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Adapted from GMM

Bernie Ecclestone admitted in the paddock of the German Grand Prix that he still doesn't know what is happening with the Spanish Grand Prix. He also revealed that he might buy the Nurburgring, and that F1 could visit the US as much as three times per year in the future.

Reportedly, a verbal agreement between the regional presidents should see Valencia and Barcelona annually alternate a single Spanish F1 race from now on.

The port city of Valencia, absent from the 2013 schedule, was set to kick off the arrangement in 2014, but the Circuit de Catalunya has already put tickets on sale for a Spanish grand prix next year.

"If they are doing that," Valencia vice president Jose Ciscar said, "you will have to ask Catalunya as to why."

Asked on Friday at the Nurburgring to clarify the identity of next year's Spanish grand prix host, F1 chief executive Ecclestone answered: "I don't know yet.

"We have to wait," he is quoted by the Spanish sports daily AS.

It is also likely the F1 community will have to wait to see what happens with the German Grand Prix.

The fabled Nurburgring circuit.

Weighed under by financial problems and now for sale, this weekend's round at the famous track in the Eifel only survived on the 2013 calendar because the F1 chief executive heavily reduced his sanctioning fee.

Asked by Die Welt newspaper about the Nurburgring's future beyond the German grand prix on Sunday, Ecclestone answered: "It's quite possible that I'll buy it (the circuit).

"At least I'm thinking about it.

"If I do that, it would mean the German grand prix is secure in the future, taking into account of course the existing contracts with Hockenheim."

The 82-year-old Briton said he will make his final decision "in a few months".

"At any rate," Ecclestone insisted, "the German grand prix next year will be at Hockenheim.  There are binding contracts and I will keep to them."

The F1 supremo also said he is hoping "two new races" in America will complement the now annual Austin race, "namely in Long Beach and New York (New Jersey)".

And Ecclestone said F1 is also planning races in Thailand, as well as Baku -- the capital of Azerbaijan.

Austin's COTA (Photo: WRi2)

From GMM

Having confirmed its financial problems, the rumours about the future of the Swiss team Sauber are now doing the rounds in the Nurburgring paddock.

Amid reports he has not been paid recently, German driver Nico Hulkenberg insists team boss Monisha Kaltenborn is "working on a solution".

"She's assured me that she's busy working on that and there's not much more I can say," he said on Thursday.

Indeed, Kaltenborn was missing in the Nurburgring paddock on Friday, with Speed Week reporting that she hosted a delegation at Hinwil of the Swiss federal government.

Sports minister Ueli Maurer said: "Sauber is the most important high-tech company in Switzerland."

Nico Hulkenberg, Sauber C32 (Photo: Sauber F1 Team)

But Speed Week said the Swiss government is not going to bail-out the struggling Sauber.

Cue the next rumour -- Nicolas Todt.

Speed Week said the relationship between team founder Peter Sauber and Todt's father, the FIA president Jean Todt, is longstanding and strong.

Frenchman Nicolas Todt, who manages the careers of Felipe Massa, Pastor Maldonado and Jules Bianchi and operates the GP2 team ART, is often linked with F1 team buyouts.

Sauber is reportedly in talks with the Russian natural gas giant Gazprom about a sponsorship deal, and Speed Week said it is "unclear" if the Todt rumour is related.

The well-connected Swiss newspaper Blick, meanwhile, is reporting another potential Russian link for Sauber -- the apparent interest of the team's football club sponsor Chelsea's billionaire owner Roman Abramovich.

Correspondent Roger Benoit said at least some income is guaranteed to flow Sauber's way, having inked a deal for the upcoming Silverstone test with Japanese driver Kimiya Sato.

Benoit said the sponsors of 23-year-old Sato, who is not related to former F1 driver Takuma Sato, are paying EUR 250,000 for his single-day run in the C32 car.

A total of 25,546 Chrysler, Jeep, and Dodge vehicles are being recalled by Chrysler Canada because the airbag warning lamp may illuminate due to an electrical fault within the Occupant Restraint Control (ORC) module.

