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A top VW executive has stressed the need for Volkswagen to be cost competitive in an address to employees.

A top VW executive has stressed the need for Volkswagen to be cost competitive in an address to employees.

A top VW executive has stressed the need for Volkswagen to be cost competitive in an address to employees.

German antitrust authorities searched the offices of Magna International, IAC Group, Faurecia, and three other automotive suppliers Tuesday.

German antitrust authorities searched the offices of Magna International, IAC Group, Faurecia, Borgers, Autoneum and one other automotive supplier Tuesday. The companies are under investigation on suspicion of price fixing.

German antitrust authorities searched the offices of Magna International, IAC Group, Faurecia, Borgers and two other automotive suppliers Tuesday. The companies are under investigation on suspicion of price fixing.

Infiniti says it wants to launch new models that are bold and even 'provocative.' But if the new Q30 concept is anything to go by, it still has some way to go.

Infiniti says it wants to launch new models that are bold and even 'provocative.' But if the new Q30 concept is anything to go by, it still has some way to go.

Alfa Romeo's much anticipated return to the US market has been put back to the second quarter of 2014.

Alfa Romeo's much anticipated return to the US market has been put back to the second quarter of 2014.

VW Group opened a new factory today in southern China to build the Golf. The plant has an initial capacity to make 300,000 units a year, a number that VW says will double in the mid-term.

VW Group opened a new factory today in southern China to build the Golf. The plant has an initial capacity to make 300,000 units a year, a number that VW says will double in the mid-term.

Consumer groups are taking the Obama administration to federal court over its about-face on backup cameras.

Fiat boss Sergio Marchionne's decision to push ahead with a Chrysler IPO that he does not want has raised the stakes in a buyout dispute with the U.S. automaker's minority shareholder -- as well as for his own legacy.

Fiat boss Sergio Marchionne's decision to push ahead with a Chrysler IPO that he does not want has raised the stakes in a buyout dispute with the U.S. automaker's minority shareholder -- as well as for his own legacy.

Chrysler Group was forced to file paperwork for an initial public offering by its second-biggest shareholder -- the UAW retiree health care trust fund -- prompting Fiat to say it could scale back its commitment to the U.S. automaker.

Consumer groups are taking the Obama administration to federal court over its about-face on backup cameras.

My daily commute puts me on some heavily trafficked roads. I'm often in bumper-to-bumper line-ups and I've accepted my fate. After all, driving is what I do for a living; I can hardly complain about it. What I can complain about, however, is people's etiquette on the road around me -- or rather, a complete lack thereof.

When it comes to tailgating and riding bumpers, I'd say my city's drivers are some of the worst offenders. I admit to playing the game myself when I let my road rage get the better of me, but I'm quick to back off because, really, the end result isn't worth it.

I've actually seen someone rear-end the car in front because they were tailgating and the person in front got so annoyed they hit the brakes -- hard. Mr. Tailgater wasn't quick enough on his own brakes and “Smash!” Traffic just got a lot worse.

Why bring this up? No, I wasn't in a nasty accident myself, but I got to thinking about laser-guided cruise control systems and how they keep you perfectly placed (with ample distance) behind the car in front. They prevent you from rear-ending other vehicles, as if the latter erected USS Enterprise-like deflector shields (yup, I went there #geekalert).

As we approach an age of autonomous driving, I wonder if some of that technology will begin to trickle down into everyday vehicles (that we actually need to drive). Anti-fender-bender systems that make it 100% impossible to hit the car in front via sensors on both cars, keeping you at a safe distance no matter how hard you try to get closer, are an absolute possibility.

Of course, technologies like Subaru's EYESIGHT, Volvo's CitySafety, and Mazda's CitySafe prove we aren't very far off, but they still require some human intervention. Warnings will ignite, brakes will be lightly applied, and lights will go off, but drivers still have to stop the car and ensure they keep a safe enough distance to begin with.

I'm talking full control over maintaining distance between vehicles because it's overtly clear that we, as humans, just can't do it on our own and the results are messy accidents the globe over. I, for one, am a tailgate instigator. If I can't see your headlights when you're behind me, you can be sure I'll slow down, do full, overly long stops, and perhaps even tap my brakes every now and then to keep you on your toes.

