AutoWeek Daily Drive — Thursday, April 30, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Thursday, April 30, 2009 The FIA has set a budget cap for 2010, it announced Thursday.... Formula One: FIA sets budget cap for 2010 The FIA announced Thursday its plans for a Formula One budget cap in 2010. The cap will be set at £40 million, up from the originally proposed figure of £30 million after the FIA reviewed the numbers with teams. The cap will cover all team expenditures except engine costs, marketing and hospitality, driver salaries, potential fines and penalties imposed by the FIA, anything that teams can...   Chrysler files for bankruptcy, to merge with Fiat, Obama announces Chrysler, an 84-year-old symbol of America's manufacturing might, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in an unprecedented move announced Thursday by President Barack Obama. The historic filing is the first for one of Detroit's Big Three. But it's not the end of the road for Chrysler, which will...   Re: Volt Dear White House car czars: Couldn't help but notice in the March 30 report on General Motors by the federal automotive task force that you say: "While the Volt holds promise, it is currently projected to be much more expensive than its gasoline-fueled peers and will likely need substantial...   NEWS BRAKE: Thursday, April 30 In today's News Brake: Chrysler files for bankruptcy protection; a one-owner Ford Model A heads to a museum; and the Hurst guys work their magic on a Dodge Challenger ... But Wait, There's More!...   Speedy green: Italdesign-Giugiaro's Frazer-Nash Namir Whatever uncertainties await us on the other side of oil, there will still be speed. If the Frazer-Nash Namir is any indication, there will still be a frightening amount of it. One of the stars of this year's Geneva motor show, the Namir points the way to a responsible generation's supercar--and ...   Mazda hires VW alum Derek Jenkins to head U.S. design staff Former Volkswagen designer Derek Jenkins has been hired to be the design chief for Mazda in America. Jenkins, 39, fills a position vacated last summer by Franz von Holzhausen, who left to take the top design post at electric-vehicle maker Tesla Motors. Jenkins had been chief of design for the ...   ALMS: Long Beach results stand after IMSA upholds Highcroft penalty The results of the American Le Mans Series race at Long Beach on April 18 will stand after ALMS sanctioning body IMSA upheld the decision of the race director. The official held the Patrón Highcroft Racing Acura ARX-02a in pit lane for 20 seconds because the mechanic holding the team's fire... You May Have Missed...   Cruze in control: Chevy's next compact is a huge step in the right direction How ironic that General Motors is launching the excellent Chevrolet Cruze compact sedan just as the parent company faces the question of its very survival. The Cruze symbolizes the progress that GM is making to sort out its engineering fundamentals, product quality and global manufacturing plan--...   Spied: Porsche 911 GT3 RS The mild redesign of Porsche's 911 range will get to the ultra-high-performance GT3 RS model, based on these spy shots. This prototype was nabbed making a cross-country U.S. dash. Note the heat exchanger on this prototype: It is incorporated in the engine cover, at the base of the rear wing....   Brian Wilson to perform at Petersen fundraiser The annual Petersen Automotive Museum's fundraising event on May 7 promises to be fun, fun, fun when Beach Boy Brian Wilson and his band take the stage. The rock-'n'-roll icon is scheduled to play for an hour as part of the museum's largest charity event of the year, proceeds from which benefit the ... CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

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ALERT: Chrysler to file for bankruptcy

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Thursday, April 30, 2009 Chrysler to file for bankruptcy, merge with Fiat, Obama announces By Greg Migliore | 04/30/09, 12:43 pm et Chrysler, an 84-year-old symbol of America's manufacturing might, will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in an unprecedented move announced Thursday by President Barack Obama. The historic filing is the first for one of Detroit's Big Three. But it's not the end of the road for Chrysler, which will continue operations and has completed a deal to partner with Italian auto giant Fiat, Obama said in a televised address from the White House. The bankruptcy comes after Chrysler failed to reach an agreement with all of its debt holders. A small group of debt holders had balked in hopes of getting a better deal. Although bankruptcy--no matter how short--is sure to send ripples throughout the car world, Obama hopes it will lead to a brighter future for Chrysler. "This is not a sign of... CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Wednesday, April 29, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Wednesday, April 29, 2009 To drive, perchance to eat Eat. We're driven to do it, and maddeningly so. Call it our prime directive, the fundamental force superseding and underpinning all other life functions, a constant and all-consuming need to stuff the gullet, motivated by an evolutionarily embedded understanding that food is scarce in supply and difficult--not to mention dangerous--to access. In other words, our brains tell us to eat whenever...   Formula One: McLaren-Mercedes on probation after FIA hearing The McLaren-Mercedes Formula One team received a suspended three-race ban--essentially probation--when the FIA World Motor Sport Council convened Wednesday in Paris to decide on the team's punishment for lying to the Australian Grand Prix race stewards. By "bringing the sport into disrepute,"...   Hurst your Hemi: Muscle-car icon makes a modern muscle car It doesn't get pushed out of shape and it's pretty easy to steer, but you can still get rubber in the first three or four gears. The 2009 Hurst/Hemi Challenger Series 4 SRT8 is everything you love about the muscle cars of yore, but with steering and brakes. The 2009 Hurst/Hemi Challenger...   NEWS BRAKE: Wednesday, April 29 In today's News Brake: The FIA slaps Formula One team McLaren on the wrist and says don't lie again; the end of Saturn will cut into General Motors' hybrid sales; and the Ford Fusion Hybrid is quite the gas sipper ... But Wait, There's More!...   One-owner Model A donated to Pennsylvania museum The Antique Automobile Club of America Museum soon will have a 1929 Model A Roadster with a rap sheet that reads like this: 400,000-plus miles, original documentation, one owner. That's right. One owner. Frank Hartmaier bought it brand-new 80 years ago and kept it until his death in January. It...   Swine Flu causes cancellation of A1 GP race in Mexico A1 GP has canceled the eighth round of its 2008-09 season, scheduled to take place in Mexico City on May 22-24, as a consequence of the swine flu outbreak in the country. "To say we are disappointed to have to make this call is an understatement," said A1 GP chairman Tony Teixeira. "When the...   Brawn GP on the verge of title-sponsorship deal with Virgin Group The Brawn GP Formula One team, which has won three of the year's first four races, is evaluating an offer of full title sponsorship from Richard Branson, the owner of the Virgin Group. Virgin's current deal with Brawn, which apparently was finalized halfway through the season-opening Australian...   Formula One: iSport GP2 team eyes 2010 F1 entry Along with the USGPE project and those under consideration by Lola Cars International and Prodrive, the iSport International GP2 Series team is evaluating a Formula One entry next season. iSport founder Paul Jackson confirmed his interest in entering under the terms of the FIA's proposed £30... You May Have Missed...   Honda rocks green theme with Insight giveaway at concerts Honda's green theme is taking on a musical bent this summer as the company is the "eco-partner" of two spotlight musical festivals where it will give away 2010 Insight hybrids. Honda will organize green activities at the events, including the car giveaway and hybrid displays. The festivals are... CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Tuesday, April 28, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Tuesday, April 28, 2009 Carl Edwards (99) went flying after a crash Sunday at Talladega. He was not injured. NASCAR is defending the... NASCAR: Talladega defends catch-fence after Edwards's crash; Skinner wins Truck race Blake Bobbitt, the most seriously injured of the seven fans hit by debris on Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway during the NASCAR Sprint Cup race, remains in fair condition at the University of Alabama-Birmingham Hospital with a broken jaw. Another woman, whose name was not released, was discharged Sunday night after treatment in Brookwood Hospital in Birmingham, Ala. The five other injured fans,...   Ford Fusion hybrid hypermiles to 81.5 mpg The 2010 Ford Fusion hybrid gets up to 41 mpg--officially. But with a little effort, you can easily double that. That's what a team of Ford engineers, a hypermiling legend and NASCAR star Carl Edwards managed to pull off this week, registering an average of 81.5 mpg in a 1,445.7-mile journey...   Ford F-350 spied with new V8 Spy shooters have caught Ford's new monster truck, and it's fitted with a honkin' new V8. The F-350 Super Duty is seen here with the hood up, which offers a nice view of the 6.2-liter V8 engine called the "Boss." This powerplant also will show up in the enthusiast-oriented Raptor SVT off-road...   Fiat, Magna emerge as rival bidders for Opel Fiat S.p.a. and Magna International Inc. are emerging as rival bidders for a significant stake in General Motors' Opel/Vauxhall subsidiary. Magna International and Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska are considering taking a 50 percent share in Opel, Canada's Globe and Mail reported on Monday....   NEWS BRAKE: Tuesday, April 28 In today's News Brake, it's a full-course meal of spy shots of upcoming rides from Ford, Porsche and Saab ... But Wait, There's More!...   PERFORMANCE PROFILE: BMW X5 xDrive35d Join road test editor Natalie Neff as we take a closer look at the BMW X5 xDrive35d....   Chrysler's main creditors reach deal with U.S.; others hold out The U.S. Treasury Department has reached a tentative debt-reduction agreement with Chrysler's main creditors but still must get other lenders to sign on for the deal to take effect, three people with knowledge of the talks said today. The accord with JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and...   NASCAR: Team owner Larry McClure sentenced to 18 months in prison NASCAR team owner Larry McClure has been sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for pleading guilty to five counts of filing a false income-tax return, obstructing the investigation and lying to Internal Revenue Service investigators. McClure, of southwestern Virginia, also was fined $40,000,...   Indy 500 racer Danny Kladis dies Danny Kladis, who held the distinction of being the oldest driver and having the earliest start of living Indianapolis 500 competitors, died April 26 in Joliet, Ill. He was was 92. Though most thought of Kladis as being a Chicago-area driver, he was born Feb. 10, 1917, in Crystal City, Mo. He... You May Have Missed...   