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Porsche boosted first half operating profit 3% to EUR1.29bn on sales up 4% to EUR7.03bn.

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What is it?

What is it?

What is it?

What is it?

What is it?

What is it?

What is it?

Pictures 1 Aug, 2013

Pictures 1 Aug, 2013

French car sales rose in July, the first increase in almost two years, as new models and dealer discounts attracted customers.

Suzuki denied media reports that it and VW Group have resumed talks on how to resolve a dispute about a partnership deal.

Suzuki denied media reports that it and VW Group have resumed talks on how to resolve a dispute about a partnership deal.

BMW reported an 8.8 percent decline in second-quarter profit as spending on new models including its first electric car offset higher sales. BMW CFO Friedrich Eichiner said today that investments in new models will place a 1 billion euro ($1.

BMW reported an 8.8 percent decline in second-quarter profit as spending on new models including its first electric car offset higher sales. BMW CFO Friedrich Eichiner said today that investments in new models will place a 1 billion euro ($1.

The 2013 Los Angeles Auto Show, which will run from November 22nd to December 1st, will feature more than 50 vehicle launches, including 9 world premieres:

• BMW (7-8 debuts, including one world premiere);
• Chevrolet;
• Ford;
• Honda;
• Mercedes-Benz;
• MINI (word premiere of next-generation MINI)
• Porsche (world premiere of Macan SUV);
• Subaru;
• Volkswagen.

“As the first major North American show of the season, Los Angeles sets the tone for 2014, and we expect that automakers will pull out all the stops to excite new-car buyers,” said Terri Toennies, the Show's new General Manager. “In virtually every category, from the greenest electric vehicle to high-horsepower performance models, the technological advancements we are seeing today eclipse all previous automotive eras.”

The Connected Car Expo (November 19-21), which brings together some of the biggest players in both the automotive and technology fields, will occur in conjunction with the Los Angeles Auto Show Press Days (November 20-21).

Photo: Matthieu Lambert

Team Principal of Caterham F1 Team, Frenchman Cyril Abiteboul reflects on the season so far and the brilliant performance of his drivers, Giedo van der Garde and Charles Pic who finished in 14th and 15th places respectively in Hungary.

“It's been an interesting first half of season for the team and for me personally,” said Abiteboul during an interview published by the team.

“As far as we're concerned, we've been fighting with Marussia who have done a great job over the last year. We started the season clearly behind them, but over the last three races a comfortable gap has appeared between us and them, which shows our rate of development. That's also helped us on a couple of occasions to race a Williams or a Sauber and that shows where we're setting our targets,” he added.

Photo: Caterham F1 Team

Abiteboul admits that the factories move of August of last year was distracting, yet necessary.

“Since moving to Leafield last August, and especially since the start of 2013, the focus was on making sure the factory was up and running and putting ourselves in control of our manufacturing process, reducing lead times and increasing economic efficiency, with the right level of integration,” he explained.

The French engineer also confirmed that the team was hiring new people and was heavily involved with the design of its 2014 challenger.

“We must take advantage of the opportunities 2014 will bring and we're already above our initial targets for next year, so much so we're looking at reviewing them for more aggressive ones! The car has been in the tunnel for a while now, and we're seeing good numbers, all of which is being achieved while we keep progressing this year, hopefully showing without a doubt that we are on the right path to reduce the gap to the midfield,” he said.

The Caterham boss is also pleased with the performance of his two drivers.

“As a rookie, Giedo (van der Garde) has had his challenges, but his last race in Hungary was a good reward for his determination and his positive attitude that the team loves. He's also going to be helped by the new tires which will definitely suit his style better than those used for the first nine races,” Abiteboul explained.

“For Charles (Pic), after only one year of experience with Marussia, he immediately made a positive contribution to our development strategy this year and that's a clear sign of his maturity and of his determination. It's possible the new tires take away one of his strengths over the other drivers as he was very good at tire management, but therefore he must adapt and develop other skills in terms of pure race pace to cope with what's to come. He demands a lot from himself and from us, and I like that. I think that sort of spirit will help push the team forwards,” Abiteboul concluded.

From GMM

A key figure of next year's inaugural Russian grand prix has played down suggestions the Sochi race might never take place.

The latest reports suggest a dispute between the Russian automobile federation and race organisers Omega has delayed the official application to the FIA beyond its July deadline.

But Oleg Zabara, Omega's deputy general director, told Russia's Championat: "I cannot understand why there would be doubt.

"In 2010, in the presence of Vladimir Putin, the agreement was signed and work (on the circuit) has gone according to the plan. Maybe all this (uncertainty) is due to the fact that not everything is running smoothly with New Jersey. No, we're fine -- everything is according to plan."

Indeed, while the rest of the 2014 calendar is still the subject of speculation, Sochi already has its provisional race date -- October 19.

Team buildings. (Photo: Formula Sochi)

And more news could be in the pipeline. Zabara met with Bernie Ecclestone at the Hungaroring last weekend, and also present was Igor Mazepa, of the new Russian GP2 team Russian Time.

Igor Mazepa admitted that Russian Time is working closely with Williams.

"Now we're going to strengthen our relationship," he said. "We are already talking to Claire Williams about the possibility of a Russian driver coming, if there is a vacancy for 2014 due to one of the current drivers going to another team."

Williams' current drivers are Valtteri Bottas and Pastor Maldonado.