Auto News 5

Bitterness, anger and disbelief mixed with betrayal and even resignation are just some of the emotions boiling within Germany following Tuesday's news that General Motors Co. will scrap its sale of Opel. Full story...

Hayes Lemmerz International Inc., a century-old maker of aluminum and steel wheels for cars and trucks, said it won approval of its bankruptcy reorganization plan on Tuesday, and expects to emerge from Chapter 11 this year. Full story...

Bernie Ecclestone has braced the formula one world for an even longer race calendar in future. Full story...

Toyota Motor Corporation will announce on Wednesday its decision to pull out of formula one with immediate effect. Full story...

Richard Petty Motorsports, which debuted a Ford for Elliott Sadler in ninth place in Sunday's Talladega 500, has decided to run a Ford Fusion for AJ Allmendinger for the final three Sprint Cup races of 2009. Full story...

Michelin and Goodyear, the most recent tyre brands in formula one, have played down suggestions they might take over from Bridgestone as F1's exclusive supplier in 2011 and beyond. Full story...

American TV star/car tuner Chip Foose had the honor of kicking off the 2009 SEMA Show in Las Vegas. Alongside Peter Klutt, he unveiled a 1970 Super Cuda with equally super ambitions. As the featured masterpiece of the latest season of Dream Car Garage, this one-of-a-kind Cuda will reportedly run a few track tests in the upcoming days with the goal of out-accelerating the legendary Ferrari Enzo in a straight line. Full story...

Magna International Inc. (TSX: MG.A, NYSE: MGA) today announced that it has been advised by General Motors ("GM") that the GM Board of Directors has decided to terminate the sale process for Opel. Full story...

The Japanese car company Toyota revealed its decision in a news conference in Tokyo today following an earlier board meeting. The current economic situation had prompted its departure. Full story...

An off-road Raptor SVT truck powered by a 411-hp engine, a Mustang Cobra Jet destined for drag racing, a 400-hp Fiesta that scaled Pikes Peak after winning the XGames... American automaker had one thing to say at the SEMA show: Ford is still synonymous with power, and still all-American. Full story...

Factory Five is a small, family-owned company from Massachussetts that is growing at the speed of light. In fact, it's now the world's leading designer and seller of kit cars. However, building cool replicas of actual models was no longer enough for the two brothers in charge, so they decided to start R&D operations. Full story...

DETROIT - Given an improving business environment for GM over the past few months, and the importance of Opel//Vauxhall to GM's global strategy, the GM Board of Directors has decided to retain Opel and will initiate a restructuring of its European operations in earnest. Full story...

Yamaha Motor Canada Ltd. announced today that it is withdrawing from participation in the 2010 Parts Canada Superbike Series. As a result of this decision, there will no longer be an official Yamaha race team or the traditional manufacturer support for the series. Full story...

Here are the main F1 news briefs of this day, Wednesday October 4, 2009 Full story...

The Porsche Panamera has been awarded the Golden Steering Wheel as the Best New Car of the Year in the Luxury Performance Class. With its combination of supreme comfort and outstanding sportiness, and through its unique design, Porsche's Gran Turismo convinced the 50-man jury made up of racing drivers, engineers, celebrities and the senior editors of the Auto Bild Magazine Group trying out the candidates on thorough test drives. Full story...

The SEMA show is always packed with a plethora of aftermarket and performance goodies that water the mouths of car enthusiasts from all corners of the globe. Though Korea and Japan have some of the hottest models on display this year, fans of modern American muscle are well represented too, thanks in part to the Hurst Camaro. Full story...

Malton, Ontario -- Even if they need the room, North Americans tend not to opt for minivans and station wagons. At the same time, this group seems instinctively drawn to all-wheel drive. Not too long ago these customers gravitated to SUVs. Now they're driving crossovers. Full story...

I just sat through the first half of Chrysler's webcast on their 2010-2014 plan. The following is summary of most of the interesting points that were discussed buy a few of Chrysler's bigwigs. Full story...

Overall, October was a break-even month. Light vehicle sales were down only 1% over the same period last year, 121,500 from 122,711 units. The fall season typically signifies a slowdown on car sales for everyone and 2009 will be no different... except for some manufacturers. Full story...

Anyone thinking the Hyundai Genesis coupe isn't sleek or powerful enough will have reason to give the model a second look at the 2009 SEMA show. Full story...