Daimler agrees to unload remaining Chrysler stake Daimler AG announced today that it has reached an agreement to unload its remaining 19.9 percent stake in Chrysler LLC. "Daimler's remaining 19.9 percent shareholding in Chrysler will be redeemed, and Daimler will forgive repayment of the loans extended to Chrysler, which were already written...   GM to seek another shared Toyota model to replace Vibe Even as it shrinks its North American product portfolio, General Motors is negotiating with Toyota Motor Corp. to determine a new GM product to be jointly produced at the automakers' 50-50 joint venture, New United Motor Manufacturing Inc. A GM spokesman said that, if successful, the... CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Monday, April 27, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Monday, April 27, 2009 Pontiac will be phased out by 2010.... Pontiac is done by end of 2010; Saturn shutdown accelerated Pontiac--the brand famous for the GTO, the Firebird, the Star Chief and, most recently, the Solstice--is dead. It will be phased out by the end of 2010 as part of sweeping cuts announced Monday by General Motors as it tries to remake itself into a smaller company with fewer plants, workers and dealers. GM said it will concentrate on four U.S. brands--Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC--and...   Good-bye, Pontiac . . . or Sentimentality Sucks I realize there's little room for sentimentality in today's cutthroat world of the automotive business, especially in a recession. And I realize that the executives at General Motors are bailing water as fast as they can as their 100-plus-year-old ship is sinking. I commend them for grabbing pails...   Tough Decision This morning, General Motors announced that it has killed its Pontiac line. Reactions in the office range from "Good riddance" to "Bummer, Pontiac had some good stuff." My feelings fall somewhere in the middle: Pontiac did indeed have some good, but underappreciated, cars that sputtered in the...   DOWNSHIFT: End of the road for Pontiac GM confirmed on Monday that the end is near for Pontiac. But it's been a while since the brand had any true excitement, say Executive Editor Wes Raynal and Managing Editor Roger Hart. With Dale Jewett....   The AutoWeek list: Most significant Pontiacs ever 1964 GTO Our take: Helped establish the muscle-car craze 6000 STE Our take: An American sedan takes on the best from Europe Grand Prix Coupe Our take: Especially the '69, with the 428-cubic-inch V8 Grand Am GT Our...   NEWS BRAKE: Monday, April 27 In today's News Brake: GM slams the brakes on Pontiac and Saturn; Aston Martin's One-77 is an award winner; and Mercedes-Benz and BMW think about bringing four-cylinder engines back to the U.S. market ... But Wait, There's More!...   Aston Martin Project One-77 revealed The Aston Martin Project One-77 finally broke cover--completely--this weekend at the Concorso d'Eleganza event in Italy. It was the first total live unveiling of the car, after pictures were released and the showing of a rolling chassis at the Geneva motor show in March. It looks like what we've ...   BMW, Mercedes consider return to 4-bangers in U.S. market Facing stricter fuel economy standards, BMW and Mercedes-Benz are considering bringing four-cylinder engines back to the United States. BMW stopped offering four-cylinders in 1999 when its 318ti hatchback flopped. Mercedes-Benz had four-cylinder engines on the 2005 C230 and SLK230 but dropped...   Ferrari 250 GT wins top restoration award A vintage Ferrari was one of the show stealers at the Concorso d'Eleganza in Italy this weekend, taking home the award for top restoration. The 250 GT Coupe Pininfarina originally was shown at the 1956 Brussels motor show and competed in numerous races for the Ecurie Francorchamps team. It... You May Have Missed...   IndyCar: Scott Dixon gets back to winning in Kansas After two difficult street-circuit races, Scott Dixon was happy that an oval-track race was next on the IndyCar Series' schedule. The reigning series champion used the comfortable surroundings of Kansas Speedway to score his first victory of the season. He held off Helio Castroneves to win the...   UAW says it has accord with Chrysler, Fiat , U.S.: Canadian workers ratify their deal, Chrysler says The UAW said it reached a labor agreement with Chrysler LLC, Fiat S.p.A. and the U.S. Treasury Department. The deal will alter Chrysler's financial obligations to the union's retiree health-care plan, a concession that could allow the automaker to avoid bankruptcy. Separately, Chrysler said that ...   Formula One: Button stands on top podium for third time this year Jenson Button scored his third victory of the season on Sunday in the Bahrain Grand Prix, after overcoming an ever-stronger challenge from the opposition. Button heads to the next race in Spain with 31 points, 12 ahead of Brawn GP teammate Rubens Barrichello. Toyota dominated qualifying, as...   WRC: Loeb remains undefeated with Argentina win Frenchman Sébastien Loeb claimed his fifth win out of five rallies held so far this season, extending his lead of the World Rally Championship. The Citroën driver took the lead on the second day of the all-gravel Rally Argentina--an event that he has now won for the fifth year running--and held it...   Grand-Am: Gurney, Fogarty return to victory lane after three-month series hiatus Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty last tasted victory 10 months and four days before winning the second round of the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series season at Virginia International Raceway Saturday. Their win not only ended a winless streak for Gainsco/Bob Stallings Racing, but it marked the conclusion ...   NASCAR: Brad Keselowski wins, crash injures fans Maybe Australian driver Marcos Ambrose said it best. Racing at Talladega Superspeedway, he said Sunday afternoon, "is insanity on four wheels." And he should know. Ambrose was close behind when second-running Brad Keselowski spun leader Carl Edwards, sending Edwards flying into the frontstretch... CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

ALERT: Pontiac done by end of 2010

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Monday, April 27, 2009 Pontiac will be phased out by 2010. (GM) Pontiac is done by end of 2010 By Greg Migliore | 04/27/09, 10:13 am et Pontiac--the brand famous for the GTO, the Firebird, the Star Chief and most recently, the Solstice--is dead. It will be phased out by the end of 2010 as part of sweeping cuts announced Monday by General Motors as it tries to remake itself into a smaller company with fewer plants, workers and dealers. GM said it will concentrate on four U.S. brands--Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC--and that it expects to resolve the fates of Hummer, Saab and Saturn by the end of 2009. It also announced that it will offer stock to its debt holders in an effort to reduce its large debt load. GM warned that it expects to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy if it does not get enough tenders for the exchange by June 1, but the automaker maintained that it prefers to not have to go into bankruptcy. "The... CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek racing wrap up for April 25-26 (Warning: Spoilers inside)

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Sunday, April 26, 2009 Carl Edwards (99) got airborne at Talladega, but wasn't injured. (ACTION SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY) AutoWeek racing wrap up for April 25-26 04/26/09, 10:18 pm et It was a busy weekend of racing, stretching from the Middle East to Argentina and through to America's heartland. You may not have had the time to watch it all, so here's a wrap up of the weekend's major races--from Formula One in Bahrain, IndyCar in Kansas, NASCAR's Sprint Cup in Talladega, World Rally Championship in Argentina and Grand-Am in Virginia. It's easy to read the full story, just click on the link at the end of the summary. And you'll find reports from other series in the Racing section at www.autoweek.com/section/racing. Beware, there are spoilers here--so if you don't want to know the results, don't read any further.... CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Friday, April 24, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Friday, April 24, 2009 2010 Corvette Grand Sport... Corvette revives Grand Sport name for 2010 model The legendary Grand Sport name is being revived for the 2010 Corvette, Chevrolet said on Friday. The 2010 Grand Sport lets Corvette buyers give the two-seater a meaner look and tighter suspension without going all the way to the Z06 model. And it lets you do this with the options of an automatic transmission and folding top, if you choose. The Z06 remains a fixed-roof coupe with only a manual...   The next Porsche GT3 is the 911 for the hard-core enthusiast Engineers who developed the 2010 Porsche 911 GT3 call it "the best of all worlds" in the current 911 lineup: an unsurpassed mix of race, track-grade performance and acceptable street comfort. We'd call the GT3 the coolest and the absolute most engaging 911 to drive, and we're not suggesting the...   GM prepares to announce Pontiac closure next week General Motors may announce early next week that its Pontiac brand will be eliminated, said a source familiar with the company's plans. The announcement will be made as part of an updated viability plan to the U.S. auto task force, the source said. A second source indicated earlier this week...   DOWNSHIFT: Funny Car driver Bob Tasca III What's it like to drive an 8000-hp NHRA Funny Car dragster? Pro driver Bob Tasca III stops by our office to talk about it....   NEWS BRAKE: Friday, April 24, 2009 In today's News Brake: A grand new Corvette is coming; NASCAR heads for Vegas for awards; and Aston Martin is attacking the Nürburgring...But Wait, There's More!...   Lexus prices RX 450h hybrid ute, IS convertible Lexus announced pricing for two of its spotlight vehicles for 2010, the RX 450h hybrid ute and the IS convertible. The RX 450h will start at $42,535 for the front-wheel-drive version and $44,125 for all-wheel drive. The vehicle reaches dealers mid-summer. The IS 250C starts at $39,365, which...   IndyCar: HVM signs Nelson Philippe for Indianapolis 500 HVM Racing will field a second car in the 2009 Indianapolis 500 with former HVM Champ Car World Series driver Nelson Philippe at the wheel. The entry will be the 22-year-old Frenchman's second stint with HVM. Philippe won at Surfers Paradise in Australia and finished fourth in the Champ Car points...   IndyCar: Milka Duno to run part-time schedule for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Milka Duno will return to the IndyCar Series with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing this year and will run a part-time schedule. The Venezuelan will make her first start of the year at Kansas Speedway this weekend. "We are very excited to have Milka back with our team. We had significant momentum last...   