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From GMM

Ross Brawn has revealed he is not planning to retire for at least a few more years.

The 57-year-old, who soared to success in past decades as a leading engineer at Benetton and Ferrari, is now the team boss at Mercedes, three years after selling the title-winning 'Brawn GP' outfit in 2009.

Photo: Mercedes AMG F1 Team

And amid rumours Lewis Hamilton could switch to the Brackley based camp for 2013, Brawn has told the Daily Mail he is not going anywhere for now.

"I am not planning to retire at the moment," he said.

Also being reported at present is that Michael Schumacher could be close to signing a new at least one-year contract extension for 2013.

Brawn said he is motivated by F1's switch to radical new engine rules in 2014.

"I am very excited about this 2014 engine programme," he said. "I think it is quite a game-changer in F1. I still have a strong engineering passion, so having such a different engine and different package in 2014 is exciting and developing the team is exciting. For how long, who knows? But I have no interest in stopping in the near future."

I am darn glad that the GMC Sierra Crew Cab 4X4 Short Box showed up when it did and I'm even happier that it came with a drop-in bedliner. Anything after that was gravy! The reason for all the joy was that my son was finally coming to get the rest of his stuff after moving out.

The only drawback to using this Sierra 1500 as a moving truck was the fact that it had a short box. Some of the furniture didn't fit as well as it could have. Mind you, the Ford F-150 and the Ram 1500 would have the same issues. On the other hand, it wasn't hard to tie everything down. All we had to do was pop the covers off the corner tie-down hoops and use a few knots that my son hadn't seen since cubs and scouts.


Interior
The back seat came into service for passengers on one trip, and for that it was excellent. The seatback was adjustable for rake and the seat cushion was long enough to provide leg and thigh support. Foot space was very good.

On the second round, I folded the back seat down out of the way and loaded four or five two-cubic-foot boxes in. They stacked up quite well and made the trip to my son's place without issue.

Up front, heated seats may be available, but they weren't installed on my cloth-seated tester. That didn't stop the bucket seat from being very comfortable over a wide range of roads, with the ability to provide good lateral and lumbar support without being restrictive.

One area where the 2012 Sierra 1500 shines is that just about every control is large enough to be worked with gloves on. Someone has finally figured out that controls need to be used even when it is real cold out. Still on the large front, both the tach and speedometer are big enough to be easily seen, even in direct sunlight.

One area where the 2012 Sierra 1500 shines is that just about every control is large enough to be worked with gloves on. (Photo: General Motors)

Getting In
Being able to enjoy all the creature comforts offered was a bit of work. Running boards are optional and the driver's side does not have an entry assist handle. The only item close enough to provide an assist for that giant leap was the steering wheel.

Once firmly in place, you can drive away in comfort. Front-seat passengers have a much easier time since there is a handle for them to grab onto to get in.

On the road
Suspension upgrades are pretty much a necessity if you go far off pavement. GMC has a couple of different packages that tend to build on each other. Some competitors such as the Toyota Tundra and the Nissan Titan make their heavier-duty suspension packages part of trim packages.

With the Sierra, the basic building block is the Z71 off-road suspension which includes a locking differential, larger diameter monotube shocks and a larger sway bar. If you need more, it is available, but this covers the basics and does a good job of getting engine power to the ground when needed.

The 5.3L V8, which develops 315 hp and 348 lb-ft of torque, got the job done quite nicely and this is where you need to pay attention to the order sheet because there are several engines that can be ordered. In the Crew Cab 4X4 version, a 302-hp 4.8L V8 is standard and a 403-hp 6.2L V8 is also optional.

Driving in town was no big deal because just about everyone knows what trucks are like and that they take up space, so other drivers tend to give you the room you need. Parking is the only issue since many parallel spaces are about the same length as the truck.

Angle spaces seem to be easier to get in and out of, mall spaces are usually long enough, but a bit on the narrow side. Parallel parking requires practice and longer spaces than the average city provides.

With the Sierra, the basic building block is the Z71 off-road suspension which includes a locking differential, larger diameter monotube shocks and a larger sway bar. (Photo: General Motors)

Market Position
GMC positions the SLE trim as a bit upmarket from the entry-level work truck, although it does still have a “truck interior.” To get into the lap of luxury, you have to step up to the SLT or Denali trim levels. My SLE Crew Cab 4X4 tester with the short box starts at $39,935.

