Auto News 5

Denso has said it will postpone construction, scheduled to start this spring, of an automotive air conditioner plant in Fukushima prefecture. Full story...

Schaeffler has reached an interim financing agreement with creditor banks to secure its liquidity until the beginning of 2010, according to a report in the daily Die Welt. Full story...

Audi's Hungarian unit plans to stop production for three weeks in August to save jobs in the face of falling demand. Full story...

ZF Friedrichshafen is planning to extend short-time work. Full story...

Delphi has announced that it is providing vital sensor technology for the next generation Volvo S60, planned for a mid-2010 debut. Full story...

German trade unions have devised a plan for the rescue of financially troubled Schaeffler, the daily Berliner Zeitung has reported. Full story...

New baby Range Rover gets green light as £27m goverment aid package announced.

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Vietnam's vehicle market continued its rapid decline in February, with sales of locally-made vehicles dropping by 25.2% year-on-year to 6,671 units - according to data released by the Vietnamese Automotive Manufacturers Association (VAMA). Full story...

Carbon dioxide emissions from new cars in Britain fell by their biggest ever margin in 2008 with the average model now emitting just 158.0g/km - 4.2% less than the 2007 figure and 16.8% down on the 189.8g/km base level in 1997. Full story...

General Motors' Opel brand has obtained a loan guarantee from Spain but still needs 2.6 billion euros from Germany, the head of GM Europe said today. "We need a guarantee for more than 3.3 billion euros in Europe in order to get loans from banks. Full story...

General Motors' Opel brand has obtained a loan guarantee from Spain but still needs 2.6 billion euros from Germany, the head of GM Europe said today. "We need a guarantee for more than 3.3 billion euros in Europe in order to get loans from banks. Full story...

General Motors' German Opel unit is not insolvent, the head of GM's European business reiterated, according to German radio station Deutschlandfunk. Full story...

General Motors' German Opel unit is not insolvent, the head of GM's European business reiterated, according to German radio station Deutschlandfunk. Full story...

Volvo expects its China sales growth will accelerate to over 10 percent in 2009, helped by a rebound in consumer sentiment, a senior executive of the Sweden-based automaker said on Thursday. Full story...

Chrysler LLC said Wednesday it may close its plants in Canada unless it gets sufficient labor concessions as well as government aid and resolution of a tax dispute. "Failure to satisfactorily resolve these three factors ... Full story...

The Canadian Auto Workers union said Wednesday its members had agreed to contract concessions with General Motors of Canada to help the automaker qualify for government loans. Full story...

On Thursday, the new and surprising Mercedes-Benz-powered Brawn BGP001 lapped the circuit of Barcelona faster than ever before in the capable hands of Brazilian Rubens Barrichello. Full story...

Nigel Mansell, the 1992 Formula 1 World Champion with team Williams, will take part to the first Formula Le Mans official practice session at Paul Ricard in two weeks, together with sons Greg and Leo. Full story...

Norway's pioneering electric car maker, Think, plans to open a new manufacturing plant and technical center in the United States. The company is currently in discussions with eight states, including Michigan, hoping to host the facility, which will initially employ about 300 workers with a starting capacity of 16,000 cars per year. The technical center will provide jobs for another 70 engineers and electric drive specialists. Plans ultimately call for up to 900 employees and a capacity of 60,000 electric vehicles per year. Full story...

Munich. Airstream Inc. and MINI have teamed up to offer the best in both design and functionality with a one-off MINI Cooper S Clubman and Airstream creation designed by Republic of Fritz Hansen. The concept will be presented for the first time at the INTERNI DESIGN ENERGIES exhibition in the courtyards of Università degli Studi di Milano during the upcoming world-renowned Salone del Mobile show in Milan. The exhibition will be open each day from Tuesday 21 to Thursday 30 April from 10:00 a.m. until midnight. Full story...