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Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche moved forward in his plan to concentrate company efforts on carmaking this week by overseeing the sale of shares in EADS.

Fiat said it plans to lay off around 1,500 people at its factory in Tychy, Poland.

Viewers of the special airing Sunday of "Restaurant: Impossible" on the Food Network will see two chefs with ties to Lexus alongside muscle-bound host Robert Irvine.

Andersen Promotions, administrator of the Cooper Tires USF2000 Series has announced the creation of the Pro Mazda Championship that will take over from the Star Mazda Series.

The Star Mazda series had been free falling since the Rodrigues family decided to pull out of the organizing committee after 22 years.

The Pro Mazda Championship will utilize the same equipment as the former Star Mazda Series, including the 260-horsepower Mazda "Renesis" rotary engine.

Photo: Facebook.com/starmazdaseries

The full 2013 schedule will be unveiled next week.

Moreover, the 2012 Star Mazda champion Jack Hawksworth has signed with Sam Schmidt Motorsports ahead of the 2013 Firestone Indy Lights season.

The 21-year-old British driver registered last season a record 10 pole positions and further 8 wins for Team Pelfrey.

The 2012 Formula One season ended two weeks ago at the Brazilian Grand Prix with Sebastian Vettel's dramatic victory over Fernando Alonso in the championship, making it three consecutive titles for the German.

Here are a few interesting statistics from the past season*.

Number of tires used: 23,500
Average longevity of a tire: 180km
Total number of pitstops: 957
Most pitstops in a race: 76 (Malaysia)
Fewest pitstops in a race: 24 (USA)
Hottest ambient temperature: 37 Celsius degrees (European GP)
Coolest ambient temperature: 4 Celsius degrees (USA)
Most laps led: 368 (Sebastian Vettel)
Most laps completed: 1,191 (Kimi Raikkonen)
Fewest laps completed: 803 (Romain Grosjean)
Fastest pole position: 248.241 km/h (Lewis Hamilton in Italy)
Slowest pole position: 161.828 km/h (Michael Schumacher in Monaco)

*From Formula1.com

2012 DTM champion Bruno Spengler's season was topped by two more trophies lately at the Essen Motor Show.

The BMW driver, who clinched his first title in 2012 with BMW - in the brand's big return to the series -, was voted best touring car driver by Germany's Auto Bild Motorsport.

He also received, from the hands of former champion Timo Scheider, a golden racing shoe, to highlight his remarkable season.

Timo Scheider (left), Bruno Spengler (right) and the golden shoe (Photo: brunospengler.com)

"Don't wear it too often as the leaf gold tends to flake off," joked Scheider, who drives for Audi when he is not presenting awards.

Moreover, also in the DTM series, Mercedes' Susie Wolff (née Stoddart) celebrated her 30th birthday Thursday, and BMW's Martin Tomczyk his 31st on Friday.

Happy birthday to both of them!

The 2012 rookie of the year in the IndyCar series, Simon Pagenaud, will contest the curtain-raising event of the Grand-Am series, the 2013 24 Hours of Daytona, January 26-27.

The Frenchman signed with the start-up DP team of Joe Sahlen for the famous twice-around-the-clock race. He will share Team Sahlen's No. 42 BMW/Riley with Wayne Nonnamaker and Dane Cameron.

Pagenaud's reputation in endurance racing is well established. The 2006 Formula Atlantic champion raced for Peugeot during its LMP1 days, notoriously finishing second overall in the 2011 24 Hours Le Mans, and earning the pole in the same race a year before.

"He is obviously a driver who gets the maximum out of the car," said Will Nonnamaker, Team Sahlen's sporting director. We are excited about bringing him back to endurance racing with the hope of even more success."

Moreover, DTM driver Mike Rockenfeller too got the green light to race in the 51st running of the fabled Daytona event. The 29-year-old German who won overall in 2010 will line-up in 2013 with Action Express Racing.

From Toyota-Motorsport.com

TOYOTA Motorsport GmbH (TMG) is excited to announce a new motorsport competition for 2013 based on the TMG GT86 CS-V3 race car.

Running within the popular Nürburgring-based VLN series, the TMG GT86 Cup is exclusively for GT86 CS-V3 entrants and offers attractive prize money as well as the thrill of competition on the legendary Nordschleife.

The GT86 CS-V3 is already a proven class-winner in VLN events and this year's prototype completed more than 7,000km of running in race conditions, with a perfect reliability record and minimal spare parts.

TMG GT86 CS-V3 race cars (Photo: Facebook.com/ToyotaMotorsport)

VLN races regularly attract over 200 entrants and the TMG GT86 Cup will run as a category within the existing championship structure, benefiting from a well-established organisation.

Together with its partner IKmedia, TMG will provide an on-site spare parts service, with special conditions for participants, as well as a dedicated TMG GT86 Cup organisation service at the Nürburgring.

Attractive prizes for race and season results totalling around €50,000 ($64,000 CAD) combine with the GT86 CS-V3 car, which is available for €45,815 ($59,000 CAD), for a cost-effective way to participate in one of Europe's leading motorsport series.

The annual entry fee of €2,500 ($3,000 CAD) also includes additional benefits such as a TMG GT86 Cup-branded race suit, VIP hospitality packages and exclusive reductions on tyres and spare parts at the race track.

Although not part of the TMG GT86 Cup calendar, the car is eligible to compete in the Nürburgring 24 Hours in the V3 class, which was won by the prototype GT86 CS-V3 in 2012.

The 2013 VLN calendar is yet to be announced, although traditionally the series features 10 races and runs from March to October.

In accordance with the new collective agreement signed this fall, Ford will add a third shift to its Oakville, ON assembly plant starting in the first quarter of 2013.

CBC reports that the 300 newly created jobs will first be offered to the 220 employees who are still on layoff from the closure of the St. Thomas assembly plant in September 2011.

Overall, Ford has about 800 employees on layoff in Canada. The other half of its 600 new job commitment will result from the production of a new vehicle.

Source: Radio-Canada.ca

Fiat-Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne, who was re-elected on Friday to head Europe's main carmaking lobby group, is taking his rivalry with Volkswagen AG in their home region overseas.

Toyota Motor Sales announced prices Friday for some of its 2013 models. All prices in this report include a $795 freight charge; for Scion models, the charge is $755.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration today proposed a rule ordering automakers to put event data recorders, commonly known as black boxes, in all new light vehicles manufactured after September 2014.

Fisker Automotive's CEO, warning of the pitfalls facing independent small automakers, says the luxury plug-in hybrid manufacturer is poised to partner with other automakers next year.

Also in this episode: Steve Saleen is back behind the wheel of the company bearing his name, and Consumer Reports criticizes the Ford C-Max and Fusion hybrids.

Toyota and Scion will be charging slightly more for certain models in 2013.

The redesigned 2013 Ford Fusion, recalled earlier this week for potential fires in the 1.

The 2013 Volkswagen Beetle convertible is the newest addition to the VW family, and the

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The Juke Nismo will cost from £19,995 when order books open in January

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The Polo R WRC will make its racing debut at the Monte Carlo rally

Pictures 8 Dec, 2012