Auto News 5

Workers at Japanese supplier association, JAPIA, say the component body headquarters in Tokyo shook for around two minutes as today's (7 December) earthquake struck right at the start of the city's weekend rush hour.

Toyota's Aqua hybrid subcompact - exported as the Prius c - was Japan's top-selling vehicle in Japan in November for the second consecutive month in a row while Honda looks set to regain second place for 2012, local media reports said.

News 7 Dec, 2012

£150m funding will allow Aston to compete with Porsche and Bentley

Spyker says the US District Court Eastern District of Michigan has issued a Notice to General Motors, Spyker and Saab Automobile to appear for oral argument on GM's Motion to Dismiss on 19 February next year.

News 18 Nov, 2013

One lucky reader will win a 12-month supply of fuel, courtesy of Mobil 1 and Auto Express

News 5 Aug, 2013

One lucky reader will win a 12-month supply of fuel, courtesy of Mobil 1 and Auto Express

News 5 Aug, 2013

One lucky reader will win a 12-month supply of fuel, courtesy of Mobil 1 and Auto Express

News 5 Aug, 2013

One lucky reader will win a 12-month supply of fuel, courtesy of Mobil 1 and Auto Express

Skoda has started Yeti production at GAZ's plant in Nizhny Novgorod, the second location building the VW Czech unit's vehicles in Russia.

After a tumultuous and sometimes litigious couple of years (which included Steve Saleen the man suing Saleen the company for calling itself Saleen!), Saleen the man, the car and the company with the man again in the driver's seat are back, still in...

ASSOCIATE EDITOR JAKE LINGEMAN: There's always plenty of fun to be had behind the wheel of a

BMW has appointed veteran executive Karsten Engel to lead sales in China, the company's single biggest market.

Italian private equity fund Investindustrial today signed a deal to buy 37.5 percent of Aston Martin from its Kuwaiti owner Investment Dar. The company beat rival Indian carmaker Mahindra and Mahindra in a two-way battle to invest in the company.

Italian private equity fund Investindustrial today signed a deal to buy 37.5 percent of Aston Martin from its Kuwaiti owner Investment Dar.

PSA's China joint venture with Changan Automobile plans to produce three Citroen DS models -- the DS5, a three-box sedan and an SUV -- in the country by 2014, according to a Chinese newspaper report.

Fiat Group plans to launch Jeep vehicles in India next year in a bid to grab sales in the country's fast-growing SUV segment.

The news that private equity firm InvestIndustrial will buy a 37.5 percent stake in Aston Martin won't be well received by fans of the brand.

As Auto123.com revealed a few weeks ago, an agreement between Lotus and the IndyCar series officials has been reached and the engine manufacturer is officially leaving the North American open wheel series.

With the introduction of the new IndyCar chassis/engine regulations, Lotus joined Honda and Chevrolet to supply engines to different teams for the 2012 season.

Photo: Lotus

On the outset, the Lotus V6 was plagued by numerous problems that eventually led to its downfall. The development program started late and that cause Lotus to lag behind both Honda and Chevrolet.

Lotus was first linked with teams Dreyer & Reinbold, Dragon, Bryan Herta Autosport and HVM but when the time came for the Indy 500; all the teams had left but HVM.

Lotus was never able to supply an up-to-par engine and, although Sebastien Bourdais was able to show good form on the road courses, the engine was well under power on the ovals. This lack of power forced the officials at the Indy 500 to black flag the Lotus cars due to their lack of speed.

IndyCar officials announced on Friday that Lotus had been released from its contract to supply engines to teams in the series, meaning that Chevrolet and Honda must now each be able to supply a minimum 60 per cent of the grid next season.

Brian Scott will take over the No. 2 Nationwide Series Chevy Camaro, previously driven by Elliott Sadler, at Richard Childress Racing in a multi-year deal announced on Thursday.

The 24 year-old driver has finished twice in the top 10 in the Nationwide Series driver championship point standings in three full seasons of competition. He finished eighth in 2011 and ninth this past year. He finished 14th and was runner-up in the series' rookie of the year standings in 2010.

Phil Gould, car chief for the No. 2 team in 2012 and with previous experience at RCR as a car chief in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, has been promoted to crew chief for the team.

The RCR No.2 Chevrolet is a strong contender in NASCAR's junior circuit with Sadler finishing second in both 2011 and this year.


The Chevrolet No. 2 of Richard Childress Racing. (Photo: NASCAR)

"I am thrilled to have this opportunity to drive the No. 2 Shore Lodge Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing in the Nationwide Series," said Scott. "RCR has proven over the past 13 years that it can build and prepare winning cars in the NASCAR Nationwide Series and has for a variety of drivers. I just want to be the next name on that list. RCR has a rich tradition of winning races and championships at the highest level of our sport and I am excited about being a part of an organization, like theirs, that is committed to winning. 


"Our goals for 2013 are going to be set at a high level and we are going to do everything within our power to achieve those goals. On a personal level I think I am going to fit in really well. Richard Childress and a lot of the people affiliated with RCR are avid outdoorsmen and that matches my background as well."


"Brian is a strong young talent and we look forward to him, Phil and the entire No. 2 Shore Lodge team adding their part to RCR's history of success in the NASCAR Nationwide Series," said Richard Childress, president and CEO of Richard Childress Racing. "The fact that Brian is an avid outdoorsman only makes it an even better fit. We're also proud to welcome Shore Lodge to our family of partners. The Scott family knows what it takes to create a tradition of excellence so we look forward to making our program a success both on the track and off."

As far as extreme makeovers go, this one probably takes the cake. A Fiat Panda 4x4 has just been turned into a Monster Truck for a TV spot that will air in early 2013 with the slogan '''New Panda, extremely Panda.''

Standing 3.9 metres high and riding on 150cm x 50cm (59'' x 20'') road tractor wheels with "High Speed" tires, not to mention a Jeep Wrangler floor panel, the monstrous Panda looks totally out of proportion.

Fiat Panda 4x4 Monster Truck. (Photo: Fiat)

It took the Italian automaker two full weeks to make it operational, in collaboration with Mercurio Cinematografica, set designer Andrea Faini and the Fabio Gementi Workshop.

The commercial shows four friends setting off for a weekend in the mountains. The Panda 4x4 Monster Truck climbs up to a hostel and stuns everyone with its performance. And when the driver, thinking that he's on a normal Panda 4x4, gets down from the car, he ends up falling two metres onto a cushion of snow, to the laughter of his friends.

So, do you prefer the Fiat Panda 4x4 Monster Truck or the 2006 smart forfun?