Auto News 5

The end of scrapping incentives in Germany is hurting sales at General Motors Co.'s top European brand and contributing to GM's car sales slump in Europe. Full story...

The first mass-market electric cars will start debuting in Europe later this year. For example, PSA/Peugeot-Citroen launches the Citroen C-Zero and Peugeot iOn four-door electric car. Full story...

Rolls-Royce unveiled the Ghost at the 2009 Frankfurt auto show. The ultraluxury sedan is smaller and less expensive than its sibling, the Phantom. Wabco Holdings Inc. Full story...

Magneti Marelli CEO Eugenio Razelli would like stop-start systems to become mandatory equipment on all new cars because he says they provide substantial fuel-savings at a very low cost. Full story...

Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz E-class cars are under investigation by U.S. regulators because air bags in the vehicles may not deploy properly in crashes, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said. Full story...

Ford Motor Co. and its finance arm had their credit ratings upgraded one level by Moody's Investors Service because of demand for the company's new models and a lower cost structure. Full story...

No, Ford has not created an army of alien-human-DNA soup-mix-monsters to infiltrate the natives. Although the program used to create SANTOS, a highly realistic virtual worker, was created for the U.S. Department of Defense, in an effort to simulate and ease physical strain on the soldiers. Full story...

The Renault F1 Team boss Eric Boullier said he is confident Robert Kubica will not switch to a rival team at the end of 2010. Full story...

Seoul, Korea -- I couldn't decipher the road signs nor the street names, traffic was nightmarish and most city streets were as tight as alleyways. Yet I experienced one of my greatest moments ever in an automobile as the little Kia Soul took me through downtown Seoul, capital of South Korea and a world-class shopping mecca. Full story...

As if the plain-jane Veyron wasn't enough, Bugatti and the crazies at Château St. Jean in Molsheim, Alsace, France, have decided that 1,200 was the new 1,001, horsepower that is. The most powerful production car will, again, be the most powerful production ever... Full story...

When Apple's iPad hits European markets in a few days' time Mercedes-Benz will be ready for the launch with a whole range of free programs available through the App Store. Already available for the iPhone, the applications have been technically optimized to ensure that fascination for the brand with the star is just as good an audio-visual experience on the new tablet device too. Full story...

Munich. Sun, rain, ice and snow "at the push of a button" - all climate zones of the world in one building in northern Munich. This piques curiosity and provides for optimal conditions for a special type of photo shoot. "I heard you can make weather here." With this sentence, the two-time Olympic champion Katarina Witt greeted the Manager of Efficient Dynamics at the BMW Group, Dr. Johannes Liebl, during her visit to the BMW Group's Energy and Environmental Test Centre (ETC). "I'd like to have some sun - I've had enough ice and snow this last winter." Full story...

Japanese car manufacturer Toyota, which quit Formula 1 at the end of last year, has no intention whatsoever of returning to the series that is described as the "pinnacle of motorsport". Full story...

A rather special driver made his debut Wednesday afternoon on the Scuderia Ferrari simulator in Maranello, Italy. Full story...

Both drivers dream of Ferrari, but is it the good time to switch to the Italian team. Full story...

Twenty-year-old Venezuelan driver E.J. Viso crashed heavily at Turn 1 of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the closing minutes of the six-hour free practice session on Tuesday. Full story...

One of the three stewards on duty in Monaco last weekend has revealed the officials were too busy to consider giving Rubens Barrichello a penalty. Full story...

Epsilon Euskadi has a better chance of winning a spot on the formula one grid now that Max Mosley has departed. Full story...

Lotus is almost ready to begin fighting with F1's established teams, according to Heikki Kovalainen. Full story...

Jeremy Mayfield's legal challenge, against his NASCAR suspension, for failing a random drug test was dismissed by a Federal Court in Charlotte, North Carolina. Full story...