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China's Chery Automobile has signed an agreement to export 13,000 cars to Venezuela this year.

South Africa's engineering bargaining council (MEIBC), says pictures of striking employees carrying tyres were 'not very helpful' as the country starts to recover from the near five-week walkout.

Nissan Motor said its Japanese supplier of airbag systems, Takata Corporation, is expected to meet all the costs relating to its massive car recall last month.

Volkswagen said operating profit declined 3.1 percent in the second quarter as U.S. sales fell and emerging-market volatility weighed on earnings.

Volkswagen said operating profit declined 3.1 percent in the second quarter as emerging-market volatility and a plunge in earnings at its core passenger-car division weighed on earnings.

Volkswagen said operating profit declined 3.1 percent in the second quarter as emerging-market volatility and a plunge in earnings at its core passenger-car division weighed on earnings.

Continental raised its 2014 profit forecast for the second time this year to 11 percent of sales from 10.5 percent, after lower production costs and improving auto demand helped boost quarterly earnings.

Daimler is to spend EUR1.5bn (US$2bn) to modernise the Mercedes-Benz Sindelfingen plant by 2020 and has also reached a multi-year agreement with the works council on cost reductions worth several million euros.

Goodyear is reporting second quarter revenue down 4% to US$4.7bn, although tyre unit volumes rose 3% to 40.6m.

ZF Friedrichshafen is said to be in advanced talks to acquire TRW Automotive Holdings in a deal estimated at nearly US$12bn.

Daimler plans a 1.5 billion euros investment its Mercedes plant in Sindelfingen, Germany, after employees agreed a labor deal that the company says will save 100 million euros in costs.

Fiat shareholders will likely approve the automaker's merger with Chrysler when they meet in Italy for the last time on Friday. Industry watchers expect Fiat to win the two-thirds majority vote needed for a merger.

Fiat shareholders will likely approve the automaker's merger with Chrysler when they meet in Italy for the last time on Friday. Industry watchers expect Fiat to win the two-thirds majority vote needed for a merger.

Europe was Mitsubishi's most profitable region in the fiscal first quarter ended June 30, the company said.

From GMM

The new era of social media and F1's traditional 'silly season' may not mix well together.

Fernando Alonso turned 33 on Tuesday, and as far as official congratulations go, many spotted McLaren's first.

The Spaniard, undoubtedly frustrated with title-lacking life at Ferrari after five years, might be on the move and Honda is clearly on the hunt for a top driver to spearhead its new works McLaren foray.

"Happy birthday to @alo_oficial," McLaren said on Twitter, adding a photo of Alonso "driving flat-out in his McLaren MP4-22 at Magny-Cours in 2007."

Miguel Sanz, the Spanish correspondent for Marca, commented: "You can't say McLaren and Honda aren't trying or persistent.

"It is the second public nod to Alonso this year and, in this F1 world of millimetres, the gestures are no accident," he added, referring to a McLaren 'tweet' earlier this year showing Alonso smiling with team supremo Ron Dennis.

After the Dennis tweet, a team source played down the significance of the gesture but it is obvious that if Alonso is on the market, he will be bitterly fought over.

Fernando Alonso, Scuderia Ferrari. (Photo: WRi2)

For the record, Ferrari marked Alonso's birthday with a celebratory video made in conjunction with Sky Italia, highlighting "all the best moments of his time to date with the longest-running team in formula one".

"In the past four and a half years there has been happiness and disappointment and a lot of time spent with special people, special like Fernando, a truly great talent and a real team player," Ferrari said.

Marca quoted Alonso's former manager Adrian Campos as saying: "Fernando is the best thing about Ferrari -- and I would say almost the only thing. He is the most complete driver of recent years, almost comparable to Senna."

But with dominant Mercedes all locked up for now and Red Bull struggling with an underpowered engine, Alonso's best option for now is probably to stay with Ferrari.

"For me, Alonso has justly lost confidence in Ferrari," Marc Surer, a former driver turned commentator, told Speed Week as he mused the 2014 silly-season.

"But he could only move to McLaren-Honda if they can guarantee him a winning car for 2015. I guess a lot less will happen than we think," he surmised.

