), Bruno Spengler (BMW) and Jamie Green (BMW) started from the back of the field, 16th, 12th and 18th, respectively.

While pole sitter Augusto Farfus was pulling clear in front at the start, Gary Paffett was colliding with Joey Hand's BMW, and damaging the front of his C Coupé. From there on, the Brit was never on pace, and ran in the back of the field for the main part of the race. In the end, he was even forced to retire. Jamie Green too struggled aboard his Mercedes, but managed to take 10th position at the finish line.

Bruno Spengler meanwhile fared very well. After a good start from his 12th spot on the grid, the Canadian driver quickly reached the top 10. His progress was then slowed down by a drive through penalty for jumping the start (his car moved a little on the starting grid). He dropped down the order again.

But Spengler was not done yet, as he would prove with a great comeback. In the end, he took 6th position, which allows within only three points of championship leader Gary Paffett, with only one race remaining.

Adrien Tambay (Audi) had a great day, finishing second ahead of Mattias Ekström. Swiss female driver Rahel Frey was also impressive in her Audi, taking 7th position after a great fight with BMW drivers Andy Priaulx and Dirk Werner.

Robert Wickens (Mercedes) was not lucky in Valencia. The driver from Ontario was caught in an accident at the start, before he went off and hit the tire barriers quite heavily few moments later.

Valencia - Race :
1. Augusto Farfus (BMW) 46 laps in 1h08'22''522
2. Adrien Tambay (Audi) +8''406
3. Mattias Ekström (Audi) +8''967
4. Filipe Albuquerque (Audi) +23''067
5. Mike Rockenfeller (Audi) +28''066
6. Bruno Spengler (BMW) +39''831
7. Rahel Frey (Audi) +48''318
8. Andy Priaulx (BMW) +49''562
9. Dirk Werner (BMW) +58''327
10. Jamie Green (Mercedes) +1'10''596
Etc.

Championship :
1. Paffett 127 points, 2. Spengler 124, 3. Green 109, 4. Rockenfeller 85, 5. Ekström 81, etc.

2013 Chevrolet Trax First Impressions

2013 Ford Fusion First Impressions

2013 Dodge Dart Rallye Review

Other very interesting topics:

• Bridgestone: off-road tires and the environment
• Blog: Does a new car really have to be new?
• Honda prepares Fit-based SUV
• 2012 Ford F-150 FX4 Crew Cab Review
• The most stolen cars of 2011

From GP3 Series

GP3 Series organisers Monday announced the names of the nine teams that have been selected to compete in the 2013-2015 seasons.

Eight of the historical GP3 teams will continue in the Series whilst Koiranen Motorsport will join. The Finnish outfit have proven pedigree amongst others as 2011 Team Champions in Formula Renault 2.0.

The entry is valid for three consecutive seasons 2013-14-15. GP3 Series organisers agreed that nine teams was the right number to run with for the upcoming campaign with the new car. Each team will be allowed to line up a maximum of three cars.

The second generation car has had successful development tests which have shown that the new GP3/13 car is expected to be at least three seconds faster than the GP3/10.

Photo: GP3 Series

It has a naturally-aspirated 400hp engine compared to the current 280hp and also enjoys a new aerodynamic package including new nose, sidepods and engine cover. The step to progress up between GP3 and GP2 is closer, and with this upgrade kit, the GP3/13 car will be the perfect tool to help the drivers who graduate from GP3 to GP2 to be immediately competitive.

The teams will receive the kit for the GP3/13 car at the end of this year.

The current GP3/10 car has just two more outings remaining at the winter testing with the current teams: Jerez 24-25th October and Estoril 6th-7th October.

The following teams have entered the 2013 GP3 Series*

Atech Grand Prix
Carlin
Jenzer Motorsport
Koiranen Motorsport
Lotus GP
Marussia Manor Racing
MW Arden
Status Grand Prix
Trident Racing

*in alphabetical order

At ratification meetings this past weekend, CAW members at Chrysler voted 90% in favour of the new collective agreement.

The contract follows the pattern deal set with Ford on September 17th, and mirrored in the agreement with General Motors reached on September 20th.

It includes a $3,000 ratification bonus for workers as well as cost of living lump sum payments of $2,000 in each of 2013, 2014 and 2015. Current pension benefits for existing workers will be protected, while new jobs will be created at all Chrysler facilities.

Now that a deal has been ratified with the Big Three, CAW president Ken Lewenza said that the union will shift attention toward winning a long-overdue national auto policy for Canada. ''Without a comprehensive sector development strategy, the future of auto manufacturing in Canada remains uncertain, at best," he argued.

Such policies currently exist in Germany, Brazil and other countries.

We think we may have stumbled upon something very interesting coming from Mazda Canada. Our Social Media guy was doing his job when he came across a @mazdacanada tweet.

In less than a second, he retweeted the interesting nugget of information and shared it with us in the office. Thinking it would make for good news fodder, he attempted to retrace the original tweet only to realize that it had been deleted. Thankfully, he had retweeted the post.

The tweet reads as follows: @MrKerrJr tweeted to @mazdacanada that he'd like to see the gorgeous new Mazda6 wagon in Canada. Shortly thereafter, @mazdacanada replied that they we're working on it.

Good news! Premature news? One way or another, it is news!

If you followed Paris Auto Show coverage, you've seen the pictures of this car. We can all agree that it is very sexy! As some of us in the office are certified wagonistas, we could not be happier about the prospect of it coming back.