Ford slows rate of cash burn in posting $1.4 billion net loss Ford Motor Co., the only U.S. automaker operating without federal bailout loans, burned through $3.7 billion in cash during the first quarter in posting its fourth straight quarterly loss. Ford slowed the burn rate from the fourth quarter of 2008, when cash declined by $5.5 billion. Ford... You May Have Missed...   Mini catches a wave with Airstream trailer concept Car companies are known for claiming their designs are inspired by racing or aviation themes. Mini is going in a different direction: the beach. The diminutive small-car maker has released more details on a design study that mates a modified Mini Cooper S Clubman with a 22-foot long Airstream...   The 2009 Suzuki Equator: A short stint review OUR TAKE: There are a few holes in the Suzuki lineup, and while we know that the company is busy working to fill the midsize-sedan void with whatever the Kizashi becomes, it opted for a quicker and surely cheaper solution for a pickup truck. Enter Nissan, which has plenty of production capacity in...   NASCAR moves Sprint Cup banquet to Las Vegas NASCAR is moving its end-of-season awards ceremony for the Sprint Cup series to Las Vegas. The ceremony will be held Dec. 4 at the Wynn Las Vegas hotel. The event has been held in New York City, at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, since 1981. NASCAR said the move gives it "more flexibility for... CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Thursday, April 23, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Thursday, April 23, 2009 The Lotus Exige S 260 Sport weighs 57 pounds less than the Exige S 240.... Lotus Exige S 260 Sport: Track-happy two-seater gets greater If any of us lost 57 pounds, we'd be faster, too. And more fun. Lotus took the almost-weightless Exige S 240 (2,077 pounds) and trimmed some fat to make the Exige S 260 Sport. Specifically, engineers replaced the composite front lower splitter, the front access panels at the base of the windshield, the roof, the rear engine cover, the side air intake ducts and the rear wing with identical...   Fiat makes bid to buy Opel The proposed partnership between Fiat and Chrysler has been thrown into a tailspin with revelations that the Italian carmaker has made a secret offer to purchase a majority stake in Opel. Klaus Franz, chairman of Opel's works council, on Thursday confirmed Fiat's interest in a takeover of...   Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR spied Spy shooters have caught a bit of pure eye candy--the Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR. These shots are nice and clear, showing the silver-and- black color combo. We see the familiar grille and door panels, and there's a huge wing on the back to help keep this beast from going airborne. Power comes...   Volkswagen hits back, weighs making a bid for Porsche Volkswagen is considering an audacious reverse-takeover bid for its majority shareholder, Porsche, in a twist in the drawn-out struggle for control between the two German carmakers. The Volkswagen Group's supervisory board is said to be weighing the possibility of purchasing Porsche AG, in a...   NEWS BRAKE: Thursday, April 23 In today's News Brake: We get a glmpse of the new Dodge Viper ACR; Fiat is now wooing Opel; and Lola is thinking of getting back into Formula One ... But Wait, There's More!...   Driving for a Cause: California man to cross America in '32 Ford for charity A common rite of passage is the cross-country road trip, the quintessential way for young Americans to get in touch with themselves and their country before the worries and responsibilities of life come calling. But a 59-year-old California man is blitzing the United States for a different...   Mercedes introduces special CL 500 anniversary edition This summer marks the centennial of when Daimler- Motoren-Gesellschaft and Benz & Cie separately registered their company logos in 1909. In celebration of the occasion, Mercedes has revealed a CL 500 "100 years of the trademark" anniversary edition. Daimler's was the Mercedes Star, while Benz's...   Formula One: Bahrain Grand Prix press conference Drivers Timo Glock (Toyota), Robert Kubica (BMW Sauber), Nelson Piquet (Renault) and Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari) participated in the official press conference Thursday for the Bahrain Grand Prix. Here is the transcript: Different fortunes for many of you. For three of you not a very good...   Formula One: New Codemasters video game to debut this fall for Wii and PSP, delayed for PS3, Xbox The good news: The next official Formula One video game, Formula One 2009, will debut this fall on the Nintendo Wii and Sony PSP systems. The bad news: Full-fledged, high-definition versions for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and the personal computer have been delayed until sometime in 2010....   GM plans extended shutdowns at most U.S. plants, reports say General Motors, battling a 49 percent decline in U.S. sales through March, plans extended shutdowns at most of its U.S. plants this summer, news reports said. The closings will stretch as long as nine weeks, the Associated Press reported, citing two people familiar with the plan. Bloomberg News... CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Wednesday, April 22, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Wednesday, April 22, 2009 1978 Brabham BT46B "fan car"... Crown jewels: Bernie Ecclestone reveals a portion of his Formula One car collection For many years, their existence was only rumored. It is well known that Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone has quietly amassed a personal collection of some of the sport's most significant cars. But nobody had any idea of the size and scale of the fleet--mostly because the cars were kept firmly under lock and key at Biggin Hill Airport near London, which Ecclestone also owns. But ahead of this ...   Formula One: Lola considers rejoining series Race-car constructor Lola is assessing a Formula One project following recent cost-cutting measures proposed by the FIA. The Lola Group says it has started a major project that covers a full technical, operational and financial evaluation aimed at developing a car to compete in F1. The move...   One man's idea of how to go green There are things carmakers have to say, and then there is the truth. Anyone not born with the gift of skepticism who's ever attended the Los Angeles auto show--or almost any other auto show--would leave thinking that carmakers were in the business of wrapping their big, furry, corporate arms...   NEWS BRAKE: Wednesday, April 22 In today's News Brake: Ford aims for 1,000 miles on one tank of fuel; Toyota gets aggressive with the price of the new Prius; and Lexus takes the LF-A sports car back to the track ... But Wait, There's More!...   First drive: 2010 Mercedes-Benz E350 CGI coupe We don't know about you, but Mercedes-Benz's decision to phase out the CLK after just two generations seems perplexing to us here at AutoWeek. This is a car that, in a little more than a decade, racked up almost half a million sales--a good deal of them in pre-recession North America. Reason ...   NASCAR: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Casey Mears on probation for post-race altercation After saying there would be no penalties for misbehavior, NASCAR changed its mind and placed Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Casey Mears on a six-race probation for intentionally hitting each other after last weekend's race at Phoenix International Raceway. Neither driver was fined or lost points Mears...   Maserati North American CEO Marti Eulberg resigns Maserati North America's CEO has stepped down after less than a year in charge, the company said Tuesday. Marti Eulberg, who also held the title of president, resigned to "pursue other opportunities," Maserati said in a statement. The company's global commercial director, Raffaele Fusilli, will... You May Have Missed...   Toyota Camry hybrid to pace Coca-Cola 600 Toyota continues to burnish its racing image with a Camry hybrid that will pace the 50th running of the Coca-Cola 600 on May 24 at Lowe's Motor Speedway. It will be the first time that a hybrid has been tapped to serve as the official pace car for an entire NASCAR Sprint Cup race. Pace cars must ... CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Tuesday, April 21, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Tuesday, April 21, 2009 The 2010 Toyota Prius starts at $22,750.... Toyota sets 2010 Prius price at $22,750 The redesigned 2010 Prius hybrid goes on sale in late May at a base price of $22,750, including freight. Later this year, a stripped-down base model will go on sale for $21,750, including shipping. The third-generation Prius comes with a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine producing 98 hp. The horsepower increases to 134 with the electric motor, up from a combined 110 hp for the current model....   ALMS: Audi eyes return in 2010, updates product plans for U.S. Acura shouldn't get too comfortable in the top class of the American Le Mans Series. Audi may be back full-time--perhaps as soon as 2010. The juggernaut that won the LMP1 class nine straight years since 2000 (if you include the 2002 win by a Bentley prototype that effectively was a modified Audi ...   Lexus to enter to LF-A prototypes at Nürburgring 24 hours Lexus is entering two LF-A sports-car prototypes in the 24 Hours of the Nürburgring on May 23-24. The two-seaters will draw power from a 5.0-liter, 495-hp V10 and will compete under the Gazoo Racing banner. Modifications include a roll cage, a spoiler and other aero and safety features. The car...   NEWS BRAKE: Tuesday, April 21 In today's News Brake: A very rare Ferrari goes on the auction block, and we take a spin around the Shanghai motor show ... But Wait, There's More!...   Is the V8 a dying breed? Auto engineers expect more turbos, smaller engines The V8 engine, a symbol of power and prestige for more than a century, is looking more and more like an endangered species. A panel of powertrain experts speaking on Tuesday at the 2009 SAE World Congress painted a bleak picture for big engines in this era of tightening emission standards and...   Detroit will be back, Schwarzenegger tells SAE conference Borrowing his most famous movie line, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger stepped into the heart of the domestic car industry today, declaring that the Detroit automakers will recover from the economic crisis. "Yes, they're wiped out. Yes, they're down. There are a lot of uncertainties, but...   DOWNSHIFT: Track talk Motorsports Editor Mac Morrison talks about the racing business and more with Curtis Gray, boss of Homestead-Miami Speedway--the host to three season finales in 2009....   DOWNSHIFT: Rollin' with Microsoft Are you Sync'd? A growing number of Ford owners are, thanks to a partnership with Microsoft. Velle Kolde, product manager for Microsoft Auto, chats with Managing Editor Roger Hart about how Microsoft makes Sync work for Ford and what we will be seeing in the near future. With Dale Jewett.... You May Have Missed...   