Following GMC's declaration that Sierra is a “Professional Grade Truck,” the option list of individual items for each trim level is long, as is the list of packages available. Adding “packages” is often the best way to get the truck you want, but you do have a choice and you can really tailor the 2012 GMC Sierra 1500 for what you want it to do.

Team Toyota was fastest in the first free practice sessions ahead of the Sao Paulo Six Hours, fifth round of the World Endurance Championship.

Nicolas Lapierre set the fastest time aboard his TS030 Hybrid LMP1 prototype, with a lap in 1'23''272.

The frenchman was quicker than his team mate Alex Wurz, who will share the car with him during the race, alongside Kazuki Nakajima.

Photo: Toyota Motorsports

Newcomer Luca di Grassi, who replaces Dindo Capello in the Audi R18 Ultra prototype, set the third best performance. The former F1 driver will make its prototye debuts alongside Alan McNish and Tom Kristensen.

LMP2 class was dominated by Olivier Lombard's Oreca-Nissan Signatech. The Aston Martin Vantage driven by Darren Turner was the quickest of the GTE cars.

BMW is breaking from its illustrious tradition of longitudinally mounted engines with the unveiling of a plug-in hybrid prototype.

A safety recall for 1,491 2004-2006 Gallardo coupes and spyders was handed down by

Toyota and the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute are teaming up to conduct a study on teen driver distraction -- one of the first to include driving behaviors of parents and teens in the same family.

Ally Financial CEO Michael Carpenter has joined the board of directors of Autobytel, an online auto shopping service and lead provider. Carpenter also will become a member of the company's audit committee, Autobytel said in a statement today.

A union boss at Ford's factory in Genk, Belgium, said he failed to win assurances about the plant's future from the automaker's European management.

Three auto suppliers today unveiled a partnership that they say will develop a more efficient type of transmission technology that could be well-suited for electric vehicles while achieving fuel savings in gasoline-powered passenger vehicles and...

The 2013 Buick Enclave SUV will sticker for $39,270 including $825 for destination and handling.

Also in this episode: The Ford police interceptor gets a new engine, and we mourn

Average used-vehicle prices will fall 4 to 5 percent over the next 12 months, according to ALG's Industry Report released today.

The Mini Paceman will become the seventh vehicle in Mini's lineup when it debuts at the Paris auto show later this month. It rides on the same platform as the Mini

Global economic waters are far from calm, but Ferrari has managed to steer clear of the turmoil.

2012 Porsche Cayenne Turbo

We could debate the merits of 500-hp SUVs for days, but the fact is that the Cayenne is Porsche's best-selling model by a large margin, and the U.S. market swallows up nearly one in three Cayennes built.

We could debate the merits of 500-hp SUVs for days, but the fact is that the Cayenne is Porsche's best-selling model by a large margin, and the U.S. market swallows up nearly one in three Cayennes built. That does not, however, mean that every American will adore all versions of the SUV: the sand yellow paint on this Porsche Cayenne Turbo was met with almost universal disgust by friends, family, and even complete strangers. Save $3140 and pick a different color.

Photo Gallery: 2012 Porsche Cayenne Turbo - Editors' Notebook - Automobile Magazine

Photo Gallery: 2012 Porsche Cayenne Turbo - Editors' Notebook - Automobile Magazine

2012 Porsche Cayenne Turbo | Digg It | Add to del.icio.us

The election is less than two months away, so it must be time to bash the Chevy Volt.

Ford's board of directors is considering keeping CEO Alan Mulally involved with the automaker, after his retirement, as the board's nonexecutive chairman, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters today.

The Volvo Group says it will invest SEK783m in a new facility for the production of truck cabs at the plant in the Russian city of Kaluga.

After telling its members to prepare for strike action ahead of the expiration of its contract agreements with the Detroit Three, the pace of negotiations has picked up amid talk of concessions from the Canadian Auto Workers union.

News 13 Sep, 2012

Official pictures of the front-wheel-drive BMW Concept Active Tourer