Auto News 5

Opel interim CEO Stephen Girsky said changes have to be made at the carmaker to revitalize it, a German newspaper said, citing his e-mail to staff.

Toyota announced pricing for several 2013 models, with stickers for most models increasing -- including the Corolla, which saw a price increase of about 1.3 percent from the 2012 model.

President Francois Hollande said PSA's decision to close a factory and cut an additional 8,000 jobs is unacceptable and that he will lean on Europe's second-biggest carmaker to renegotiate the plan.

The Center for Auto Safety filed a petition with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration calling for an investigation into nearly 85,000 Mazda Tributes at risk of sudden acceleration because of faulty recall repairs on cruise control...

Small, budget-friendly cars with miserly engines and mid-sized sedans are hot. So are hybrids, minivans and traditional mid-sized SUVs. But big SUVs -- luxurious or not -- aren't so must-have these days when gasoline prices seem volatile. A U.S.

The city of Triberg in Germany is now offering parking spaces exclusively for men supposedly because they're more difficult to access. Drivers either have to manoeuvre around a concrete pillar or park against the wall and exit on the passenger side.

Wider, brighter parking spaces have also been reserved for women.

The Mayor talked about a marketing stunt to put the small town on the radar. Looks like it worked because the announcement quickly spread from local newspapers to the worldwide web.

Residents seem to find the whole thing amusing and enjoy all the media attention. They expect tourists and other curious folks to stop by their town to test their parking skills. And no tickets will be handed to women who would dare to steal a man's spot.

Source: Euronews

Photomontage : Auto123.com

Model: 2010 to 2012 Lexus RX 350 / RX 450h

Vehicle Type: Crossover

History/Description: The Lexus RX lineup effectively kicked off the luxury crossover SUV scene some generations ago - and the 2010 to 2012 iteration of the bestseller has now moved into used vehicle territory.

Commonly bought for sensibility, high residual values, safety and a reputation for quality and reliability, the RX offered up both gas-powered (3.5L V6, 275 horsepower) and hybrid (3.5L V6 with Lexus Hybrid Drive, 295 horsepower) variants.

All-wheel drive (AWD) and 6-speed automatic or CVT transmissions were on board.

Feature content in the five-passenger RX included automatic or motorized ‘everything,' navigation, Mark Levinson audio, a Bluetooth interface, climate-controlled seats and plenty more.

Photo: Matthieu Lambert

What Owners Like: Overall, it's a sense of practical luxury, well-appointed cabin, flexibility and overall comfort that get RX owners talking. A quiet ride is reported, along with great handling and traction in snowy weather. Styling and smoothness are also highly rated.

What Owners Dislike: Some owners wish for more at-hand storage, a more detailed and upscale cabin, a third row of seating, and a more modern and easy-to-use navigation system. Some drivers report a rough ride on certain surfaces, especially on models with bigger wheels. Some owners of the hybrid-powered RX wish for less ‘whining' noises as the electric drive system works away beneath the vehicle in some situations.

Common Issues: Start with a walkaround of your potential used RX candidate, checking the condition of the wheels, checking that both xenon projector headlamps illuminate, and ensuring the front bumper is properly attached at the edges and lines up with the panels adjacent to it.

Photo: Matthieu Lambert

Continue reading 2010-2012 Lexus RX Pre-Owned

The rest of the 39th Rally Bohemia, counting towards the FIA European Rally Cup, was cancelled after co-driver Bohuslav Ceplecha passed away following an accident on SS3.

Ceplecha was co-driving a Mitsubishi Lancer for Martin Semerad when the pair went off the road and hit a tree, approximately 100 km away from Prague.

Bohuslav Ceplecha (1977-2012) Photo: Mark Felt/eWRC.cz

Semerad only suffered minor injuries in the crash.

WRC driver Mads Ostberg was supposed to participate in the Rally Bohemia, but retired after having also crashed his car during shakedown.

Le programme de développement pré-course de la Dodge Viper GTS-R tire à sa fin : le retour à la compétition en American Le Mans Series de la Viper est maintenant prévu pour le 4 août, à Mid-Ohio.

Antoine L'Estage and co-driver Nathalie Richard are edging closer to a fourth consecutive win this season, as they head towards the end of Day 2 of the New England Forest Rally, round 5 of the Rally America championship.

11 stages have now been completed, and L'Estage holds a 33.4s lead over championship leader Dave Higgins.

Canadian Rally Championship protagonists Crazy Leo Urlichich and Ugo Desgreniers have exchanged third spot, after Urlichich went off the road.