PERFORMANCE PROFILE: Ford F-150 Platinum Join road test editor Natalie Neff for an in-depth look at the redesigned 2009 Ford F-150 pickup and the range-topping Platinum trim level.... CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Monday, April 20, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Monday, April 20, 2009 Rolls-Royce Ghost... Rolls-Royce revives Ghost nameplate for new sedan Rolls-Royce is reaching into its heritage for the name of the new, smaller sedan that's been known as the RR4 and the 200EX until now--the Ghost. The original Rolls-Royce Ghost was produced from 1906 to 1925, with 7,876 units built in England and Springfield, Mass. Production of the new Rolls-Royce Ghost will start this fall at the automaker's factory in Goodwood, England. The Ghost will...   Jaguar teases arrival of new XJ sedan With the launch date of the redesigned XJ sedan drawing closer, Jaguar is starting to prime the pump by releasing an overhead view of the new car. The teaser shot gives us a look at the car's glass panoramic roof. The new XJ, which we expect to get a clear look at late this summer, uses a...   The Rarest: Ferrari P4 to be auctioned next month There are rare cars, and then there are rare Ferraris. And one of the absolute rarest, a 1967 330 P4, will cross the auction block next month in Maranello. Ferrari only built three of the P4s, and they're estimated to be worth $15 million each. The car will be one of the headliners at the...   NEWS BRAKE: Monday, April 20 In today's News Brake: The weekend's racing winners, including Mark Martin and Dario Franchitti; Rolls-Royce pulls the sheet off the name for its new car; and we get a glimpse of the redesigned Jaguar XJ ... But Wait, There's More!...   Fabulous Fords go on forever at California show While the Mustang got its own celebration two days earlier on the other side of the country at Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama, on Sunday, the annual Fabulous Fords Forever show in California honored all Blue Oval creations of the last 100 years. From the Model T to the new Mustang, there...   WRC: Ford's rally future in question Although the factory-backed M-Sport team has started work on an S2000-class Fiesta--which would form the basis of the next generation of a Ford World Rally car--the company has yet to commit to spending the funds needed to develop and run the car as a factory program. If Ford quits, then M-Sport...   Driving the Nissan EV: We get seat time in a prototype We got to fling a prototype of the coming Nissan electric vehicle around the parking lot at Dodger Stadium and, like the Dodgers themselves on Opening Day, it was a winner. The prototype body was a previous-generation Cube, but the drivetrain of the car was "99 percent there," according to...   NHRA: Mike Edwards wins rain-delayed Pro Stock final It took an extra day, but that didn't seem to bother Pro Stock racer Mike Edwards as he closed out the rain-drenched Atlanta race with a Monday-morning win over points-leader Jeg Coughlin Jr. In front of mostly empty grandstands, Edwards zipped down the quarter-mile strip in 6.645 seconds at 208....   IndyCar: 40 entries for Indianapolis 500 The initial entry list for next month's Indianapolis 500 includes 40 potential cars vying for 33 starting spots, with 28 driver-and-car combinations confirmed for the 93rd running of the race scheduled for May 24 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. There are four previous winners on the list,...   Formula One: Bruno Senna still hoping to race this year Mercedes-Benz announced its 2009 drivers for the popular DTM series on April 17, and Bruno Senna--the 25-year-old nephew of the late Ayrton Senna--was not among them. Instead, the company's four newly built C-class race cars will be driven by Gary Paffett, Paul di Resta, Ralf Schumacher and Bruno...   Toyota shelves A-BAT pickup concept Toyota won't build the small, ultramodern A-BAT hybrid pickup concept that was a head-turner at the 2008 Detroit auto show and looked like a good bet for production. "We have a lot of top priorities, and A-BAT is not one of them right now," Bob Carter, Toyota Division's general manager, told the ...   With Krom line, Nissan goes wild on accessories As if the new Cube weren't accessory-oriented enough, Nissan North America also is launching a U.S. business unit that will push accessories even more. Nissan's Specialty Vehicles Group will create model variations with thousands of dollars of accessories and extra vehicle features. "Young... You May Have Missed...   IndyCar: Dario Franchitti back to winning ways in Long Beach Dario Franchitti is officially back in the IndyCar Series. The 2007 series champion and Indianapolis 500 winner returned to victory lane by capturing the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. It was just his second points race since his Sprint Cup Series team disbanded last summer. Will Power, who ...   Part 11: Going beyond the wire The call from Jeff Bolton came at 2 p.m.: Get your gear together, pack your stuff, get your "battle rattle" in hand . . . we're going outside the wire. What that really means is that Jeff has pissed more than a few people off--he went renegade--to do his job. And I can't say as I blame him; we...   NHRA: Lucas and Beckman take wins; rain delays Pro Stock final Morgan Lucas waited out rain delays on Sunday at Atlanta Dragway to score the first Top Fuel win of his five-year career, beating good friend Spencer Massey in an ugly but thrilling final round before a hearty group of die-hard fans. Almost as soon as Lucas and Funny Car winner "Fast" Jack...   Formula One: Vettel wins Chinese Grand Prix, scores Red Bull's first victory Sebastian Vettel scored a brilliant victory in a rainy Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai. It was the young German's second success in a wet race after his win for Toro Rosso in Italy last year, and it was the first for the Red Bull Racing team in its 74th attempt. Jenson Button and Brawn GP... CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Friday, April 17, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Friday, April 17, 2009 Editor and Associate Publisher Dutch Mandel chronicles his experiences on a humanitarian mission in Iraq.... Part 10: Cigars and Cars--A welcome escape for our troops You will begin to enjoy a cigar when you commit to it. I learned that line from David Haddad, owner of Fumar Cigars out of Phoenix. It's a line that works well if you substitute almost anything passion-worthy in this world. Tonight, however, the passion is cigars. Now you must...     Part 9: 58 hours--trying to fit a lifetime of learning into one visit Following morning service, we went back to the palace to continue our grand adventure. Some, it turned out, had grander adventures planned for them than did others. The military's Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) people, under whose oversight this event was orchestrated, wanted to maximize...   Helio Castroneves not guilty; will race this weekend in Long Beach IndyCar Series star and Team Penske driver Helio Castroneves was found not guilty of tax-evasion charges in federal court in Miami on Friday afternoon, and the two-time Indianapolis 500 winner is on his way to Long Beach, Calif., for this weekend's race. Castroneves's codefendants--...   America's Steed: The iconic Mustang turns 45 Few cars have the universal appeal of the Ford Mustang. Few have been as accessible yet alluring, attainable, yet powerful and still romantic. From its humble beginnings as a "secretary's car"--as Carroll Shelby once famously sneered--to the muscle-bound bruisers of today, the iconic pony car has...   Shout Out for the 'Stang: Happy 45th anniversary to the Ford Mustang Today marks the 45th anniversary of the Ford Mustang. In today's crazy car world, that's really something worth celebrating. And a whole bunch of Mustang fans are doing just that this weekend at Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama. The Mustang may just be the greatest comeback car of all time....   DOWNSHIFT: The Mustang turns 45 In today's Downshift, Managing Editor Roger Hart and Senior Editor for News Bob Gritzinger take a look at 45 years of the iconic Ford Mustang. Reporter Greg Migliore hosts....   NEWS BRAKE: Friday, April 17 In today's News Brake: Happy Birthday to the Mustang; a racing preview; and some up-close Porsche spy art ... But Wait, There's More!...   Formula One: Officials discuss possible return of Canadian Grand Prix New discussions are taking place between Canadian officials and Formula One CEO Bernie Ecclestone about a revival of the Canadian Grand Prix, according to the economic development minister of the Quebec regional government. Raymond Bachand told Montreal's CJAD radio station that almost all of...   ALMS: Rocketsports Racing to field Jaguar XKR GT2 racer this season Jaguar will return to top-level international sports-car racing in the American Le Mans Series later this season. Paul Gentilozzi's Rocketsports Racing team will join the series with an XKR GT2 racer at either Lime Rock Park or Mid-Ohio in July and August, respectively. This will be a precursor ...   IndyCar: Paul Tracy confirmed to race in Indianapolis 500 As we reported earlier this week, veteran open-wheel star Paul Tracy will return to the Indianapolis 500--and with Friday's news out of Miami, he will get another shot at beating Helio Castroneves. Tracy was denied victory in the 2002 race when Indy Racing League officials ruled that...   Volkswagen to enter natural-gas-powered Sciroccos in Nürburgring 24-hour race Hot on the heels of its historic one-two finish with diesel-powered Race Touaregs in January's Dakar Rally, Volkswagen plans to enter two natural-gas-powered Sciroccos in the Nürburgring 24 Hours in Germany on May 23-24. The Scirocco GT24-CNG 2.0-liter "EcoFuel" turbo engines deliver nearly 300...   GM's Henderson says no decision yet on bankruptcy General Motors CEO Fritz Henderson said today the company has not decided whether to file for bankruptcy protection, but that preparations continue in case such an action is necessary. "We have until June 1, and if we can't do it between now and June 1 then we do it in bankruptcy," Henderson...   EPA rules greenhouse gases pose danger; more regulation expected The EPA has proposed a finding that greenhouse gases from new vehicles and industrial plants pose a danger to the public, kicking off a process that could result in tighter regulation of carbon dioxide emissions. The EPA's findings come two years after the U.S. Supreme Court ordered the agency...   NASCAR: Jason Bowles wins development series race at Phoenix Jason Bowles (Ford) passed former NASCAR Sprint Cup regular Steve Park (Chevrolet) with six laps to go and won the Camping World West series Jimmie Johnson Foundation 150, the opening event of the NASCAR weekend at Phoenix International Raceway. Two-time series champion Eric Holmes (Toyota) was ... You May Have Missed...   Part 8: Billeting, the Saddam way When you have 41 palaces from which to choose, racking out in a Motel 6 is out of the question When we started on this adventure, there was some question, at least in my mind, as to the kind of sleeping arrangements we would enjoy. Listen, I'm a veteran Indian Guide, so camping is not alien....   DOWNSHIFT: Lapping the IndyCar Series with Ryan Briscoe IndyCar Series ace and points leader Ryan Briscoe talks with Motorsports Editor Mac Morrison ahead of the Grand Prix of Long Beach....   GM to keep GMC, Pontiac, exec says A senior General Motors executive today denied reports that President Barack Obama's automotive task force has pressured the automaker to dump GMC and Pontiac. Company sales chief Mark LaNeve also denied rumors that GM plans to terminate the franchise agreements of poorly performing dealers...   CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

