Auto News 5

Although results are not yet discernible, Brazilian auto makers and their supporting components industry reckon the real's escalating against the US dollar will see a gradual recovery of export sales. It's been a while since Brazilian cars and parts were competitively priced in other markets and recovery is likely to be slow, not least due to a lack of new free-trade agreements (FTAs). Brazil has just signed its first with north western neighbour Colombia and another with Uruguay, on the southern border.

Videos 29 Sep, 2015

Can the XR2 from the 80s out sprint today's Ford Fiesta ST? The fast Fords face-off in our drag race...

Videos 30 Sep, 2015

Vauxhall's hot Astras old and new face-off on our runway. Can the 80s GTE beat the modern day VXR?

Japan's transport ministry reportedly told four automakers that sell diesel vehicles in the domestic market - Toyota, Nissan, Mazda and Mitsubishi - along with importers of European brands to report by Friday on whether their vehicles are fitted with the software that can 'game' pollution tests.

Videos 30 Sep, 2015

Which is fastest, the high tech newcomer or the lightweight old-school classic? Our Old vs New drag race challenge finds out...

Videos 29 Sep, 2015

Can the original VW Golf GTI beat its modern day equivalent in a good old fashioned drag race?

The supervisory board of Volkswagen's Porsche business may name the sports-car maker's production chief Oliver Blume as the division's new CEO this week, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters on Monday.

Brembo has agreed to buy a 66 percent stake in Chinese brakes manufacturer ASIMCO Meilian Braking Systems for 616 million yuan ($97 million) as it follows car-making customers into areas with high growth potential.

America's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says it has written to vehicle manufacturers notifying them it will add to its confirmatory testing, additional evaluations designed to look for potential defeat devices.

Japan's transport ministry has ordered carmakers to investigate whether their diesel vehicles meet the country's emission norms after Volkswagen admitted to rigging some cars to cheat on U.S. tests.

Fiat Chrysler's Ram brand won an order for 9,113 2016 Ram ProMaster 2500 cargo vans from the U.S. Postal Service to be used for large package deliveries.

GM CEO Mary Barra is determined to switch the company from survivor mode -- a bankruptcy and safety recall -- to winning in the marketplace.

Toyota will stop building the Prius hybrid in China and switch to domestic production as part of efforts to raise efficiency, according to a Nikkei news agency report.

The Dongfeng Renault Automotive Company (DRAC) joint venture in China has announced plans to build its first electric vehicle in China based on Renault's Fluence ZE. The EV will be produced in Wuhan from 2017 and will be sold as a Dongfeng only in China.

The molecules of plant fibers are being transformed into a lightweight material five times stronger than steel that can be used to make everything from auto parts to electronic displays.

Lear has purchased the 'historic' 119 State Street building in Detroit's Capitol Park to create an innovation and design centre the supplier claimed would be "unlike anything the downtown area has ever seen". It plans to turn the six-storey, 35,000 square foot building at the corner into a hub for art, creativity, automotive advanced concept development and hands-on learning for Detroit college students.

Unfazed by the US emissions scandal, Volkswagen has launched a plug-in version of its latest Passat - the GTE - plus a 4WD Alltrack model at dealers in Germany.

In a statement BMW has said that the progress achieved so far in CO2 reduction in Europe is largely due to the use of diesel technology and that diesels are essential to further progress.

At its first Sustainable Mobility Forum in Madrid in the week of 28 September, Nissan called for stronger infrastructure, including as many as 3,500 additional chargers on Spanish roads, to help accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles.

VW Group's Seat unit said it has stopped sales of its cars equipped with diesel engines at the heart of the VW emissions cheating scandal.