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News 16 Jan, 2014

Hamburg plans to develop a cycle, pedestrian and public transport infrastructure by 2034, calling into question the future of the car

Honda Prospect Motor (HPM) has officially opened its second factory in Karawang, West Java, Indonesia.

New vehicle sales in Indonesia increased by 9.2% to 97,691 units in December, from 89,456 units a year earlier, according to data released by local industry association Gaikindo.

Honda Motor has launched production of the Mobilio small MPV at its newly built plant in Karawang, about 70km (40 miles) east of the Indonesian capital city Jakarta.

Arizona isn't the only perpetually sunny place that will have a car corral or two starting this weekend, as

Perhaps we're more excited about the 2015 Chrysler 200, which just made its official debut at the Detroit auto show, than we ought to be.

Scottsdale isn't the only place in the world selling cars in the next week or so. It's not even the only place in the US of A. All the way across the country in equally sunny Kissimmee, Fla.

News 16 Jan, 2014

The new Range Extended Electric London Metrocab will return over 75mpg, with trials to begin in London this week

Chinese automaker Qoros will unveil its second production model, the Qoros 3 compact hatchback, at the Geneva auto show in March.

VW CEO Martin Winterkorn sounded uncharacteristically humble when he said that 'America is the world's toughest auto market.' Tougher than Europe? For VW brand, the answer is yes.

Sales of new passenger cars and LCVs in Russia decreased by 5% in 2013 and increased by 4% in December 2013, according to data released by the AEB.

European new-car sales surged 13 percent in December, boosted by price cuts. Full-year sales fell by nearly 2 percent to 12.3 million, the lowest number since 1995 but a more modest decline than feared.

European new-car sales surged 13 percent in December, boosted by price cuts. Full-year sales fell by nearly 2 percent to 12.3 million, the lowest number since 1995 but a more modest decline than feared.

Russia's car market is facing another weak year and is expected to fall nearly 2 percent in comparison with 2013, the Association of European Businesses said.

Russia's car market is facing another weak year and is expected to fall nearly 2 percent in comparison with 2013, the Association of European Businesses said.

Suppliers Faurecia and Magneti Marelli have joined forces to challenge rivals such as Continental, Delphi, Denso and Harman in the booming and lucrative sector for human-machine interface applications.

Russia's car market is facing another weak year and is expected to fall nearly 2 percent in comparison with 2013, the Association of European Businesses said.

Suppliers Faurecia and Magneti Marelli have joined forces to challenge rivals such as Continental, Delphi, Denso and Harman in the booming and lucrative sector for human-machine interface applications.

From GMM

Bernie Ecclestone looks set for a challenging 2014, as German prosecutors prepare to send him to court to face criminal bribery charges.

Sky News' authoritative city editor Mark Kleinman claims the announcement could be made as early as Thursday, as the F1 chief executive's long-running woes surrounding the Gerhard Gribkowsky corruption affair reach their zenith.

When asked if Ecclestone's latest troubles would finally prevent the 83-year-old billionaire from performing his duties, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner said: "It all depends on the outcome.

"Bernie is absolutely the best and only guy to do what he does, to take formula one to the global reach that the sport has achieved," he told reporters in London, according to the Bloomberg news agency.

"It's in all our interests that he's around as long as possible," the Associated Press quoted Horner as adding.

But even amid Ecclestone's troubles, it is also clear this week that the diminutive Briton is still pulling strings.

Aerial view of the Nurburgring track.

He told the Handelsblatt and Wirtschaftswoche publications that he has made a bid to buy the fabled yet troubled German grand prix venue the Nurburgring.

"We want to make sure there is a formula one race in Germany every year in the future," said Ecclestone.

"There are one or two other interested parties, but we will only pay what we believe the Nurburgring is worth. We believe we can do more for the track than anyone else," he added.

Swiss driver, Nico Muller will be making his debut in the DTM in 2014, racing for Audi.

Nico Muller, Audi (Photo: Audi)

The 21-year-old is taking the place of Filipe Albuquerque, who is switching to Audi's LMP and GT program.

Following recent good performance in testing, Muller has been awarded the vacant Audi RS 5 DTM.

In 2013, his sixth year of open-wheel racing in total, Muller contested the World Series by Renault in a 530-hp formula car and finished in fifth place of the standings after scoring two race victories - which included winning the season's most pretigious event in Monaco.

Filipe Albuquerque will contest the 24 Hours Rolex of Daytona later this month, as well as the 6-hour race at Spa-Francorchamps (May 3) and the Le Mans 24 Hours (June 14/15) in an Audi R18 e-tron Quattro.