Tailgating is just one of the main symptoms of road rage (a subject for another blog). As we integrate more and more tech bits into vehicles to help us Tweet, talk on the phone, check weather, listen to internet radio stations, and the like, I think automakers should also address the issue of pent-up anger among drivers. Their cars could potentially help calm furious daily commuters by making something as “simple” as a fender-bender entirely impossible.

Just food for thought. Oh, and keep your distance, k?

With two races in the books, and being 62-points behind leader, Matt Kenseth, Dale Earnhardt Jr. says he and his team haven't given up on his Sprint Cup title quest.

“Well, just going to have to work hard,” said Earnhardt who finished sixth in New Hampshire on Sunday. “Our chances aren't looking that great because the guys ahead of us are winning races.  They've had a pretty strong couple weeks to chase off.

“But don't give up, keep working.  If we can win a couple races, no matter what happens in the championship, that will improve the results of our season and give us a lot to be happy about.

“So it would be great to go ahead and go to Dover and get that done.  But we're trying every week.  I thought we were pretty aggressive this weekend trying to get ourselves in position to win.

“Ended up with a pretty good result.  Couple things go a little bit different, and I think we get a shot at Matt and give ourselves a better opportunity to get the win.”

Earnhardt had been put in a hole by an engine issue at the opening race at Chicagoland.

Then in New Hampshire after falling back to 36th, at NHMS due to problems in pit stops, he rebounded to a satisfactory finish all things considered.

“It's good to be able to look back on Sunday and feel like we had potential,” said NASCAR's most popular driver.

“If we can be as aggressive as we were this past Sunday on pit strategy and many different things, just going after the set‑up of the car and working real hard on Saturday trying to prepare the car for the race, I think we can put ourselves in position more often with just a few races left.”

The only problem is that, despite that comeback he has to hope that Kenseth, Kyle Busch and Jimmie Johnson, each have a couple of bad races in order to get within striking distance.

Even wins won't change the standings very much if those three don't have bad races.

He analyzed the situation “... in the Chase, you know, obviously you want to win all the races like Matt's doing. But if you just run smart and run as hard as you can, obviously, and try to finish as good as you can, like Kyle (Busch), for example. He's hanging around, and that's going to pay off.

“If Matt makes a mistake or has trouble similar to the way me and the 22 (Joey Logano) had in Chicago, Kyle's consistency and Jimmie's as well will bode well for them and that will put them in position to take advantage of Matt's bad luck.”

And if he can't capitalize on that, Earnhardt will just drive hard and take what he can.

“So you want to be consistent if you can, but if you start off like we did, you just kind of throw it all out the window and try to get a trophy or two before the season's out.”

From GMM

Ferrari's 2014 pairing is not quite a match for Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg.

That is the claim of Mercedes' Toto Wolff, who told Sport Bild that he is hopeful the Brackley based team will be charging for the title very soon.

Asked what he hopes for within the next three-year period, he told the German magazine: "That we would have justified the advanced praise and are a serious candidate for the world championship.

"No, actually in three years I want to already have the title in the bag," added Wolff.

It has been said that the task for F1's top outfits, including the dominant Red Bull, has been made more difficult by the new 'dream team' driver lineup fielded by Ferrari in 2014.

"I still think we have the strongest driver pairing," said Wolff, when asked to compare Hamilton-Rosberg with Ferrari's Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen for 2014.

"It's because our drivers have known each other for so long that they are able to compete fairly despite their many differences," he added.

"I do not see that Ferrari's (lineup) could be as harmonious as ours," said Wolff.

Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton in Monaco. (Photo: WRi2)

Former two-time world champion Mika Hakkinen, who spent most of his McLaren career alongside David Coulthard, agrees with those who think Alonso-Raikkonen could spell trouble.

"The presence of two champions could create a strange pressure in a team of 1000 people," the Finn told Speed Week.

"There are a lot of positives, but it's also unpredictable," Hakkinen added.