Auto News 5

Things are spiralling down for General Motors following a claim that 303 deaths are possibly related to now-recalled GM vehicles where the airbags did not deploy, and another 12 casualties resulting from an ignition switch failure.

The automaker today announced three new recalls affecting more than 1.5 million vehicles in North America. These aim to address various issues related to airbags, seat belts, and brakes.

“Today's announcement underscores the focus we're putting on the safety and peace of mind of our customers,” insisted GM CEO Mary Barra in a news release on Monday.

GM estimates that it would take a US$300 million charge in the first quarter of this year to fix the various problems.

More specifically, the latest recalls affect:

• 300,000 Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana vans (25,000 in Canada) due to instrument panel issues related to unbuckled passengers;
• 63,900 Cadillac XTS sedans (1,446 in Canada) due to brake booster corrosion that may result in overheating;
• 1.18 million Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia, Chevrolet Traverse and Saturn Outlook SUVs (70,000 in Canada) due to side airbags that may not deploy during a crash.

Further details about these recalls will come shortly.

Source: thestar.com

The Verizon IndyCar Series held its first open test of the upcoming season at the Barber Motorsport Park.

The Penske squad showed its great form by finishing with the three fastest times in a session that was cut short due to poor visibility in the morning.

Will Power ended-up at the top of the chart followed by his teammates Juan Pablo Montoya and Helio Castroneves.

Juan-Pablo Montoya, Penske-Chevrolet. (Photo: LAT / IndyCar)

Reinging IndyCar champion Scott Dixon was fourth for Ganassi, while AJ Foyt Racing's Takuma Sato rounded up the top five in the fastest Honda-powered car.

Reigning champion Scott Dixon, Ganassi-Chevrolet. (Photo: LAT / IndyCar)

Ryan Briscoe was sixth quickest in the second Ganassi car, ahead of Justin Wilson, Simon Pagenaud, James Hinchcliffe and Ryan Hunter-Reay, who completed the top 10.

James Hinchcliffe, Andretti-Honda. (Photo: LAT / IndyCar)

Pos  Driver  Team/Engine  Time Gap  Laps
1. Will Power  Penske/Chevy  1m07.6492s   48
2. Juan Pablo Montoya  Penske/Chevy   1m07.7170s   +0.0678s   55
3. Helio Castroneves  Penske/Chevy  1m07.7214s  +0.0722s  51
4. Scott Dixon  Ganassi/Chevy  1m07.8225s   +0.1733s  40
5. Takuma Sato   Foyt/Honda  1m07.8619s  +0.2127s   39
6. Ryan Briscoe  Ganassi/Chevy  1m07.8834s   +0.2342s   44
7. Justin Wilson  Coyne/Honda  1m07.8863s  +0.2371s   31
8. Simon Pagenaud  Schmidt/Honda   1m08.0682s   +0.4190s  35
9. James Hinchcliffe   Andretti/Honda   1m08.1629s  +0.5137s  32
10. Ryan Hunter-Reay   Andretti/Honda  1m08.3194s  +0.6702s   30
11. Charlie Kimball  Ganassi/Chevy  1m08.3209s  +0.6717s  41
12. Tony Kanaan  Ganassi/Chevy  1m08.3254s  +0.6762s  42
13. Mike Conway   Carpenter/Chevy  1m08.4734s  +0.8242s   42
14. Graham Rahal   Rahal/Honda  1m08.4907s  +0.8415s  37
15. Josef Newgarden  Fisher/Honda   1m08.5798s  +0.9306s   25
16. Sebastian Saavedra   KV/Chevy  1m08.6539s  +1.0047s  50
17. Marco Andretti   Andretti/Honda   1m08.6688s   +1.0196s  28
18. Mikhail Aleshin  Schmidt/Honda   1m08.7296s  +1.0804s  28
19. Jack Hawksworth   Herta/Honda  1m08.9223s  +1.2731s  36
20. Carlos Munoz   Andretti/Honda  1m08.9299s  +1.2807s  42
21. Oriol Servia   Rahal/Honda  1m09.2164s  +1.5672s  7
22. Sebastien Bourdais  KV/Chevy  1m09.6668s   +2.0176s  11

Takuma Sato, Foyt-Honda. (Photo: LAT / IndyCar)

From GMM

Daniel Ricciardo thinks he has a good chance at winning back his Melbourne podium.

