Auto News 5

German carmakers are lagging behind their Japanese rivals in aftersales customer satisfaction in South Korea, according to a survey.

Hyundai's premium models now account for more than 10% of the South Korean brand's sales in Europe.

BorgWarner has opened another production plant at its campus in Ningbo, China.

The newly launched Octavia is at the heart of Skoda's strategy to boost annual sales to 1.5m, according to its CEO, Winfried Vahland talking at the unveiling of the new five-door in Mladá Boleslav, Czech Republic.

ZF Friedrichshafen says it will introduce a new concept for its board of management next year, with the former separation of responsibilities for corporate functions and divisions eliminated.

News 18 Dec, 2012

The new Maserati Ghibli has been spied cold weather testing in Scandinavia ahead of its 2013 launch

News 18 Dec, 2012

Infiniti has revealed that all future models will be badged as either Q or QX

Johnson Controls has filed an appeal in the bankruptcy court of the 11 December, 2012 sale order approving Wanxiang's purchase of A123 Systems.

News 14 Jan, 2013

Pictures and details of the revised BMW Z4, following its world debut at the Detroit Motor Show

Nissan's Hong Kong-based Infiniti division has announced a new system of model names to be applied from 2013.

Gearheads around the world know that car culture is facing something of an existential crisis: Kids don't seem to care all that much about cars these days.

Renault plans to build a factory in Algeria as part of its push for growth in Africa. The factory will produce vehicles in the same segment as the Symbol sedan.

Volvo is expecting roughly flat sales next year but has no plans at present to cut more staff in its production, CEO Hakan Samuelsson said.

Honda Motor Co., hit by Consumer Reports' stinging review for its Civic small car last year, got high marks for the revamped 2013 Accord that the magazine said ranks among the market's best mid-sized cars.

Renault has given Gerard Detourbet, the man behind the no-frills Logan, a mission to devise an even cheaper vehicle program for India that can compete with such champions of frugality as Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai.

Toyota was the first automaker to bring a compact crossover to the U.S. market. But since 1995, Toyota's dominance of the segment has eroded. It now resides in fourth place in the segment sales race.

Infiniti is renaming its entire product portfolio for the 2014 model year, returning to the letter 'Q' from the brand's early history for every car and 'QX' for every Infiniti crossover and SUV.

Starting with the 2014 model year, all Infiniti vehicles will be sold under a brand new name. Sedans, coupes and convertibles will use the ''Q'' prefix, while SUVs and crossovers will wear a ''QX'' badge.

Each one will also be defined by a two-digit number relative to its position within the lineup. For example, the current FX and JX crossovers will be called QX70 and QX60, respectively.

The new naming strategy will first apply to the 2014 Infiniti Q50, an all-new premium sports sedan that will be unveiled at the North American International Auto Show in January to replace the G sedan.

"The need for a new identity and direction to promote consumer familiarity with our model range as we expand the portfolio became evident,'' said Johan de Nysschen, President of Infiniti Motor Company Limited.

''To achieve this, we clearly needed a simple and consistent nomenclature framework. After exhaustive research and evaluation, we concluded that 'Q' captured the inspiration within the next generation of Infiniti models, as well as emphasizing our performance credentials while harking back to our heritage with the Q45 - Infiniti's first iconic flagship product in 1989."

Photo: Infiniti

GM's all-new extended-range electric luxury coupe, the 2014 Cadillac ELR, will make its world debut at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit next month.

Based on the 2009 Cadillac Converj Concept, the ELR features an electric propulsion system made up of a T-shaped lithium-ion battery, an electric drive unit, and a four-cylinder engine-generator. It uses electricity as its primary driving power source, and when the battery's energy is low, the system seamlessly switches to a gasoline-powered electric generator to boost range.

No word yet on when the 2014 Cadillac ELR will hit the market, or what kind of performance buyers should expect.

Photo: Cadillac

From GMM

Sebastian Vettel has admitted his teammate Mark Webber initially had a better handle of Red Bull's 2012 car.

Ultimately, on the way to collecting his third consecutive drivers' title this year, German Vettel outscored Australian Webber by more than 100 points.

And Webber won two grands prix in 2012, both in the first half of the season, compared to Vettel's five.

Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber on Silverstone's podium. (Photo: WRi2)

A report in Germany's Auto Motor und Sport said Red Bull's renowned designer, Adrian Newey, "took half a season" to get the RB8 fully up to speed.

"I just felt more comfortable in the car (in the second half of the season)," Vettel explained.

"The balance was better for me than it was at the beginning, which caused problems especially in qualifying. For a long time I was not happy with the exhaust, even though it brought more downforce than the old version. I couldn't play with the car the way I wanted, to fit my driving style. I get my speed in the corners in the entry, while Mark is better at the exit. Only the last 'Coanda'-solution got me close to what we had last year," added Vettel.