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Audi, BMW, Mercedes and Porsche are among carmakers embracing plug-in hybrids as 'the best of both worlds' as they eliminate the range anxiety that has hindered the purchase of full-electric cars and help carmakers cut CO2 emissions.

Audi, BMW, Mercedes and Porsche are among carmakers embracing plug-in hybrids as 'the best of both worlds' as they eliminate the range anxiety that has hindered the purchase of full-electric cars and help carmakers cut CO2 emissions.

The latest issue of the Automotive News Europe monthly e-magazine is ready for you to view. This month's edition looks at why megaplatforms are a must-have for any automaker with global ambitions.

Some U.S. lawmakers want competing airbag suppliers to help Takata produce enough inflators to repair millions of recalled vehicles. But Autoliv America, one of those rivals, warns that such a rescue would take time -- and money.

Shigehisa Takada, the third-generation head of Takata, shows little sense of the crisis engulfing the Japanese airbag maker at the center of one of the auto industry's biggest safety recalls, say people who have met him recently.

Cheap gasoline, Jeep's rise and surging demand for pricey SUVs have some Hummer dealers and loyalists thinking about what might have been, and have rekindled talk about a new Wrangler fighter from GM.

Taking care of legacy employees is critical for closing the acquisition of a dealership, buy-sell advisers say.

The auto industry is putting improved tires onto cars these days, but consumers aren't so sure they like the results.

Despite engineering delays, Mazda still plans to launch a diesel engine in its Mazda6 midsize sedan, the company's top North American executive said.

It has taken four years, but GM Financial is finally offering a full range of products to General Motors dealers, prompting the captive lender's CEO to predict a "tremendous amount of growth" in 2015. says CEO Dan Berce.

Officially, Ford's two fiercest truck competitors had little to say about the fuel economy ratings for the new aluminum-body F-150 that underwhelmed some pundits. But behind the scenes, rivals' wheels are in motion.

This year's buy-sell market is on track to be the most active since 2004, in both number of deals and total dollars, two newly released reports say.

Surprising and treating customers to extras is part of a program Mini USA started in July to boost its image as a premium brand.

Toyota Motor Corp. will step closer to autonomous vehicles when it begins rolling out a range of advanced active safety systems across its mass-market lineup in early 2015.

Under pressure to help automakers hit higher fuel economy targets, tire companies are championing new technologies. Those technologies are taking many different forms.

With two full months of sales data behind it, Acura says the new TLX midsize sedan is beginning to fulfill its promise of reviving the luxury brand, whose U.S. sales and image have sagged in recent years.

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.

Four-time Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel wasted no time in kicking off his Ferrari career in earnest.

Saturday, at Ferrari's private Fiorano test circuit adjacent to the Maranello factory, Vettel made his test debut in a two-year-old, V8 powered Ferrari F2012.

He was wearing a special white helmet, bearing the words 'My first day at Ferrari' in Italian.

Sebastian Vettel has described his first experience of Ferrari as a real life 'fairy tale'.

“It feels really, really special,” he added.

Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari F2012 (Photo: Ferrari)

Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari F2012 (Photo: Ferrari)

Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari F2012 (Photo: Ferrari)

Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari F2012 (Photo: Ferrari)

Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari F2012 (Photo: Ferrari)

Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari F2012 (Photo: Ferrari)

Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari F2012 (Photo: Ferrari)

Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari F2012 (Photo: Ferrari)

From GMM

Marussia appears to be close to the end of the line.

Last month, the beleaguered backmarker ceased trading and laid off its 200-strong workforce, but chief Graeme Lowdon remained upbeat.

He said the team came within 10 minutes of securing the money it needed to complete the trip to Abu Dhabi for the 2014 finale.

Driver Max Chilton, who did appear in the Abu Dhabi paddock, confirmed to the British broadcaster BBC: "I knew it wasn't over when we went into liquidation.

"We worked very hard to get something done. I can't tell you how close it was -- just as they were about to load the plane (for Abu Dhabi), the final funding for the deal didn't come through."

But it now emerges that Marussia, having entered the 2015 championship to compete as Manor, has been dealt another apparently final blow.

Marussia MR03-Ferrari. (Photo: WRi2)

The Daily Mail reports that cars, trucks, spares and other equipment have been scheduled for auction in mid December by the team's administrators FRP Advisory.

"I'm a hopeful person," Max Chilton said in Abu Dhabi, "and I feel that as long as you try hard enough, your work will pay off in the end. It's definitely not over but I agree that it's made it more difficult."

Undoubtedly Marussia's strongest asset is having finished the season in ninth place, which would release significant official prize-money to a new buyer.

Max Chilton said: "It gives us a lot more funding that we're used to, and that makes it much more approachable for investors."

From wrc.com

Former Formula 1 driver Robert Kubica outpaced Moto GP legend Valentino Rossi over the final speed test to win the non-championship Monza Rally on Sunday.

Newly-crowned Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton watched the WRC regular turn a 5.1sec deficit into a 12.5sec victory during the final 32.50km special stage at the Italian Grand Prix circuit.

Kubica led by 2.8sec in his Ford Fiesta RS WRC after Friday evening's action. Rossi then won four of Saturday's five stages in a similar car to start the final day with a 7.2sec advantage.

Robert Kubica. (Photo: WRC)

But Monza debutant Kubica was fastest in both tests to defeat the Italian, a three-time winner.

“We took the same Pirelli tires but I knew already after the first loop that I was quicker than him,” said Robert Kubica.

“For some reason he did not have the same pace as before.

“On Saturday we made the wrong tire choice, which was too hard, but on Sunday it was just right. Throughout this rally the tire choice was complicated because of the mixed conditions but we managed to get it right most of the time and enjoy a really good fight,” he added.