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News 10 Apr, 2014

Brits rate Italian drivers and road network as the most dangerous, according to new study

General Motors is racking up fines of US $7,000 a day for missing a 3 April deadline to provide information about its recall of 2.6m cars for defective ignition switches, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said.

Porsche sold more than 38,500 vehicles worldwide in the first three months of this year, up from 37,009 in the first quarter of 2013.

Bentley is using the Beijing motor show to reveal the Bentley Hybrid Concept.

Dodge is set to unveil a refreshed Charger and

Nearly every Ford Mustang -- from the very first cars through the Fox platform era and right up to

Welcome back to the Race Organizer Review series, in which I plunge new cars into the weird and demanding world of a traveling race official with

Audi has released sketches of a new TT-inspired crossover concept that will debut in Beijing later this month and may preview the upcoming Q4.

General Motors chief Mary Barra has been asked to endorse legislation to keep unrepaired, recalled rental cars off the road.

Toyota's latest global recall includes Toyota Kirloskar Motor's Innova in India.

Jaguar is counting on the new XE sedan and a forthcoming crossover to help boost Jaguar Land Rover's global vehicle sales to 750,000 by the end of the decade, up from an all-time high of 425,000 last year.

After Toyota and GM were criticized for dragging their feet before calling back defective models in recent years, automakers are accelerating safety actions.

Land Rover says it plans to better distinguish its SUV offerings by creating three distinct model lines.

After Toyota and GM were criticized for delaying recalls of defective models in recent years, automakers are accelerating safety actions. Recalls recently climbed to records in Japan and China.

British motorsport magazine Autosport write Thursday that FIA president, Jean Todt, says Formula 1 team directors should listen to racing fans.

Fans around the world have been highly against the new, and controversial, double point for the season's finale in Abu Dhabi.

Although he says he is not against the rule of the double points, Frenchman Todt has now proposed that the discontent from fans over means that perhaps a proper reconsideration is needed.

Yas Marina track in Abu Dhabi. (Photo: WRi2)

The president of the FIA has revealed that he asked for the F1 Strategy Group to review the idea.

"To reconsider it we need unanimous agreement, and if we do not get unanimous agreement we cannot change it," Todt explained.

"We had the strategy meeting and I said, 'do you want to reconsider?' The answer was no. Do not ask me who said yes or no. So I said, 'okay we will see at the end of the season what is the reaction'.

Todt continued: “Personally I was surprised to get so much emotion for this thing that I do not feel is a huge change in F1.

However we need to listen to that and hopefully we will take that into consideration."

Mercedes AMG boss Paddy Lowe said that there is no need to change or modify the current Formula 1 technical regulations.

Lowe replied to the complaints made by the directors of at least two F1 teams (that are no longer winning races) who claim that the rules should be changed.

One of them publicly said that the current fuel restriction rules have turned racers into “taxi drivers”.

Lowe understands why some people would want to see the rules modified, but he adds it would be completely unrealistic.

Some team owners said that the cars would need to use 110kg of fuel instead of 100.

“Has anyone realised you couldn't fit 110 kilograms into the current cars?” Lowe told Sky Sports F1.

Other directors suggested that the races should be shortened.

“Can you imagine selling that concept to the public? It would be like saying 'we've decided people aren't fit enough these days and marathons are only going to be 40 kilometres, not 42'. The messaging around that cannot be contemplated,” Lowe explained.

Lowe added: “In Bahrain the guys (Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg) were racing from beginning to end, and it was a completely normal level of fuel saving."

Lowe declared he would even like to see the F1 rules become more severe.

"Formula 1 is about developing technology, setting stretched targets," he added.

"The nature of F1 is to push technology to the limit and beyond. Maybe next year it should be down to 95 kilograms for a Grand Prix."

From Formula1.com

McLaren racing director Eric Boullier says Mercedes AMG are catchable, despite the German team's dominant start to the 2014 season.

Mercedes AMG has taken three pole positions and three wins in the three races so far this year, but though it enjoyed a substantial pace advantage over the rest of the field in Bahrain, Boullier says it's not too late for McLaren to bridge such a deficit.

Asked during a McLaren-Mercedes teleconference if it was realistic to think that the gap could be closed to Mercedes, Boullier answered: “To be honest, I think it is. It's true that the gap is huge now, but a one-second gap is catchable. I know a lot of areas we can work on and improve, so I think they can definitely be caught.

Eric Boullier with Jenson Button, McLaren (Photo: McLaren)

“We are aggressively developing now to make sure we can catch up with them (Mercedes AMG)," he added. "We don't know if we will have caught them by the European races, but we'll definitely try to close the gap as much as possible.”

McLaren suffered a double retirement in Bahrain with both Jenson Button and Kevin Magnussen both suffering clutch problems - a situation Boullier described as “a one-off”.

The former Lotus man also supported Jenson Button's post-race assertion that after Mercedes, McLaren are the next fastest team.

“I believe that if you look at the performance graph from Jenson (in Bahrain), we had the potential to finish in front of the Force Indias,” Boullier said.

“I agree with Jenson that we could be the second-fastest team - the best of the rest - but it is very, very tight with everybody.”

From GMM

Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg have been told the 'rules' for their future wheel-to-wheel battles.

The Mercedes pair thrilled the F1 world last Sunday with their duel for victory in Bahrain, despite bosses urging them to "bring both cars home".

It was rumoured that the team denied the drivers ignored team orders for appearance only, and would quietly curb that sort of behaviour behind the scenes ahead of future races.

The fight in Bahrain was also timely for F1's 'show', in the wake of hefty criticism of the controversial new rules.

"I am so happy the race was so well received by the fans, because the welfare of the sport is very important to me," said German Rosberg.

"In my eyes, the criticism of the new regulations was very unfair, especially so early on, and the negativity was getting louder and louder. For me, there was no better way to silence it than to deliver one of the most exciting races in the history of formula one," he added.

The two Mercedes drivers racing each others in Bahrain. (Photo: WRi2)

But team director Toto Wolff insists Bahrain was not simply a one-off.

"They can fight against each other," he told Sport Bild magazine, "so long as there are no harakiri-manoeuvres.

"So you're not driving with the same aggressiveness against your own teammate as you would against the others," Wolff explained.

He said Mercedes' attitude to 'team orders' is important, given that both Hamilton and Rosberg are conferred equal status inside the Brackley based team, whose W05 car is currently utterly dominant.

"We are here to race," said Wolff, "we have two really good drivers who can win races and deserve to be world champion."

Christian Danner, a former driver turned commentator, says Mercedes' approach will be welcomed by many.

"Mercedes is very dominant," he told German television n-tv, "but in contrast to what we have seen over the years with Ferrari and Red Bull, Rosberg and Hamilton can race freely.

"This is not only a very brave decision, but also the right decision for the sport," he applauded.