ALERT: Helio Castroneves found not guilty on all charges

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Friday, April 17, 2009 Helio Castroneves was found not guilty on all charges in his tax-evasion case. (LAT PHOTOGRAPHIC) Helio Castroneves found not guilty on all charges in tax-evasion case 04/17/09, 2:34 pm et AutoWeek's reporter in Long Beach, Calif., for this weekend's IndyCar Grand Prix just received a call from Team Penske's Helio Castroneves. The news: the driver was just found not guilty of tax-evasion charges in federal court in Miami. Castroneves's codefendants--sister/manager, Kati, 35, and attorney Alan Miller, 71--also were cleared of all tax-evasion charges. Miller also was acquitted of a conspiracy charge, while the jury was hung on single conspiracy charges against both Castroneves and his sister. More reaction and news to come.... CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Thursday, April 16, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Thursday, April 16, 2009 Editor and Associate Publisher Dutch Mandel chronicles his experiences on a humanitarian mission in Iraq.... Part 7: The Magic Box: How one cardboard box can change the world We all need symbols in our life, and for Operation Iraqi Children's 2009 spring effort, it is the Magic Box. The box itself is nothing special. It's made of cardboard and is brown; it looks like almost every other box you might find at a U-Haul or a grocery store. It is not the box that makes ...     Ron Dennis steps down as McLaren Racing CEO, to lead spin-off supercar business Longtime McLaren boss Ron Dennis has given up all Formula One duties amid a lying scandal that's engulfed his team. He will lead a new spin-off business that plans to build supercars. The move ends the 61-year-old Dennis's nearly 30-year run at or near the top of McLaren. He said Thursday that...   Race of Champions moves to Beijing's "Bird Nest" stadium The Race of Champions--the annual end-of-season all-star motorsports battle--will become the first major international sports event to be staged at China's national stadium since the 2008 Summer Olympics when it takes place on Nov. 3-4, 2009. The "Bird's Nest" stadium will host the event, which...   NEWS BRAKE: Thursday, April 16, 2009 In today's News Brake: The latest on Ron Dennis and McLaren; GM's brand shuffle; and the Race of Champions moves again...But Wait, There's More!...   2009 Chevrolet Tahoe hybrid: a short stint review OUR TAKE: Nice to see GM took two of the thousand "hybrid" labels off the truck, removing the huge lettering from the bottom of the doors. Makes the truck look much better. That said, little has changed from 2008 to 2009 that we can tell. The price is up about a grand from the last one we ...   UAW, Fiat likely to hold key stakes in new Chrysler The UAW and Italy's Fiat S.p.A. could be Chrysler LLC's leading shareholders if the struggling U.S. automaker wins the concessions requested by President Barack Obama's automotive task force by April 30, a source close to negotiations told Automotive News today. Stakes held by Chrysler's ... You May Have Missed...   2009 Toyota Venza: a short stint review OUR TAKE: The Venza is a pleasant surprise. We've always been fans of station-wagon utility, the sort that doesn't force you to compromise by having to drive a truck. The same applies here: The trunk easily swallowed up all the goodies from a once-a-month shopping spree at the local...   No verdict yet in Helio Castroneves tax-evasion trial Embattled IndyCar Series star Helio Castroneves will have to wait at least one more day to learn the outcome of his federal tax-evasion trial, as jurors at the U.S. District Court in Miami went home for the day Wednesday--their fourth day of deliberations--without reaching a verdict. The...   CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Wednesday, April 15, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Wednesday, April 15, 2009 Editor and Associate Publisher Dutch Mandel chronicles his experiences on a humanitarian mission in Iraq.... Part 5: Going into Baghdad We had to wait until dark to load into the C17 cargo vessel, for safety and security reasons. Apparently it's more difficult for the bad guys to spot the plane and lock on their targets at night. Fitted with body armor and helmets, we were escorted onto the cargo plane and asked to sit down. The ...     Part 6: Skip Barber steps up in a big way The thing that bugs me about insurance companies or government functionaries who control such things is that they do not believe in their collective hearts that hands-on drivers' training is effective in minimizing road-going fatalities. Why do I say this? Because were it true, if they did...   Investor group wants to buy Saturn, sell overseas brands An investor group called Telesto Ventures says it wants to acquire Saturn's retail operations and provide dealers with vehicles from General Motors through 2011 and mostly overseas manufacturers thereafter. A GM spokesman said today the group's proposal is legitimate and "very interesting....   Jury still deliberating; defense wants mistrial in Castroneves tax-evasion case Jury deliberations in Helio Castroneves's federal tax-evasion trial in Miami moved into a fourth day Wednesday as the 12-member group wrestled with the complicated laws. The jury asked three questions of the U.S. District Court on Tuesday, leading Judge Daniel Graham to bring them in for...   NEWS BRAKE: Wednesday, April 15, 2009 In today's News Brake: The FIA rules on the controversial new diffusers; the new Aston Martin Rapide breaks cover; and a Chrysler-Fiat update...But Wait, There's More!...   Mercedes adds AMG Sports package for S-class and CL-class For S-class and CL-class shoppers who want aggressive AMG looks--but don't want or can't afford to pony up for the full-fledged AMG versions--Mercedes has announced just the thing for them. Starting in June for Europe, Mercedes will offer an AMG Sports package for both the S-class and CL-class...   FIA rules 'double-decker' rear diffusers legal, results from first two races stand The FIA's International Court of Appeal has ruled rear diffusers used by the Brawn GP, Toyota and Williams Formula One teams complied with regulations--and results from the season-opening Australian and Malaysian grands prix stand. BMW Sauber, Ferrari, Red Bull and Renault had filed protests...   Motorcycles to appear at Pebble Beach concours for first time Motorcycles will grace the 18th fairway at Pebble Beach for the first time in the storied 59-year history of the concours. And these aren't just any bikes. Organizers are expecting some of the rarest and most valuable two-wheelers to take their place alongside the classic Ferraris, Bentleys and...   Spending Money I doubt that the waitresses at Papa Rocco's cared that the tips we left on the table at their Gulf Shores, Ala., oyster and pizza bar came from money we earned in Michigan. Ditto for the proceeds from our visit to the world-famous Flora-Bama roadhouse on the Florida-Alabama state line. And I'm sure ...   PERFORMANCE PROFILE: Audi TTS Jump in for a ride in the Audi TTS. It is speed and good lucks rolled into a nifty package....   Fiat says it could abandon Chrysler due to unions Fiat S.p.A. CEO Sergio Marchionne said he is ready to abandon plans to form a partnership with Chrysler LLC unless the U.S. carmaker's unions accept substantial labor cost reductions by the end of the month. In an interview with a Canadian newspaper, Marchionne confirmed he could become... You May Have Missed...   DOWNSHIFT: The Long Beach Grand Prix AutoWeek's Pete Lyons catches up with Jim Michaelian, CEO of the Grand Prix Association of Long Beach, in advance of the race's 35th running....   2010 Audi Q7 to bow at Shanghai motor show The redone Audi Q7 will bow at the Shanghai motor show this month, with slight interior and exterior freshenings. It launches this fall as a 2010 model. The Q7 gets a new lighting design, LED running lights and chrome touches on the bumpers, door panels and handles, as well as new wheel designs. ...   CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Insider’s Special – 3 months of racing for $25

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AutoWeek Daily Drive — Tuesday, April 14, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Tuesday, April 14, 2009 Shown here is Mario Andretti aboard the Lotus he drove to his racemaking win in 1977 at Long Beach. Standing... Long Beach Still Alive at 35: Credit Mario, Little Al and a will-do attitude Something special is going down this weekend: Long Beach holds its 35th Grand Prix. The California seaside city first ran an auto race through its streets (with Formula 5000 single-seaters) in September 1975. But even after the second GP featured Formula 1 the following March, promoter Chris...     Part 3: Bahrain, a welcome port in a storm The country of Bahrain has chosen a hard path. Nestled hard near the heart of the Middle East conflict, it is a country that understands and recognizes the many benefits the Western world has to offer, yet must somehow reconcile that with its desert brothers. The choices and the factions don't make ...   Part 4: Kuwait City--Now this is getting serious The hop from Bahrain to Kuwait City was not all that great, but it was long enough for some to take naps and for others to give a final consideration to what was about to go on in their world. It wasn't until landing that consideration resonated with everyone. Like the airstrip in Bahrain,...   Aston Martin Rapide revealed in production form It's perhaps anticlimactic when a production car stays true to an eye-catching concept--except when it's an Aston Martin. And the Rapide revealed today is a dead ringer for the stunning show car from 2006. Aston Martin released the first official picture of the Rapide and confirmed that it will...   The AutoWeek List: 10 car features we could live without 1. Mini Cooper Convertible Openometer What: Records time spent traveling with the roof down. Cost: Standard Our Take: We can't remember the last time we were in a convertible and wondered exactly how long we drove with the top down. 2. Maybach Zeppelin Perfume...   NEWS BRAKE: Tuesday, April 14, 2009 In today's News Brake: The safety of small cars isn't great; the Ford Explorer is spied for 2011; and more electric cars, too...But Wait, There's More!...   Minicars perform poorly in crash tests, study says Minicars made by Toyota, Honda and Daimler AG did poorly on frontal crash tests with mid-sized automobiles, prompting an influential safety organization to suggest consumers consider buying larger cars that have comparable fuel economy. The Toyota Yaris, Honda Fit and Smart ForTwo all collapsed...   