Yes, coming back. If you recall, the 2004 Mazda6 was available in sedan, 5-door hatchback and wagon body styles. Although the later two never sold in great numbers, they were nonetheless very attractive products.  

During the World Series by Renault meeting held last weekend at the Paul Ricard circuit of Le Castellet in France, Alain Prost got the chance to taste the power of two relatively recent F1 cars: the Red Bull-renault RB6 and the 2010 Renault R30.

Photo: DPPI/Renault Sport

The four-time Formula 1 World Champion Prost is a global ambassador for Renault. In addition to making public appearances, he helps the engineers in some areas.

In the early '80s, Prost continued the development of the first turbo engine in F1 with Renault, and he almost clinched the world title in 1983.

Photo: DPPI/Renault Sport

Prost, a brilliant technician could help in the development of Renault's new 1.6 litre turbo KERS engine due to be introduced in 2014.

In an interview posted on F1i.com, Prost said: "Driving a modern Formula 1 car is very helpful," said the 57-year-old. "And maybe I have another chance to do it with the new engine in the next two months. That would be another good experience.”

"I am already thinking about the new technology coming in Formula 1 with the new engines. I am going to work very hard with Renault on that; it is our new target,” he added.

Photo: DPPI/Renault Sport

Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport quoted Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo saying that the Scuderia plans to shut down its wind tunnel in order to verify it is correctly calibrated.

In the article, Montezemolo says the Italian Formula 1 team suffered issues with data correlation during the 2011 season. Last year's car -- the 150 Italia -- was apparently not producing the levels of downforce that wind tunnel data suggested some updates should provide.

The Ferrari boss believes the performance of this year's F2012 has also been affected by the inconsistency of the wind tunnel data. Montezemolo added that team boss Stefano Domenicali has made the decision to shut it down during the winter until the problems are fixed.

Ferrari wind tunnel.

"The real trouble is that sometimes the data matches and this creates even more confusion," Montezemolo was quoted as saying by Gazzetta dello Sport.

"Domenicali has reached a conclusion: to shut down our wind tunnel for a while and do our tests elsewhere, in order to verify and re-calibrate everything. It will take time.

"I don't know whether this will happen in December or January, it's up to him: I have absolute faith in Domenicali."

Last year, the Ferrari F1 team revealed it was using one of Toyota Motorsport Group's wind tunnels in Cologne, Germany in order to develop the car of Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa.

From IndyCar

Nineteen races over 16 event weekends highlight the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series schedule announced Sunday.

The expanded schedule includes the return of Indy car racing to Pocono Raceway and the streets of Houston.

With a 400-mile race at Pocono Raceway joining the 500-mile events at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Auto Club Speedway on the schedule, the IZOD IndyCar Series will institute a Triple Crown award, which will pay a $1 million bonus to a driver that wins on all three ovals. A driver that wins two of the three races will be awarded a $250,000 bonus.

Illustration: IndyCar

Also new for 2013 are Saturday-Sunday doubleheaders scheduled for the street courses at Detroit's Belle Isle Park, Toronto and Houston and the implementation of standing starts at those three venues. Details regarding qualifications procedures for the doubleheader races will be announced at a later date.

The 97th Running of the Indianapolis 500 is scheduled for Sunday, May 26. Pole Day is scheduled for Saturday, May 18.

2013 IZOD IndyCar Schedule

March 24 St. Petersburg
April 7 Barber Motorsports Park
April 21 Beach
May 5 Sao Paulo
May 26 Indianapolis
June 1 Belle Isle Detroit
June 2 Belle Isle Detroit
June 8 Texas Motor Speedway*
June 15 Milwaukee Mile
June 22 Iowa Speedway
July 7 Pocono
July 13 Toronto
July 14 Toronto
August 4 Mid-Ohio
August 25 Sonoma
September 1 Baltimore
October 5 Houston
October 6 Houston
October 19 Fontana*

* Denotes night race

Schedule subject to change

From GMM

Niki Lauda has admitted he played a role in convincing Lewis Hamilton to quit McLaren and join Mercedes.

The triple world champion, who is set to become the non-executive chairman of the Brackley based team, also confirmed he "helped" Mercedes with its Concorde Agreement negotiations with Bernie Ecclestone.

But the biggest news is that the Austrian legend was instrumental in getting long-term McLaren protege and Briton Hamilton to turn away from his boyhood employer.

"I was impressed with his approach to things, very pragmatic, no emotions whatsoever," Lauda told BBC radio of his talks with Hamilton.

The former McLaren and Ferrari driver said he told Hamilton that taking Mercedes to success was a challenge he should not ignore.

"And think of it the other way round, if Schumacher couldn't get the Mercedes team running up front for three years and you (Hamilton) next year are doing much better it makes a huge impact on your personality and people will rate you much higher," Lauda recalled of his conversations with Hamilton.

"In the end it convinced him that the challenge is what he wants to do."

Lewis Hamilton. (Photo: René Fagnan/Auto123.com)

Naturally, there are some who believe Hamilton was also attracted to Mercedes for mainly financial reasons.

"The money discussion I was not really involved in," said Niki Lauda. "The offer was very close to the one of McLaren."

Ultimately, Hamilton's move has divided opinions in F1.

Some think the 27-year-old is unwise to trade a surely competitive car for a Mercedes gamble, but 1996 world champion Damon Hill thinks the move was inevitable.

"Lewis has been like a caged bird at McLaren," he told the Daily Mail. "He'd been managed to within an inch of his life. You can have a bellyful of becoming a performing seal."

Niki Lauda said he will remain an expert pundit for German television.