From GMM

F1 team bosses are heading for a clash with Bernie Ecclestone over the shape of the next grand prix calendars.

It has emerged that Mexico is joining the schedule next year, and Azerbaijan and possibly New Jersey in 2016.

That would blow the number of races out from 19 - comfortably under the Concorde Agreement limit of 20 - to a potential 22.

But actually, according to Germany's Auto Motor und Sport, the newly agreed commercial agreements with F1 chief executive Ecclestone in fact allow for a new maximum of 22 races.

For F1's commercial rights holders, more races converts automatically into more income.

But Auto Motor und Sport claims that some internal cost calculations show that 21 races is actually the financial limit for the teams.

The 2014 Canadian Grand Prix. (Photo: WRi2)

"I think we should be careful of not saturating the year with too many races," Sauber team boss Monisha Kaltenborn said. "We know what it means on our personnel. We might have to restructure things again, so I think we should be careful before we take these kinds of steps".

It is believed Kaltenborn is referring to tipping point in the basic existing structure of the teams -- once a certain number of races is reached, for example, teams may have to consider rotating staff and rethinking logistics.

"It is clear that stretching the championship to many races means more investment on our side so it opens another discussion," agreed Ferrari chief Marco Mattiacci.

Jaguar Land Rover is no longer a brand that, if you're under the age of 60, you've only heard of. Over the last half-decade, JLR has shot up from near extinction to being stars of the silver screen, the track, and the road. Nowadays, they're leaving marks everywhere they go.


One of the cars credited with putting Jag back on the lips of potential buyers is the new XK, launched in 2007 and penned by the famous Ian Callum. Overnight, the XK literally seduced prestige and performance car suitors; it was quite a step in a very graceful direction from the outgoing XK8.


Last Call
The Jaguar XK underwent minor aesthetic changes over its lifespan, but now the curtain is falling on the big two-door mouser. 2015 will be the XK's final production year, as it will be officially replaced by the full F-type line that now includes the new Coupe.

My esteemed and Brit-minded colleague Miranda Lightstone got to drive the balls-out insane Jaguar XKR-S, it being the most extreme iteration of Jaguar's super GT cruiser. I too got to survey my territory with the sharper-clawed Jag and, although I liked it, it did not fit the XK's character -- its true reason for being.

No, the Jaguar XK is meant to be a boulevardier-cruiser-GT-style-stupid-fast-in-a-straight-line-and-loud-show-off poser car. Chop the top and I'm all in.

What it is
The 2014 Jaguar XKR convertible is the alternative to the Porsche 911 (but less focused), the Corvette convertible (but with more class) or even the BMW 650i (but with more attitude).

This Jaguar is as mean as any famished cat on the prowl looking for its next meal or as tame as a domesticated kitty that gets a few square meals a day. The difference lies in the application of one small flag-adorned button in the centre console, and a heavy right foot.

Prowling
In domestic mode, the XK hovers above ground and remains calm, comfortable, and as tame as any household pet. The supercharged 510-horsepower 5.0L V8 hums, almost bored, making little or no use of its available 461 lb-ft of torque. Bored perhaps, but clearly not out of sorts as the Jag is quite happy prowling the riverfront for young girls to impress or the missus currently onboard or, what the hell, both.

Low-slung, wide, and always in full-on stance, the Jag will rise to the occasion should an annoying kid in his beat-up Dodge Neon R/T try to cramp your style -- the poor chump will get whipped by the exhaust fumes lashing their way out the quad tailpipes. Once the go-pedal is released, the storm settles and all is right with the world once more.

Hunting
This time around, some clown in a Mustang GT thinks he's got your number and thinks he can impress your girl with his snarling V8. A quick sleight of hand down to the Dynamic Mode button, located below the chromed JaguarDrive Selector, and the XKR's fangs come out for the kill. Rotating the selector fully to the right sets the 6-speed automatic transmission in Sport and then the pony can kiss the cat's ass.

Throttle response is now sharper, steering's heavier, and gear shifts are quicker and occur at higher engine speeds. As a true bad-ass, a slight tug on one of the paddle shifters behind the steering wheel sets the ‘box in manual mode. Ready; set; attack.

The 2014 Jaguar XKR convertible reaches 100 km/h in 4.8 seconds, and the top speed will send you to jail well over 2.5 times over.