NASCAR: Jim France retiring, Kentucky race unlikely, more notes Jim France, grandson of NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. and brother of the late Bill France Jr., will retire as CEO of International Speedway Corp. on June 1. His niece, Lesa France Kennedy, will succeed him, but he will remain as ISC's chairman of the board. John Saunders, executive vice... You May Have Missed...   GM recalls 1.5 million vehicles for oil leak General Motors is recalling nearly 1.5 million Buick, Chevrolet, Oldsmobile and Pontiac mid-sized cars equipped with a 3.8-liter engine because an oil leak could start an engine fire. Under hard braking, engine oil could leak past a heat shield and drip on the exhaust manifold. The National...   CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Monday, April 13, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Monday, April 13, 2009 Editor and Associate Publisher Dutch Mandel chronicles his experiences on a humanitarian mission in Iraq.... Operation Iraqi Children: A car guy spreads hope and cheer This is from the Now It Can Be Told Department. It can be told partly because of security and partly because of kismet. See, when you get a chance to go to Iraq to support the troops and the children of a devastated country with a humanitarian mission, more often than not, something is going to get ...     Part 2: The who behind Operation Iraqi Children There would not be this trip of a lifetime were it not for the deep hearts and never-ending efforts of some extraordinary people. Operation Iraqi Children is a grassroots program founded in early 2004 by actor Gary Sinise and author Laura Hillenbrand. Sinise and Hillenbrand created OIC to give...   Paul Tracy to race in Indianapolis 500 for KV Racing Technology More than a few open-wheel racing fans have been waiting patiently for his return to action, and now Paul Tracy has a deal to return to the Indianapolis 500, although a formal announcement might not come before Friday at the Grand Prix of Long Beach. Barring a last-minute hitch in plans, the 40-...   Mini Crossman spied at the Nürburgring Today we're getting crystal-clear shots of the 2011 Mini Crossman, which was spied again during testing. Spy shooters nabbed the new mini mite on the famed Nürburgring in Germany. As with earlier shots, the car is heavily clad in crazy yellow-and-black camo, but it's unmistakably the new four-...   NEWS BRAKE: Monday, April 13, 2009 In today's News Brake: We spy on the new Mini Crossman; an update on Chrysler and Fiat; and a hot lap through NASCAR...But Wait, There's More!...   Mercedes' GLK problem: Too many high-end models in the U.S. Mercedes-Benz has adjusted option packages on its new GLK-class premium SUV to help cope with an oversupply of high-priced versions. Ernst Lieb, CEO of Mercedes-Benz USA, said the company exported too many high-end models for the January U.S. launch. "We planned production in June and July of ...   Chrysler-Fiat deal would spawn new look for U.S. automaker As Chrysler LLC negotiates an alliance with Fiat S.p.A. that would satisfy the Obama administration, sources say the companies are discussing a revised ownership structure, a new board and possibly a different management team for Chrysler. Among the options being discussed is a direct role in... You May Have Missed...   NASCAR: Joey Logano beats Kyle Busch at Nashville Joey Logano did what many thought couldn't be done Saturday afternoon: He beat teammate Kyle Busch in a late-race sprint to the finish of the Pepsi Nationwide Series 300 at Nashville Superspeedway. In almost every such situation in recent years, Busch has won these late-race sprints. But Logano...   CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Friday, April 10, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Friday, April 10, 2009 On two miles of straight, level pavement at the site of an all-but-abandoned Florida airport, supercars such... Can't drive 55? We go 200 mph, and you can, too--maybe One of the few animals you don't expect to see in the middle of the Everglades is a white elephant, but there it is. A couple of miles north of U.S. Highway 41, between Miami and Naples, Fla., you'll find the Everglades Jetport. Forty years ago, the Jetport was destined to be the biggest airport ...     Ford Fiesta sedan for U.S. market gets minor changes Ford is busy courting the youth population as potential buyers for the new Fiesta--it has brought 100 Fiesta five-doors over from Europe and loaned them to people for extended test drives. Meanwhile, engineers are putting the final touches on the Fiesta for the United States. Some of those...   Ex Ford, Mazda designer to head styling at Renault Former Ford Motor and Mazda designer Laurens van den Acker will succeed Patrick le Quement as head of design at French automaker Renault. Van den Acker, 43, quit as head of design at Mazda earlier this month. He will join Renault on May 15 and assume le Quement's full responsibilities starting...   NEWS BRAKE: Friday, April 10 In today's News Brake: Uncle Sam goes on a buying spree for new cars; we take one last lap around the New York auto show and check out the Mitsubishi Outlander GT Prototype, Kia Forte Koup and Mercedes-Benz E230 diesel; and check out the new autoweek.com!...   Hot diesel: Porsche drops an oil burner into the Cayenne For years, rumors suggested that Porsche would drop a diesel into the Cayenne. It seemed obvious. European Volkswagen Touaregs and Audi Q7s offer diesel, and all three share underpinnings and are assembled at the same plant in Bratislava, Slovenia, so why not the Cayenne? Porsche chairman...   Audi's new A5/S5 convertibles are a bunch of softies When Audi's line of A5 and S5 convertibles hits these shores in October, they will feature something most other luxury cabriolets don't have: an old-fashioned soft top. Competing luxury marques, such as BMW, Lexus, Mercedes-Benz and Volvo, say their customers want the safety and security of a...   U.S. Mitsubishi dealers will get electric vehicles Mitsubishi Motor Corp. will introduce a small electric car to sell at its U.S. dealerships. The model, a Japan-built ultra-compact with a 330-volt lithium-ion battery, is currently being road-tested in Oregon. Mitsubishi plans to begin marketing the car in Japan in July, and to introduce the car ... You May Have Missed...   New York auto show: Mercedes sketches out SLS details The next Mercedes-Benz supercar, the SLS AMG, is slowly being revealed, and the interior and some sleek sketches were shown this week in New York. The SLS draws heavily on the styling cues of the great Mercedeses from the 1950s, with a bold grille, crisp lines and, of course, gullwing doors....   CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Thursday, April 9, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Thursday, April 09, 2009 The Hyundai Nuvis concept has gullwing doors and a hybrid powertrain.... Hyundai introduces Nuvis hybrid concept at New York show Hyundai rolled out the Nuvis, the 11th concept car from its California Design Center in Irvine, at the New York auto show. Representing a possible design direction for the company's future crossovers, the Nuvis is described by Hyundai as a combination of a tall urban car and a premium utility...     New York auto show: Mitsubishi adds a lot of Evo for Outlander GT concept Mitsubishi has given a clear hint to what its next-generation Outlander crossover will look like with the GT Prototype that debuted at the New York auto show. With plenty of inspiration from the Lancer line, the Outlander GT wears a jet-fighter-style grille. Evolution influences are present in...   New York auto show: Kia introduces sporty Forte Koup Kia is continuing its major styling overhaul with the introduction of the 2010 Forte Koup at the New York auto show. Based on the Koup concept car that was shown at last year's New York show, the Forte Koup shares the grille treatment and stretched-back headlights with the already introduced...   New York auto show: 2010 Subaru Outback grows bigger, bolder Subaru is truly playing to its go-everywhere, do-everything, "let's-bring-the-kayak" base with the redone 2010 Outback revealed at the New York auto show. Ground clearance is improved by 8.7 inches (as if you were planning to stay on surface streets); a new roof rack swings open for utility but...   NEWS BRAKE: Thursday, April 9 In today's News Brake: Hyundai rolls out the Nuvis hybrid concept in New York; GM has three bidders for Hummer; and Mercedes gives us a new look at the SLS ... But Wait, There's More!...   Mercedes hints at small diesel for E-class at New York auto show In the biggest hint yet that it intends to introduce four-cylinder diesel power to its North American lineup, Mercedes-Benz unveiled a new E250 Bluetec concept at the New York auto show. The new car is based on the E250 CDI sedan set to go on sale in Europe next month, albeit with two major...   DOWNSHIFT: Taking a bite of the Big Apple Watching from Detroit, the AutoWeek editors run down the production car and concept debuts at the New York auto show. We love some, we hate some. Comments from Wes Raynal, Greg Migliore and Jonathan Wong. With Dale Jewett....   Chrysler's V6 simplicity debuts in Grand Cherokee The 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee will be the first Chrysler LLC vehicle to feature the company's new Pentastar V6 engine. The new engine greatly simplifies Chrysler's powertrain offerings and helps the company save money by improving economies of scale. The redesigned Grand Cherokee will appear in...   PERFORMANCE PROFILE: Ford Mustang GT Join us for an up-close, tire-smoking look at the 2010 Ford Mustang GT....   Le Mans: Audi R15 under protest from rivals The Automobile Club de l'Ouest--organizer of the 24 Hours of Le Mans--is about to issue a clarification on the eligibility of the Audi R15 TDI prototype that recently won the 12 Hours of Sebring. The ACO, which also sets the rules for the American Le Mans Series, has promised to act swiftly in...   IndyCar: Scott Sharp to participate in Indy 500 for Panther Racing American Le Mans Series driver Scott Sharp is switching gears and will participate in next month's Indianapolis 500. The cochampion of the Indy Racing League's first season, in 1996, will team with Dan Wheldon at Panther Racing. Sharp will drive the Patrón Tequila-sponsored No. 16 car. Sharp,...   NASCAR: Earnhardt Ganassi shuts down Almirola's team Earnhardt Ganassi Racing has pulled the plug on its No. 8 Chevrolet team with driver Aric Almirola. The team began the season knowing it probably wouldn't go beyond the Samsung 500 at Texas Motor Speedway unless it found adequate sponsorship. When that didn't happen, a handful of crewmen were... You May Have Missed...   BMW's iconic Art Cars visit New York's Grand Central Station New Yorkers were treated to a free exhibition of four of BMW's most famous Art Cars, which were part of a display in Grand Central Station last week. Over the years, leading artists have been commissioned to paint whatever they wish on a car and many have accepted, from Alexander Calder to David...   