As a result, the active head restraints may not deploy during a rear impact collision (where deployment is warranted), which could increase the risk of personal injury to the front seat occupants.

Dealers will reprogram the Totally Integrated Power Module (TIPM) or replace the ORC module, as required.

Affected models include:

• 2011-2013 Chrysler 200;
• 2011-2013 Chrysler Sebring;
• 2011-2013 Dodge Avenger;
• 2011-2012 Dodge Nitro;
• 2011-2012 Jeep Liberty

Source: Transport Canada

Photo: Michel Deslauriers

You can't buy Joey Logano's Penske Racing Nationwide series Ford Mustang; but you can rent a race car from Hertz that's pretty close.

Hertz will be renting them for approximately $180 dollars a day.

Dubbed the Hertz Penske GT it recalls the famous Shelby Mustang GT 350H which was popular in the late 1960s.

Penske Racing combined elements of Ford's 420-horsepower Shelby GT500 Mustang and the even more powerful, track-oriented Laguna Seca version.

Hertz Penske GT. (Photo: Twitter Brad Keselowski)

Enhancements to the five liter Hertz Penske GT include:
• Performance Upgrades, including: Quad-Tip Exhaust System, Air Intake and ECU Tuning Upgrade, 3.55 Gears, and Brembo® Brakes
• Interior Upgrades, including: Black Recaro Racing Seats, Laguna Seca Gauge Pod, Limited Edition Interior Dash and Engine Bay Plaques, Custom Floor Mats and Door Sills, and Ford's Touchscreen Entertainment System with GPS and Back-up Camera
• Exterior Upgrades, including: Black exterior with unique Hertz yellow racing stripes, Boss 302 Front Splitter, GT500 Rear Valence, Upgraded Suspension and Handling, Custom Graphics Package, and Custom Hertz Faux Gas Cap

Joey Logano's Ford Mustang Nationwide. (Photo: Twitter Brad Keselowski)

“It is terrific that a classic American car is being transformed into a one-of-a-kind vehicle inspired by Penske Racing,” said Roger Penske. “The Hertz Penske GT makes us even more excited for what is in store for our multi-year partnership with Hertz, and we are thrilled that our fans and Hertz travelers will have the opportunity to rent this special car.”

You can buy one of those old-original Shelby Mustangs, but, it will set you back six figures.

Photo: Penske Racing

Toyota Canada is recalling 16 Yaris hatchbacks from 2012 due to a steering problem.

A relay within the electric power steering control module could short circuit and fail. The sudden loss of steering power assist would trigger a warning lamp to illuminate and a buzzer to sound. A Yaris experiencing a loss of steering power assist would revert to a manual steering mode, which would require greater driver effort, especially at low vehicle speeds, and potentially result in a crash.

Toyota dealers will therefore replace the electric power steering control module with an updated version.

Source : Transport Canada

Photo: Sébastien D'Amour

Kyle Busch and his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, Matt Kenseth, claimed the front row in qualifying for Saturday night's  Coke Zero 400 in a pair of Toyotas at Daytona International Speedway.

Busch, who won the 2008 summer classic in Daytona, lapped the high banked superspeedway at 193.723 mph. Kenseth's speed was 193.299mph.

“Whether it's speedways or whether it's open race tracks, we seem to be qualifying a lot better this year,” Busch said. “I just wish that our finishing average was as good as our qualifying average because (my team has) done a really, really good job of all of that - helping me be fast this year on these one laps.”

Not known for his qualifying to date it was Busch's third pole of the season, 13th of his career, but first for a restrictor-plate race.

Kyle Busch, No. 18 Toyota Camry (Photo: Kyle Busch)

"I've not had many opportunities for me to win poles at restrictor-plate races, so I've got to thank the team, all the guys at Joe Gibbs Racing that did such a good job building a slick race car," Busch said.

"It's a team effort coming to these places and having great race cars. I'm really excited to be starting up front, especially with my teammate Matt Kenseth on the front row with us."

Kenseth a two-time winner of the Daytona 500 felt good about his speed.

