Auto News 5

Chryslers are going back on sale in Japan for the first time in more than four years.

Britain's iconic black cab maker could be rescued within weeks.

Volvo has started production of the world's first diesel plug-in hybrid powertrain which has gone into its V60 model.

Former heated discussions between Ford's Belgian unions and management appear to have thrown any new date for negotiations into disarray as both sides attempt to meet to discuss the planned Genk plant closure.

News 19 Nov, 2012

This year's Los Angeles Motor Show sees 25 world debuts, including the Mercedes SLS AMG Black Series

Daimler has taken full control of the Mercedes Formula One motor racing team after buying a 40 percent stake from a Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund for an undisclosed sum.

Daimler has taken full control of the Mercedes Formula One motor racing team after buying a 40 percent stake from a Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund for an undisclosed sum.

News 19 Nov, 2012

JLR and Chery will invest £1.1billion in a Chinese factory to open in 2014

A month after receiving government approval for the joint venture, Tata Motors' Jaguar Land Rover and Chery Automobile have laid the foundation stone for a new manufacturing facility in China.

German supplier Schaeffler Group has named Dharmesh Arora, a former General Motors executive, as head of its operations in India.

Turkey's auto industry is one of the great growth stories of the past decade. The nation's government aims to triple vehicle production over the next decade.

With North American vehicle production headed toward 15 million-plus units next year, automakers are encountering a new breed of supplier: the one that says "no."

Carroll Shelby, the wild-spirited 89-year-old racing icon and king of thundering garage hot rods, lay on his deathbed last May struggling to talk. He urged his younger friend and business partner John Luft to lean closer.

The issue for dealers: Many marketers view social media as a good way for salespeople to engage customers, establish a following and build sales. But salespeople need to behave within limits to protect dealerships' reputations.

From GMM

Mario Andretti says Michael Schumacher's three-year return to F1 was a success because he enjoyed it.

"He never lost the love and joy of racing," Andretti, the naturalised American who won his F1 title in 1978, said at the US grand prix on Sunday.

"That's the thing I most admire," added the 72-year-old, who at the brand new Circuit of the Americas interviewed podium champions Lewis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso.

A long way down the results sheet, in an abysmal sixteenth place, was the seven time world champion Schumacher, whose failed comeback with Mercedes will finally end in Brazil next weekend.

"Of course his comeback was not a great success," Andretti is quoted by SID news agency, "but the important thing is that he enjoyed it."

"And if he does retire for good, we will miss him. He's still the best of all time," he added.

As for the 2012 title head-to-head between Vettel and Alonso, Andretti admitted he probably admires the achievements of Ferrari's Spaniard a little more.

"Alonso has no weaknesses," the Italian-born former Ferrari driver is quoted by El Pais, a Spanish newspaper.

Mario Andretti interviewing Fernando Alonso at Austin. (Photo: WRi2)

"His car was always outpaced but he has taken full advantage of every opportunity. Vettel's talent is unquestioned, but clearly he has the best car. Fernando deserves the title more because he has had the most personal influence on the results. Early on, Vettel was not happy with his car; he only began to dominate in the last third of the championship, when Red Bull found a way to improve the RB8. Now, Webber is also very fast, and when both drivers in a team are ahead it means the car is very competitive. Fernando thinks he deserves it more because he is at a disadvantage compared to Vettel, and I agree with him," added Andretti.

Fellow F1 legend Niki Lauda, however, warned the sport to brace for more and more Vettel success.

"It's not only that Seb can break all of Michael's records -- he will break them!" he told Bild newspaper. "Red Bull can give him the best car again and again."

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From WRC press release

Petter Solberg says he's not done yet when it comes to winning FIA World Rally Championship titles, even though he's facing the prospect of heading into the winter break without confirmation of a drive for next season.

The ever-popular Solberg won the 2003 WRC crown with Subaru but was forced to compete as a privateer for three seasons following the Japanese make's withdrawal from the sport at the end of 2008. He drove for the works Ford team in 2012. After a strong start, his form dipped and he finished fifth in the final table.

“I know I can win another championship and I absolutely know that this Ford Fiesta RS WRC is good enough to win the title, and is still getting better,” the Norwegian told told Autosport.com.

Photo: WRC

With Ford cutting its title sponsorship from the WRC for next season, M-Sport, the team behind the Blue Oval's factory operation, is currently not able to offer Solberg a ride for 2013 unless external funding becomes available.

“I'm desperate to carry on driving,” said Solberg. “I love this sport, it really is my life. I love everything about the World Rally Championship. But I have to consider the fact that I might have to retire from the WRC. I have to think like this. I'm a professional driver and if I can't make a living doing this then I have to look for other work, it's as simple as that. If I do retire, it would be nice to have started and finished my WRC career with Ford.”

Volvo Car Corporation is increasing production of the new Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid, the world's first diesel plug-in hybrid, which provides a range of up to 50 kilometres on pure electric power and 900 kilometres overall thanks to a remarkable consumption rating of 1.8L/100km.

From 1,000 units for 2013 (already sold out), Volvo will build 4,000-6,000 cars as of model year 2014. The assembly has been successfully integrated to the same line as the company's other models at the Torslanda plant in Gothenburg, Sweden.

"We are first in the industry to integrate a plug-in hybrid in an established production flow together with other car models," said Peter Mertens, Senior Vice President Research and Development at Volvo Car Corporation. "The integration in the standard production flow gives the plug-in hybrid buyer the possibility to choose in principle all options available for the standard V60."

Mertens added that the order books for next year's cars are already filling up. Unfortunately, there are no current plans to sell the Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid this side of the Atlantic.

Photo: Volvo

Team Press Release

Four star drivers will share the wheel of the No. 8 Starworks Motorsport Ford/Riley at opening round of the 2013 Grand-Am Rolex series, the 24 Hours of Daytona January 26-27.

Allan McNish, Alex Popow, Ryan Dalziel and Sebastien Bourdais will drive the car in Florida.

In 2012 Starworks Motorsport entered the history books by becoming the first LMP2 champions in the FIA World Endurance Championship and the first North American team to win an FIA World Championship in 46 years.

The team also won the Grand-Am North American Endurance Championship.

These milestones concluded an incredible season with victories at the 12 Hours of Sebring, 24 Hours of Le Mans and the first Rolex Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, in addition to a second in the Rolex 24 at Daytona and third in the Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen.

Given the response of visitors at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance earlier this summer, McLaren has decided to go ahead with a limited production run of the track-only 12C GT Can-Am.

If you love carbon fibre, you're in for a treat: The rear wing, door mirror mounts and covers, engine cover vents, side radiator intake vanes, sill covers and badges, as well as the entire chassis are all made of carbon fibre. Styling is also enhanced by lightweight forged alloy wheels with black satin finish and Pirelli racing tires.

Inside the McLaren 12C GT Can-Am, expect to find an FIA-approved, race-specification roll cage, full six-point harnesses, and a unique McLaren GT steering wheel carried over from the 12C GT3 race car.

The piece de resistance, of course, is the 3.8L twin-turbo V8 engine whose power output has been increased to 630 horsepower with the help of unique engine calibration and optimized cooling. This makes the McLaren 12C GT Can-Am the most powerful 12C to date.

The mere 30 copies will each retail for £375,000, equal to about $595,000.

Photo: McLaren