Covering ground
The 2014 Jaguar XKR convertible's GT nature comes from its suspension tuning designed for cruising rather than setting lap times (that's the XKR-S' job).

In fact, the XKR's ride is surprisingly supple and comfortable. All but the worst road hazards will truly upset the car's poise on land, and such is pliancy in the dampers that weight transfers are ever present under spirited cornering, acceleration or braking. In Dynamic mode, the dampers stiffen up, but we're far off from the XKR-S' sport-tuned setup.

In D, the autobox is efficient and always minding its business. Sweet, luxurious poise is the best way to describe the XKR's drive. It is possible to forget at times that you're at the wheel of a 500-hp cabriolet and not an XJL.

The lair
From Coventry, we can always expect the finest hides, top-drawer craftsmanship, and supreme attention to detail. The Jaguar XK is all about leather, sumptuous fit and finish, and class. The seats are supportive, well bolstered, and infinitely adjustable.

The rear bucketed bench is not pleasant for any human, and only the most compact of child seats will ever fit. Much the same goes for the roof when stowed in the trunk, where it belongs.

Sadly, the entirety of Jaguar's HMI getup is poorly designed and won't always execute what the driver wishes and when. Miranda also touches on that in all of her recent JLR reviews -- make sure you check it out.

That roar!
Yes, the Jaguar XKR emits quite the snarl under hard acceleration. It also spews out lovely tempered backfires off-throttle. Both sequences of sounds are what I will remember most fondly of the Jaguar XK -- that and the ludicrous rate at which it accelerates.

Farewell, Big Cat. Say hi to Bootsie for me when you get to cat heaven.

From GMM

Niki Lauda has put his mind to the problem of F1's dwindling television and spectator audiences.

Before the sport breaks for the summer, key meetings will take place this week, including the brand new 'popularity working group' reportedly headed by Flavio Briatore.

But F1 legend and Mercedes team chairman Lauda doubts the sport needs the former crash-gate protagonist to solve the sport's problems.

To Italy's La Gazzetta dello Sport, he laid out his own blueprint of improvements.

On the empty grandstands in Hockenheim recently, he said that was "the fault of the organisers" in not promoting the race sufficiently, and setting ticket prices too high.

"For Austria, Dietrich Mateschitz adopted the approach I know well -- fill up with low prices instead of higher prices and empty seats," he said.

Crowd on the Red Bull Ring, for the Austrian Grand Prix. (Photo: WRi2)

Niki Lauda said F1 has already acted on his suggestion of "not interfering" in the actual racing with "so many stupid penalties".

"Then there is the low sound of the engines," he added. "At Mercedes, we have already promised Ecclestone another attempt at a solution to turn up the volume. But the real crisis is something else.

"The young people today want to stay at the beach with friends and watch the grand prix on the ipad. At the same time they don't see the drivers as their heroes. This is not easy to solve.

"But there are too many rules. If his rival goes over the white line, he starts screaming on the radio. And then there are the limits on what they can say to the media and when they have to shut up.

"We are at a breaking point," Niki Lauda claimed.

In a short press release, Scuderia Ferrari has announced Thursday a new structure for the power unit management.

Ferrari confirms that, as of today, Luca Marmorini, Director of the Engine and Electronics department, is leaving the company.

As part of the restructuring of the Power Unit department, Mattia Binotto will assume the role of Chief Operating Officer.

James Allison, Technical Director, continues to be responsible for the entire car project, supported by Nikolas Tombazis, Chief Designer Chassis, and Lorenzo Sassi, Chief Designer Power Unit.

No word however on Pat Fry.

Luca Marmorini, Ferrari. (Photo: WRi2)

It is with great sadness that we were informed of the death of Jean-Pierre Frizon, Romain Grosjean's physiotherapist and personal trainer.

Born in Chamonix, France Frizon started his motorsport career by training Jean Alesi.

He then took over the physical preparation of the young drivers of the French motorsport federation.

Frizon started working with Romain Grosjean when he returned in Formula 1 with Lotus in 2012.

Mr. Frizon will be sorely missed.

Jean-Pierre Frizon and Romain Grosjean (Photo: WRI2)