“It's been pretty good the first two plate races,” said Kenseth of their restrictor-plate program. “We were pretty strong and we led a lot of laps and didn't get to win either of them, but we led a lot of laps and were in position. I'm excited for tomorrow night.”

Rounding out the top five were Clint Bowyer, Kasey Kahne and Bowyer's Michael Waltrip Racing teammate, Martin Truex Jr. The top qualifying rookie was Roush Fenway Racing's Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who will roll off ninth.

In related news NASCAR, 16 cars failed pre-qualifying inspection for unapproved roof flaps. All JGR cars including Busch, Kenseth and Denny Hamlin were among those which failed. Penalties are likely, but, won't be announced until next week.

Santander Consumer USA, which formed Chrysler Capital this year in partnership with Chrysler Group, filed plans to raise at least $50 million in an initial public offering and said it plans to pursue deals with other automakers.

The fourth annual show on the Fourth of July was the best-ever for

June 2013 Auto Sales

Hear the pickups roar.

Robust construction activity helped drive pickup sales higher -- up by 24% over last year -- which in turn helped propel overall auto sales beyond even the sunny expectations of industry watchers. The suddenly booming housing market is only the most obvious sign of increased economic activity. New-car buyers shrugged off a dip on Wall Street, and flocked to dealerships. Overall new vehicle sales jumped 9% compared with the previous June, reaching their most torrid pace of 2013, an annualized selling rate of nearly 16 million units. That number hasn’t been seen -- or even fantasized about -- since 2007. Better still for the auto industry, consumers are paying more for cars, as they gravitate toward feature-loaded models. Incentives, meanwhile, are down.

Photo Gallery: June 2013 Auto Sales - Automobile Magazine

Photo Gallery: June 2013 Auto Sales - Automobile Magazine

June 2013 Auto Sales | Digg It | Add to del.icio.us

June 2013 Auto Sales

Hear the pickups roar.

Robust construction activity helped drive pickup sales higher -- up by 24% over last year -- which in turn helped propel overall auto sales beyond even the sunny expectations of industry watchers. The suddenly booming housing market is only the most obvious sign of increased economic activity. New-car buyers shrugged off a dip on Wall Street, and flocked to dealerships. Overall new vehicle sales jumped 9% compared with the previous June, reaching their most torrid pace of 2013, an annualized selling rate of nearly 16 million units. That number hasn’t been seen -- or even fantasized about -- since 2007. Better still for the auto industry, consumers are paying more for cars, as they gravitate toward feature-loaded models. Incentives, meanwhile, are down.

Photo Gallery: June 2013 Auto Sales - Automobile Magazine

Photo Gallery: June 2013 Auto Sales - Automobile Magazine

June 2013 Auto Sales | Digg It | Add to del.icio.us

Robby Gordon edged out Jeff Gordon and Kevin Harvick to win the

My love for big-body cars comes from a confluence of movies, music and TV including and#8220;Boyz in the Hood,and#8221; and#8220;Menace II Society,and#8221; and#8220;

Whenever I'm asked what my favorite car is, it's impossible for me to single out a specific model. A huge list pops up in my head and I end up having a big debate with myself as I rattle off different exotics and classics.

Asking me to pick my favorite American car is the exact same thing as asking me to look at American cars on eBay and Bring a Trailer continuously for days at a time. But, my boss did it anyway.

Lanxess has opened its first Russian factory. Subsidiary Rhein Chemie's Lipetsk facility makes polymer bound rubber additives for Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), primarily for the automotive and tyre industries.

Nissan Motor premium brand Infiniti has named a new head of marketing for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA).

Geely's Volvo Car Group is claiming world firsts for animal and night pedestrian detection technology due to make its debut in the redesigned XC90 crossover due out at the end of 2014.

Nissan Motor's EUR147.5m (US$191.31m) spend at its Sunderland plant in north east England for European assembly of the redesigned Note includes axles, cylinder heads, camshafts and petrol engines for the new car, the automaker said.

The European Commission is to investigate a grant given by Slovenia's government to a Renault unit to see if rules on state aid have been breached.

Let me tell you about American ingenuity and engineering know-how and stick-to-itiveness.