In a bid to win the inaugural North American Endurance Championship - a three-race series within Grand-Am -, Chip Ganassi Racing called on Juan Pablo Montoya and Jamie McMurray to drive the No. 02 entry at Indianapolis' Brickyard Grand Prix

Chip Ganassi Racing is trailing three points behind leader Action Express Racing and one behind Starworks Motorsport. All have a shot at the title and the $100,000 consequent payoff.

Earlier this year, at the 24 Hours of Daytona, Montoya and McMurray helped Ganassi score a fourth place result.

Earlier in his career, Montoya won at the Brickyard, in the Indianapolis 500. As a driver, he also competed there in NASCAR's Brickyard 400 and even in the Formula One United States Grand Prix, with BMW-Williams.

"I think it's going to be cool," Montoya said. "This is kind of crazy that pretty much everything with four wheels, I've been here at Indy. It's pretty exciting. I think Jamie and I have a pretty good chance."

McMurray however, had never turned a wheel around Indianapolis' road course before recently.

"I've never went around Turn 1 wide open before, and the first time, even though you're going backward, it's kind of mindboggling to run flat out around there in the Rolex car," McMurray said.

"There are a lot of G's and a lot of load on your body, and one thing Juan and I were talking about is that all of these turns are right-handed, and my neck got tired in three laps because we're not used to turning right. I told him to hang on and get prepared because your body's going to go through something it hasn't went through in a long time."

The fastest in practice, Busch was the last driver to take the track on Friday afternoon. Busch zipped the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota around the 1.058-mile in 28.548 seconds (133.417 mph), followed by Kasey Kahne, Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr. and Clint Bowyer.

It was Busch's first pole this season and his second-career at NHMS, his only other coming in September of 2008. It was his ninth pole in 276 career starts.

At first it appeared that Busch had brushed the wall, but, he denied it. “I didn't feel it, so if anything it was really, really close. I just knew that I got in the throttle really early in (turns) three and four trying to make speed and was able to finish it, but the car slipped right at the last second.

“When you get to that older asphalt, it seems like this tire is different than the older tire where you lose just a touch of grip. Slid out right to the cushion part you would say. There's no mark on the car so all is good there,” Busch said.

“We definitely had a great day, we had a fast race car right off the truck,” said Busch. “(Watching other drivers qualify) screws me up more than anything. I just tried to hit the same marks that I hit in practice and have that time - that would have given us second.”

Kahne, who has started from the front row twice previously this year (Las Vegas and Martinsville), tried to get the most out of his No. 5 Farmer's Insurance Chevrolet - especially given how tight the times were. The top eight qualifiers are within .047 seconds of one another.

“It was really close, as far as the times, everyone is really close, so you have to go for all you can get,” said Kahne. “The car felt really good and I didn't waste any time in that first turn, knowing how tight the times were. I was aggressive on the first lap.”

Hamlin echoed Kahne's thoughts.

“We were just really on the edge out there on the track,” said Hamlin. “That was all it had speed-wise - the conditions were tight.”

Mike Bliss failed to make 43-car field.

General Motors' decision to bring much of its information technology work in-house threatens an IT service deal worth some $600 million a year to Hewlett Packard, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

Have you fed your motorsports addiction lately? Well, if not, we are here to help with the latest edition of Racing in Slow Motion IV.

First Drive: 2013 Audi Q5

A hybrid and a 3.0T V-6 are new for 2013, a TDI comes next year.

Audi's Q5 SUV arrived in the United States in 2009, and quickly established itself as the brand's number two volume offering, second only to the A4. So far in 2012, sales continue to be strong (up 22 percent through June), but Audi is looking to keep the momentum going with some mid-cycle updates this fall, mostly concentrated in the engine room.

Photo Gallery: First Drive: 2013 Audi Q5 - Automobile Magazine

Photo Gallery: First Drive: 2013 Audi Q5 - Automobile Magazine

First Drive: 2013 Audi Q5 | Digg It | Add to del.icio.us

Also in this episode: The head of De Tomaso was arrested, and the U.S. Army has severed its ties with NASCAR.

Omega manufacturing made a public name for itself this week as the supplier inadvertently revealed the front nose of the new Corvette C7 in every detail imaginable.

Hyundai Motor, headed for its first annual decline in United States market share since 1998, plans to address production constraints and invest in trucks and crossovers, the automaker's sales chief for the country said.

Ailing European carmaker Opel said it would not need to draw up a new mid-term business plan following a decision by parent General Motors to abruptly replace its CEO and appoint GM Vice Chairman Stephen Girsky as interim CEO.

Aston Martin dropped the details of its new V12 Vantage roadster on Tuesday, and the news is good.