Auto News 5

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News 5 Jun, 2013

The latest on the new BMW X5, including release date, price and rumours ahead of its Frankfurt Motor Show debut

A new Magneti Marelli Automotive Lighting plant has been opened in Foshan, Guangdong province, in southern China.

European car sales rose for the first time in 19 months on strong demand in the UK and a rebound in Germany. Registrations in April increased 2 percent to 1.08 million vehicles from 1.06 million cars a year earlier, industry association ACEA said.

A surprise policy shift in China is expected to give a boost to GM, Volkswagen Group and other foreign automakers planning to expand in the world's largest car market.

A federal judge in Kansas City, Kansas, ordered Dow Chemical to pay $1.2 billion in a price-fixing case involving chemicals used to make foam products in cars, furniture and packaging, according to court documents.

Russia's year-on-year car sales fell 8 percent in April after a decline of 4 percent in the previous month, the Association of European Businesses (AEB) said.

Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche was leaning back in the rear seat of a prototype Mercedes-Benz S-class sedan in 2010 when he realized it didn't recline far enough.

Fiat said the idea of moving the group's legal headquarters to the United States following a planned merger with Chrysler Group is not on the company's agenda.

At the groundbreaking for the Q5 plant in San Jose Chiapa, Mexico, Audi CEO Rupert Stadler offered another explanation for deciding not to locate in the United States: The European Union slaps a 10 percent tariff on U.S.-built vehicles.

The redesigned Audi Q7 that debuts next summer in Europe will weigh about 363kg less than the current model, company insiders said, adding that Audi is also planning a hybrid version of the next-generation large SUV.

Based on documents submitted to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Jaguar may name the all-wheel-drive compact crossover it has in the works the XQ, and call a new compact sedan the Q-Type, according to news reports.

Jaguar is rolling out a plan to refurbish its U.S. dealerships in preparation for a wave of new products. Regional Jaguar teams are going "door-to-door" to discuss the new corporate identity standards, starting with about 50 older stores.

Olivier Francois, chief marketing officer for Fiat and Chrysler, has helped rehabilitate Chrysler Group's image since its 2009 bankruptcy. Chrysler has racked up 37 consecutive months of year-over-year U.S.

A surprise policy shift in China is expected to give a boost to VW Group, GM and other foreign automakers planning to expand in the world's largest car market.

Taking just five years rather than the original 10-year period, Tesla Motors could become the first automaker to repay its loan awarded under the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing program that was implemented by U.S. President Barack Obama in 2009.

The company, which made a payment of about $13 million in the first quarter of 2013, said that proceeds from selling 2.7 million shares (valued at $249 million at Wednesday's $92.25 closing price) and $450 million in convertible senior notes due in 2018 will go to pay off its $465 million loan with interest and fund other operations.

Tesla's market capitalization totalled $10.62 billion as of Thursday's close, higher than the $8.6 billion for Fiat S.p.A., majority owner of Chrysler Group.

Nissan, Ford, and Fisker Automotive also received a loan from the federal government in 2009. However, Fisker is now at risk of bankruptcy after missing a payment in April.

Source : www.autonews.com

Photo: Sébastien D'Amour

From GMM

It will be at least June before anything more is known about Bernie Ecclestone's bribery charges.

It is believed F1's 82-year-old chief executive has been charged by Munich prosecutors regarding his payment of $44 million some years ago to now jailed former banker Gerhard Gribkowsky.

But a spokeswoman told German news agency DPA that the district court will not make a decision about how to proceed with the charges "within three to four weeks".

She would not comment further.

A new U.S. study to be presented at an emergency medicine conference claims that the driver of an SUV is as much as 10 times more likely to survive in a head-on collision with a passenger car.

“The overwhelming majority of fatalities occur in the smaller and lighter of the two vehicles,” explains Dr. Dietrich Jehle, a professor of emergency medicine at New York's Erie County Medical Center, and one of the authors of the new study conducted by the University of Buffalo.

If the passenger car has the better rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), a driver is still four times more likely to die. If the SUV has the better rating, that jumps to 10 times.

Researchers say even when a small SUV impacts a large passenger car, the driver of the SUV is more likely to survive because their truck is more likely to “ride over” the car.

According to Dr. Jehle, the larger SUVs now in production are “some of the safest cars on the roadways.”

Source : www.thedetroitbureau.com

From GMM

Niki Lauda has hailed Pirelli's move to alter the design of its 2013 tires ahead of the Canadian grand prix next month and beyond.

Lotus, arguably the team with the best grip on the Italian supplier's controversial tires this year, is not happy with the decision.

"It's clear that Pirelli have found themselves in a difficult situation and under pressure from different quarters," team boss Eric Boullier said. "I hope they (the changes) are not too extreme."

Within the pitlane, the bulk of the 'pressure' put on Pirelli came from Red Bull and Mercedes.

Photo: Pirelli

Mercedes' W04 is perhaps the fastest car in the entire field over one lap this year, but it chews alarmingly through the tires over a race distance.

Asked what he thinks of Pirelli's change of tack for Canada and beyond, chairman Lauda said: "This is very positive, and I'm speaking as a neutral observer and not the Mercedes chairman.

"No one understands what's going on anymore, and there are no more man-to-man fights, because everyone is just focused on the tires. It can't be the intention of racing that the slowest man wins," the great Austrian told Osterreich.

"Everyone is just hoping he gets into the window where the tires work, and often it's a coincidence only," added Lauda.

Photo: McLaren F1 Team

Former driver Mika Salo, meanwhile, has played down Lotus' fears the team will be overly disadvantaged by the Montreal tweak.

Backing the move, the Finn told MTV3 broadcaster: "There didn't seem to be any drivers left who were happy with the tires. It was clear that something was wrong with them. But I don't think it's anything for Lotus to panic about, as they were also good on last year's tires.

"If they are able to use the tires better now, then they will also use these (new) tires better," added Salo.

A new law proposed by the North Carolina Senate will apparently make it illegal for Tesla to e-mail its customers and even answer their questions on the phone. How crazy is that?

The bill actually prevents automakers from "using a computer or other communications facilities, hardware, or equipment" to sell or lease a car to anyone in North Carolina.

Tesla communications director Shanna Hendriks has confirmed that "any communications device -- including a telephone -- could be captured as conducting sales activity, and [its use] prohibited except by franchise dealers."

She claims state authorities are "trying to tie our hands as much as possible to ‘protect the customer'."

The controversial law aims to eliminate what dealer associations in North Carolina and several other U.S. states deem ''unfair competition for rival dealerships."

Tesla is currently the only automaker operating factory stores or so-called ''non-sales showrooms.'' It owns no dealer franchise and sells vehicles exclusively through the Internet.

Some outraged N.C. residents have already launched a private website, Tesla Motors NC, to rally efforts around preventing passage of the law.

www.greencarreports.com

Photo: Nauman Farooq