Red Bull has vowed to appeal the stewards' decision to throw out the Australian's popular home race result due to irregularities with fuel flow into his Renault engine.

Early on Monday, having learned the bad news only at midnight after Sunday's race, the 24-year-old told the local Herald Sun: "I'm not really in a place ... not in the mindset to talk about it right now."

But after jetting from Melbourne to his native Perth for a few days of training before Malaysia, Ricciardo told the West Australian newspaper that he is confident Red Bull will prevail.

"Otherwise they wouldn't (appeal). It's a lot of time for them and some money as well so they have confidence that we can turn it around, but it's going to take a while until we know," he said.

Daniel Ricciardo on the Australian podium. (Photo: WRi2)

F1's other two engine suppliers, however, are siding with the FIA, despite Red Bull team boss Christian Horner insisting all three manufacturers had trouble with the mandatory fuel flow sensor in Australia.

But Ferrari's Stefano Domenicali said: "We need to rely on the fact that it is a situation that is well managed by the FIA."

And Mercedes' Toto Wolff was also quoted by the Guardian newspaper: "The FIA is obviously controlling fuel flow and checking with all the teams, and it is a question of learning by doing it between the FIA and the teams."

But Daniel Ricciardo said he thinks Red Bull has solid grounds to be unhappy with the Melbourne ruling.

"They feel that it's not black or white, it's a little bit shaded, so that's why they're going to fight it and we'll see how they go," he said.

It could take some time before the FIA schedules the actual appeal hearing, but Red Bull's Dr Helmut Marko thinks the matter needs to be at least clarified urgently.

"The device that measures the flow rate has weaknesses," he told Kleine Zeitung newspaper. "In our opinion we were within the regulations.

"This has to be clarified by the next race, because at the moment there is not a reliable measurement," Marko insisted.

F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone, meanwhile, thinks the entire rule limiting the flow of fuel into the engine should be scrapped.

"The whole regulation, to me, seems a bit of a joke," he told the Mirror.

Bernie Ecclestone said he thinks the rule limiting each car to just 100 kilograms of fuel per race is enough.

"If you use too much you are going to run out of fuel. It seems to be that simple and if it isn't, it should be," he said.

From GMM

Bernie Ecclestone has vowed to get to work on making formula one loud again.

The F1 chief executive said he is "horrified" by the purring tones of the new turbo V6 era, arguing it will drive race promoters and spectators away.

Ecclestone was critical of the new engine formula long before the first 1.6 litre 'power unit' was fired up, but his latest comments follow Melbourne race organisers' claim the low volume may even be a breach of contract.

"It's not what we paid for. It's going to change," Australian Grand Prix chairman Ron Walker told Melbourne's Age newspaper.

Start of the 2014 Australian Grand Prix. (Photo: WRi2)

Ron Walker said he has spoken to his friend Ecclestone already, while Ecclestone admitted he has been on the phone to FIA president Jean Todt.

"What I've said is that we need to see whether there is some way of making them sound like racing cars," the 83-year-old Briton told the Telegraph.

"I don't know whether it's possible but we should investigate. I think let's get the first few races out of the way and then maybe look to do something. We can't wait all season. It could be too late by then," said Bernie Ecclestone.

From GMM

Sauber insists its Russian rescue deal remains on track.

Originally set to feature the teen Sergey Sirotkin on the 2014 grid, talk of the Swiss team's Russian buy-in has now quietened in the F1 paddock.

Asked if the deal is still on track, team boss and co-owner Monisha Kaltenborn insisted: "Yes. We are continuing to move in that direction."

She told the Russian website f1news.ru that "active negotiations" are currently taking place with Russian companies.

"The lesson we have learned in recent months is that when you are dealing with organisations such as this, you have to understand their notions of time.