New York auto show: Eye-popping Ferrari 599s hit North America The new pictures of the latest version of the Ferrari 599 make it crystal clear why Ferrari added a couple of Xs to the name: It's one of the most heart-pumping models in recent memory from the Prancing Horse--or any other carmaker. The 599XX and the 599 GTB Fiorano with the Handling GTE package ...   CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Wednesday, April 8, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Wednesday, April 08, 2009 The 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee switches to a platform shared with the Mercedes-Benz M-class.... Redesigned 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee arrives for New York auto show Jeep is pulling out all the stops for the redesigned 2011 Grand Cherokee. Jeep is promising improvements to on-road comfort, interior accommodations and off-road prowess. On-road refinements begin with a new independent suspension system in both front and rear, which does away with the live axle ...     New York auto show: Acura debuts ZDX four-door sports coupe Acura is the latest carmaker attempting to redefine the coupe with the debut of the ZDX prototype at the New York auto show. Serving as a precursor to a production model, the four-door ZDX prototype stretches nearly two inches longer than the MDX, but it stands three inches shorter than the RDX....   GM bringing direct injection technology to mainstream models Direct injection, a highly precise fuel saving technology, will be standard on the new GMC Terrain small SUV, General Motors plans to announce today at the New York Auto Show. GM has been adding the advanced fuel injection system to most of its newly introduced performance and luxury vehicles....   C'mon, Pelosi, give me a break! So much paper and ink and bits and bytes have been wasted writing about the Obama administration firing General Motors boss Rick Wagoner. Whether or not you think Wagoner deserved it is beside the point. And that level of government intervention into business making you queasy doesn't really matter,...   NEWS BRAKE: Wednesday, April 8 In today's News Brake: Jeep and Land Rover bust out new SUVs at the New York auto show; Helio Castroneves's trial nears its end; and Nissan rolls out the 370Z roadster and NISMO coupe in the Big Apple ... But Wait, There's More!...   DOWNSHIFT: The Formla One circus, so far Formula One correspondent Adam Cooper talks with Motorsports Editor Mac Morrison about the season's first two races, and the messy situation with McLaren and Lewis Hamilton....   Honda shows Dog Friendly Element concept at New York auto show When Honda revealed the WOW (Wonderful Open-hearted Wagon) concept car at the 2005 Tokyo motor show, the response from dog owners was overwhelming. Features such as the dedicated dog ventilation ducts, an open cabin and an in-dash compartment to hold small dogs resonated with the dog-loving public....   New York auto show: Scion shows micro-subcompact iQ concept Following the spy photos that our shooters captured last week, Scion has officially introduced the iQ concept at the New York auto show. For the show car, Scion tapped Five Axis of Huntington Beach, Calif., to put a customized spin on the iQ. A larger air dam dresses the front along with LED...   Updated 2010 Mazda CX-9 uncovered at New York auto show An updated 2010 Mazda CX-9 debuts at the New York auto show with exterior and interior styling revisions and an updated features list. Exterior revisions include a front fascia with a new five-point grille that has been employed on the RX-8, the MX-5 and the Mazda 3. Joining the grille are new...   Mazda stages U.S. debut of 2010 CX-7 at New York auto show Following a quiet world debut at February's Canadian International Auto Show in Toronto, Mazda holds the U.S. introduction of the 2010 CX-7 at the New York auto show. The big news for Mazda's midsize crossover is the addition of a new entry-level version featuring a 2.5-liter naturally aspirated ...   The Little Car Show that could, and has, for 29 years With $5-a-gallon gas a not-too-distant memory, with increasingly higher CAFÉ standards in the works, and with various automotive "experts" all claiming that the world needs more efficient cars, it seemed entirely appropriate to go looking for some cars that knew their way around a gallon of fuel....   DOWNSHIFT: Cadillac resets the SRX Cadillac has overhauled the SRX, transforming it from a jacked-up station wagon into a crossover vehicle with a pair of stout V6 powertrains. Web reporter Greg Migliore talks about spending some time behind the wheel of some SRX prototypes. With Dale Jewett....   Driving costs hold steady for 2009, AAA reports Despite a staggering dip in fuel prices, driving costs just as much as it did a year ago. The average cost of operating a new sedan in the United States remains at 54 cents a mile for a new sedan driven 15,000 miles a year, AAA reports. That's one-tenth of a penny less than in 2008--a...   Karmann files for insolvency Karmann, the century-old German coachbuilder synonymous with cabrios and the famous 1950s Karmann Ghia, has filed for insolvency. The company made the move Wednesday in Germany in response to a dramatic decline in revenue and an inability to pay for its massive layoff plan, according to... You May Have Missed...   Land Rover rolls out retooled lineup at New York auto show Land Rover went through a golden period a few years back and knocked out three vital new models in double-time in a significant range expansion. Now those models--the Range Rover, the Range Rover Sport and the LR3--are in line for major midlife upgrades and are being revealed at the New York auto...   IndyCar: Castroneves's tax-evasion trial winds down Testimony is over in the tax-evasion trial of Helio Castroneves, with closing arguments set for Thursday in U.S. District Court in Miami. The Internal Revenue Service says the IndyCar Series driver owes more than $2.3 million in taxes for failing to report and conspiring to evade payment on more ...   Roadster, NISMO models fill out Nissan 370Z lineup at New York auto show The overhaul of the Nissan 370Z lineup is complete with the debut of the roadster and NISMO models at the New York auto show. Like the coupe, the 370Z roadster moves to a heavily revised platform with a shortened wheelbase and improved rigidity. To make up for the lost structural properties of a ...   CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Tuesday, April 7, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Tuesday, April 07, 2009 GM developed the Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility concept in a joint effort with Segway.... General Motors reveals two-wheel PUMA electric-vehicle prototype It's based on the same driving principles as a skateboard. It looks like a phone booth, or perhaps a baby stroller. But despite the unconventional nature of this vehicle, General Motors says a two-seat, two-wheel ride called PUMA could be a solution to ease congestion in crowded urban areas....     Formula One: FIA summons McLaren to answer for Australia antics In what is fast becoming a recurring theme in Formula One, the FIA has summoned the McLaren-Mercedes team to appear before the body on April 29 to address the situation that saw Lewis Hamilton excluded from the results of the season-opening Australian Grand Prix. Hamilton was disqualified from...   Humanitarian mission for returning vets If you subscribe to the idea that goodwill begins at home, then we do a disservice to returning servicemen and servicewomen who die behind the wheel of a car or riding a motorcycle. Veterans lose their lives this way at a disproportionately higher rate than other Americans. It comes following...   NEWS BRAKE: Tuesday, April 7 In today's News Brake: GM and Segway team up for the PUMA; Nissan drops a preview of the 370Z roadster; and the U.S. gets the cold shoulder from VW on the Scirocco ... But Wait, There's More!...   BMW X1 spied at Nurburgring BMW is hard at work on its new small SUV, the X1, and spy shooters have caught it during testing at Germany's famed Nürburgring. No word on how fast this JV ute is running the 'Ring, but it looks like the concept seen last fall at the Paris motor show--which was fairly close to production guise....   Infiniti's new G37 drop-top has distinct appeal We're cruising through Beverly Hills, Calif., in the new 2009 Infiniti G37 convertible, top down, sunny day, following a beautiful Ferrari 360 Modena. Up next to us pulls a 40-ish woman with hair so orange it could be on a traffic cone. She is driving a ratty '90s Celica GT convertible, also with...   Street-racing stupidity: A column by Cory Farley Whispering toward Sacramento the other day at 70 mph, I was rocked by a Honda Accord passing at 110. That's a guess. He was going a lot faster than I was, though. I held my course. If you're going to be a chicane, be a predictable one. A blink later, a Subaru WRX slammed past and pulled away... You May Have Missed...   Cadillac SRX is resized, repurposed to battle import luxury crossovers If you could pick one vehicle to serve as a metaphor for what General Motors is trying to do to make itself leaner, meaner and better positioned to fight off foreign competitors, it's the 2010 Cadillac SRX. That confused wagon as you knew it is gone. In its place is a pure crossover. It's...   CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Monday, April 6, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Monday, April 06, 2009 2010 Shelby GT500... Ford Mustang Shelby GT500: A charming snake A critical point in the development of the new, all-conquering Shelby GT500 came when the development team realized that their monstrous-huge air intake had to be positioned on the right side of the grille. This meant that the Cobra snake emblem, which had been riding on the left side before, would ...     Porsche Panamera designer focused on rear-seat passengers There's no mistaking it for anything but a Porsche, but with four doors and four full seats, the Panamera is like no previous Porsche. Styled by a team of in-house designers under the direction of Michael Mauer, the Panamera is 195.7 inches long, 76.0 inches wide and 55.8 inches tall--making it ...   Ford considers bringing 305-hp Focus to U.S. market Ford may add a 300-plus-hp Focus to its U.S. lineup. The Focus RS, a three-door hatchback sold in Europe, is powered by a turbocharged 2.5-liter five-cylinder Volvo engine with 305 hp. Hermann Salenbauch, Ford Motor Co.'s director of advanced product creation and global performance, says the...   NEWS BRAKE: Monday, April 6 In today's News Brake: BMW gives its sport utes the M treatment; it was a busy weekend at racetracks around the world; and Ford considers a new hot hatch for the U.S. market ... But Wait, There's More!...   FIA president Mosley wants a 'world engine' that fits various racing series The race is on to produce a single engine platform capable of sustaining Formula One and the World Rally Championship, and perhaps the IndyCar Series as well--along with their respective supporting series--FIA president Max Mosley announced over the weekend at the WRC Rally de Portugal. "We're...   