Auto News 5

Chrysler Group is improving its Pentastar family of V-6s, adding direct injection, turbocharging and other technology to enable smaller displacement engines to power its vehicles.

Jeep's big year has helped Fiat Chrysler grow at four times the pace of the rest of the industry, gaining momentum as the U.S. market shows signs of starting to plateau.

In 2013, the average dealership had a 66 percent turnover rate among sales consultants, up 4 percentage points from the previous year and well above the national average for the private sector of 42 percent, the National Automobile Dealers...

After toiling to revitalize separate single-point dealerships in the Detroit area, two childhood friends merged and expanded operations to compete with larger groups. "It's not an acquisition, but a partnership," says Sam Slaughter.

One reason auto sales in the United States still aren't quite back to the 17 million-a-year pace seen during the boom years before the recession: Many consumers haven't gotten much of a raise since then.

For most of the last five years, Toyota has been hampered by one problem after another: recession, safety crisis, earthquake, strong yen.

Pickup trucks are still seen as a stronghold of the industry's testosterone-laden, good-old-boy past. But now, women do pickups, too. Next month Becky Blanchard will take over as director of Chrysler Group's Ram brand.

As the only convertible in its lineup approaches the end of its life cycle, Lexus is looking ahead to another critical step in the balancing act it's undertaking: trying to appeal to younger buyers while keeping its core customers.

Automotive News Europe needs your help to identify the Rising Stars in the European automotive industry. The award honors executives with a pan-European profile who have driven change, fostered innovation and made courageous decisions.

Honda says new models and a leaner organization will help it rebound in Europe in 2015 after seven years of falling sales.

Europe's dealer network has contracted less than the market since the start of the last economic crisis, a report says. New-car registrations are 20 percent below their pre-recession peak, but the number of dealerships has fallen by 12 percent.

Led by British entrepreneur Joel Jackson, Mobius Motors aims to overcome the perception that Africa cannot produce a quality vehicle on its own. Mobius has launched an 8,552 euro car to meet the needs of rural Africans.

Takata, the world's second-largest supplier of airbag inflators and a company once considered too big to fail, is rapidly losing control of the recall crisis.

Lexus' advertising is increasingly taking on the personality of its newest models: racier, more daring and with a hint of fun. Lexus is applying that strategy across several channels.

Dealerships can face litigation if they don't know the rules about how to deal with customers who require service dogs. The issue is complicated by people who claim, incorrectly, that their pets are service dogs.

Mobius hopes to succeed where many other domestic automakers have failed by designing, building and selling a product in Africa, which provides raw materials for the world's factories but struggles to create its own manufacturing base.

Just back from Qatar, where he attended the FIA's prize-giving ceremony Friday, Sébastien Loeb finished seventh in the first race of the 2014-2015 Trophée Andros, Saturday in Val-Thorens.

Behind the wheel of a Citroën DS3 he had never driven before, the nine-time WRC champion had qualified sixth earlier in the day.

"When I line up for a race, I like to finish well," Loeb is quoted saying by France's Dauphiné.

"But you have to remember that I was driving the car for the first against guys who have been doing this for year.

Sébastien Loeb, Citroën DS3 Saintéloc Racing (Photo: B.Bade)

"The goal is to get better and enjoy myself. Hopefully it will go well tomorrow (Sunday)."

Race 1 winner Jean-Philippe Dayraut was nonetheless impressed by Loeb's: "We are lucky in France to have him. He doesn't have anything to prove, but he comes here to fight against specialists.

"Not many guys, in F1 or other categories, have this kind of courage."

From Ferrari

This week's Finali Mondiali, held for the first time outside Europe, in Abu Dhabi, ended with a day of exciting racing and a demonstration featuring everything that's best about the world of Ferrari. The first thrills of the day came courtesy of the two Ferrari Challenge races to allocate the three world titles in Coppa Shell, Pirelli Pro and Pirelli Am. These went to Massimiliano Bianchi, Max Blancardi and Ricardo Perez respectively.

Then, as the sun was setting, over 200 Ferraris from different eras swarmed onto the track, parading around in the very best demonstration of what Ferrari stands for: design, technology and innovation. The marvelous cars which cruised round slowly, driven by their owners, were a big hit with the crowd packing the grandstands and provided the perfect introduction to the grand finale, the Ferrari show.

Photo: Ferrari

Getting it all underway were the two AF Corse team GT cars, driven by World Endurance Champions Gimmi Bruni and Toni Vilander, joined on track by team mates Davide Rigon and James Calado. The 458s also put a dummy pit stop with driver change, just as happens for real in the Endurance races, such as the Le Mans 24 Hours.

Then it was the turn of the XX Programme cars, namely the FXX and the 599 XX, which were joined for the first time by the FXX K, which with the head of the test drivers Raffaele De Simone at the wheel, mesmerised the crowd who, up to that point, had only seen it parked in the paddock.

Bringing the Finali Mondiali to a close was the demonstration featuring the Scuderia drivers Kimi Raikkonen and the test driver Marc Gene, who each at the wheel of an F60, put on a great show, featuring simulated starts, wheel to wheel duels and pit stops, the day ending in a cloud of burn-out smoke produced by both drivers. Finally, Managing Directo Amedeo Felisa and Vice President spoke to thank the crowd, the drivers and all the owners, inviting them to return for next next year's event.

BMW has launched its car-sharing service in London, barely six months after Daimler said it was quitting the city with its service. A strong culture of private car ownership and parking problems make London difficult for car-sharing schemes.

Shiloh Industries plans to open an auto parts plant in Tennessee this month to continue its expansion of North American aluminum-casting capacity.