"We also need to understand that in these negotiations, sometimes other circumstances that are maybe more important to these companies than formula one will interfere," Kaltenborn added.

Adrian Sutil, Sauber, leading Caterham and Lotus. (Photo: WRi2)

So while an earlier priority was to quickly get Sirotkin a super license and push him onto the grid, Kaltenborn said the 18-year-old is now more focused on the Formula Renault 3.5 series.

"At the moment, everything is going according to plan," she said. "He has a seat with Fortec, I am sure he can get great results, and then we'll think about the next step."

A more immediate priority for Sauber is to improve its 2014 car, after the Ferrari-powered machine struggled badly on the straights at Albert Park.

Switzerland's Blick newspaper said the car is significantly overweight and underpowered.

"Last year we managed to turn the corner," Kaltenborn said, "and we will do it again."

From GMM

Eric Boullier insists McLaren 'supremo' Ron Dennis is letting him get on with his new job.

Boullier, previously in charge at Lotus, was drafted in to replace the ousted Martin Whitmarsh after McLaren's disastrous 2013 season.

The Frenchman's first race in charge was in Melbourne, but lurking nearby was the McLaren supremo Dennis, who has returned to the formula one paddock on a mission to rescue his beloved team that "lost its way" last year.

66-year-old Dennis will not wear a team uniform at the races and, during the pre-season, he insisted "he is not going to be on the pitwall", according to the Daily Mail.

But "What's the betting he will be (on the pitwall) before the season is over?" said correspondent Jonathan McEvoy.

Indeed, in Melbourne, Dennis was spotted walking to the pitwall, apparently to tell Boullier what to do.

"He was not (telling me what to do)," Boullier insisted to the Telegraph. "He came to visit a couple of times."

Ron Dennis said he is just an observer at the races this year.

Ron Dennis and Eric Boullier, McLaren. (Photo: WRi2)

"I'm a racer, so the thought of not understanding and contributing doesn't come across my mind," he said. "When you observe things it's good to say 'why not this?' or 'why not that?'"

The bigger McLaren-themed story after Melbourne was the surprisingly good debut performance by rookie Kevin Magnussen.

But another F1 rookie, Toro Rosso's Daniil Kvyat, also caught the attention of the experts, like triple world champion Niki Lauda.

"These guys are, first of all, huge talents," he said.

The old guard is impressed at how the youngsters are arriving on the grid with almost no track testing and performing at the highest level.

Niki Lauda says it's a generational thing.

"It's like my kids, who are four and a half and already better at computer games than me. They are made quite differently than in my day," he smiled.

If we in the West think much about Vladivostok, it's mainly as a punch line when a faraway, frigid place serves to help a joke land; a Timbuktu of frigid climes.

As bad as the General Motors ignition switch recall is, the storm still doesn't match the hysteria whipped up four years ago by Toyota's unintended-acceleration crisis. The Toyota recall was, and still is, the benchmark mammoth recall of our time.

The Italian design house Bertone is reportedly nearing bankruptcy again, according to a report from

Porsche recalled all 785 2014 GT3s on the road last month for

Audi revealed a few TV ads for its newest A3 sedan, which we reviewed last week.

Consumer Reports has named its best used vehicles for the 2004-13 model years, and the Toyota family is a favorite, with 11 vehicles named to the list.

Porsche AG said it achieved record deliveries, sales and profit in fiscal 2013.

Pictures See all 8 pictures 17 Mar, 2014

Hyundai revamped its fuel numbers on its Sonata sedan on March 4, and on Monday it issued an apology for misleading buyers. This is the second time in two years the company has needed to make amends for false numbers.

Honda is to recalling almost 900,000 Odyssey minivans in the US because of a potential fire hazard.

General Motors, under intense public pressure over its slow response to an ignition switch defect in its small cars, said today that it will recall more than 1.

Pictures See all 14 pictures 17 Mar, 2014

General Motors on Monday (17 March, 2014) announced three more recalls totalling almost 1.55m US produced vehicles "as a result of [CEO] Mary Barra's request for a comprehensive internal safety review following the ignition switch recall".

What Is It?