Classic Car Club founder, Packard enthusiast dies at 82 The Packard world has lost one of its most avid enthusiasts. Robert Turnquist, a longtime fan of the luxury marque and one of America's early car collectors, died April 4 at the age of 82. Turnquist helped develop collecting from its formative years into the expansive business it is today. He... You May Have Missed...   Formula One: Button wins again as rain washes out Malaysia Grand Prix Jenson Button made it two wins in two races when he won a spectacular rain-shortened Malaysian Grand Prix. A rainstorm caused the race to be red-flagged, and in the end, there was not enough time or daylight left to allow it to continue. Button found out that he was the winner while sitting in the...   NHRA: Schumacher continues his Top Fuel dominance in Las Vegas Six-time and reigning Top Fuel champion Tony Schumacher silenced the last of his detractors Sunday in Las Vegas, winning his second race in a row and moving into the Full Throttle points lead despite having a new race team this year. Schumacher's 58th win extended his class record and proved to...   NASCAR: Jeff Gordon ends winless streak with victory in Texas It had been 47 races since four-time champion Jeff Gordon won a points-paying NASCAR race. During that slump--dating from Lowe's Motor Speedway in fall 2007--Gordon had (by his memory) plenty of chances to win. But when career victory No. 82 finally came on Sunday, winning felt like a brand-new...   IndyCar: Ryan Briscoe gets strong start with St. Petersburg win Ryan Briscoe took his first step toward winning the IndyCar Series championship on Sunday by winning the season-opening Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in Florida. The Team Penske driver used a nifty late-race restart pass on race dominator Justin Wilson of Dale Coyne Racing to secure the...   WRC: Sebastien Loeb wins again as Subarus, Fords trail in Portugal Sébastien Loeb uttered the words few wanted to hear, just before the start of this weekend's Rally de Portugal: A clean sweep of wins in all 12 events on the 2009 World Rally Championship schedule is possible. He then set off in his Citroën C4 and won this, the fourth round of the year, to...   CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Friday, April 3, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Friday, April 03, 2009 The original gang is back in the new Fast & Furious movie.... Don't blink: Mark Vaughn's review of Fast & Furious Dude! Oh man, there were, like, so totally many gnarly stylin' cars like that righteous blue JDM R34 and an S15 Silvia that's totally JDM and all those big muscle cars from ancient times, like about the same time as the Model T or something and stuff, and them dudes from the first movie--like that Paul Walker dude that all the babes think is so totally dreamy an' all, and that bald dude, Vin...   Ford retools Transit Connect van for families at New York auto show Ford has lauded the small-business functionality of its Transit Connect van, but it is now turning its attention to pleasing families. With feedback from 200 families, Ford designers created the Transit Connect Family One in an attempt to provide the ultimate family carrier. Set to debut at...   New York auto show: Mitsubishi Outlander GT Prototype breaks cover Mitsubishi has revealed pictures of a sport version of its Outlander crossover, called the GT Prototype, ahead of its live unveiling at the New York auto show next week. The ute is laden with a number of technologies, including an idle feature that shifts the transmission into neutral when it's...   NEWS BRAKE: Friday, April 3 In today's News Brake: Mitsubishi gives a preview of the Outlander GT; a McLaren team member gets a vacation related to last weekend's Formula One mess; and AutoWeek supremo Dutch Mandel has a few thoughts on the Final Four ... But Wait, There's More!...   Formula One: Hamilton apologizes, blames suspended team member Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton apologized to the FIA, the media and his fans in the aftermath of his disqualification from the Australian Grand Prix results for deliberately misleading race stewards who looked into the events that led to Toyota's Jarno Trulli passing Hamilton behind the...   Formula One: McLaren suspends sporting director for Australian Grand Prix flap The McLaren-Mercedes Formula One team has suspended its sporting director, Dave Ryan, for his role in the Australian Grand Prix debacle that resulted in Lewis Hamilton being disqualified from the race. Hamilton was thrown out of the race results after the FIA determined that both team and driver ...   IndyCar Hot Wheels race into stores IndyCar-themed Hot Wheels will be hitting stores this month. The Indy Racing League and Mattel Inc., the maker of Hot Wheels, have agreed on a four-year deal that will produce a lineup of toy cars featuring teams and drivers. A 1:64-scale Hot Wheel is $4.99, with a 1:24 version that costs $24....   NASCAR: Kyle Busch takes pole for Texas Nationwide race Toyota driver Kyle Busch won the pole in Thursday-night qualifying for Saturday afternoon's O'Reilly Auto Parts Nationwide Series 300 at Texas Motor Speedway. His best lap of 28.68 seconds (188.252 mph) beat the 28.72-second, 188.055-mph lap of Ford driver Matt Kenseth. They were the only drivers... You May Have Missed...   Suzuki sedan heads for December introduction in the United States It's been awhile since we've shown you some spy art of Suzuki's upcoming sport sedan foreshadowed by the Kizashi concepts. But we got a fresh look at the car on Thursday--with the "spy" art helpfully provided by Suzuki. It was attached to a "save the date" e-mail to members of the North American ...   Steve Saleen says he will honor old Saleen warranties Steve Saleen said Thursday that he will honor the warranties on some of the products that bear his name--a month after the new owners of his former company said they wouldn't accept the older claims. Saleen said he'll honor warranty claims on products purchased up to Feb. 2, 2009, under the...   Chevrolet Volt remains on track, but electric grid still poses challenges Despite General Motors' looming troubles, development of the Chevrolet Volt rolls on, and 80 new prototypes will be built and tested starting this summer. GM has been testing versions of the Volt for about a year, and now it's about to move beyond the "mule," or more basic stage of prototypes.... CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

AutoWeek Daily Drive — Thursday, April 2, 2009

HOME   |   LATEST NEWS   |   VEHICLE REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CLASSIFIEDS Thursday, April 02, 2009 A prototype of the Aston Martin Rapide.... Aston Martin Rapide prototype stretches its legs at Nürburgring Aston Martin caught our eye with the Rapide concept at the 2006 Detroit auto show. But the project slid to the back burner as then-owner Ford Motor Co. couldn't fund development of the car. When Aston Martin was sold to Prodrive owner Dave Richards and investors from the Middle East in 2007, one of the new management's first moves was to pull the Rapide off the shelf. Now, a prototype has been ...   Le Mans: Porsche drivers switch to Audi for June endurance race Romain Dumas and Timo Bernhard, winners of nine American Le Mans Series races with Porsche, have been loaned to Audi for this year's 24 Hours of Le Mans. Dumas and Bernhard are the final signings for the Joest-run factory Audi team's three-car lineup for the French endurance race in June. The...   Formula One: Hamilton disqualified from Australian GP for lying After meeting with Lewis Hamilton in Malaysia ahead of this weekend's Formula One Grand Prix, the FIA has excluded the defending Formula One world champion from the results of last weekend's season-opening Australian Grand Prix--and not, directly, for an on-track incident. The FIA determined...   Toyota to slash new Prius price to match Honda Insight Toyota Motor Corp. is going for the jugular with its redesigned Prius, setting a 2.05 million yen starting price ($20,750) in Japan that is on par with the newly released Honda Insight. Toyota notified Japanese dealers of the cutthroat pricing policy for its redesigned 1.8-liter gasoline-...   NEWS BRAKE: Thursday, April 2 In today's News Brake: General Motors seeks $2.6 billion to spread the Volt powertrain technology around; Kia rolls out a new sedan and a Sorrento replacement; and Lewis Hamilton gets busted for lying to the FIA stewards ... But Wait, There's More!...   PERFORMANCE PROFILE: Chevrolet Silverado Hybrid We spent some time driving the Chevrolet Silverado Hybrid, which uses the GM Two-Mode hybrid system. Is this a greener pickup? Watch to find out....   Audi R8 GT3 car to debut this weekend at Nürburgring The new Audi R8 GT3 race car will make its competition debut at the Nürburgring this weekend, with sports-car legends Hans Stuck, Frank Biela and Emanuele Pirro behind the wheel. A V10-engined R8 LMS entered by Phoenix Racing will make its first racing appearance in the opening round of the...   Kia reveals near-luxury concept, preview of sedan coming to U.S. Kia is offering a hint of its first near-luxury sedan at the Seoul motor show with a concept called the KND-5. This previews the sedan that Kia plans to launch in South Korea late this year. And it is coming to the United States, though the timing is unclear, a spokesman said. The sedan is code-...   Hyundai names former GM designer to top post at Calif. design studio A former General Motors designer will shape the future look of Hyundai. Phillip Zak, 43, a veteran of more than 20 years at GM, has been named chief designer of the Hyundai Design center in Irvine, Calif. He'll be in charge of new-vehicle and concept designs. He replaces Joel Piaskowski, who ...   Hyundai plans plug-in hybrid for 2012 in United States Hyundai will launch its first plug-in hybrid in the United States in late 2012. The vehicle will be based on the four-door Blue-Will sports car concept on display now at the Seoul auto show, according to Yang Woong-chul, president of Hyundai-Kia Motors' r&d division. Yang said Hyundai's plug-...   GM cuts price on restyled 2010 Chevrolet Equinox The 2010 Chevrolet Equinox will carry a base price of $23,185, including its delivery fee, when the crossover goes on sale in June. The restyled, re-engineered Equinox will cost $1,800 less than the previous generation, Ed Peper, vice president of Chevrolet, said today in a statement....   Le Mans: Simon Pagenaud joins Pescarolo Peugeot Team American Le Mans Series driver Simon Pagenaud will drive a Peugeot at Le Mans this year. Pagenaud, who races an Acura LMP1 prototype for de Ferran Motorsports in the ALMS, will join the privateer Pescarolo Peugeot team in his capacity as the French manufacturer's reserve driver. The 24-year-old ... You May Have Missed...   Ford, GM post biggest drops, industry sales slump continues Ford Motor Co. and General Motors posted the sharpest sales declines among major automakers as the industry headed toward its sixth straight monthly drop of more than 30 percent. Ford's March sales fell 42.1 percent and GM's were down 44.7 percent, for its fifth decline of more than 40 percent...   Oh, puh-leeze: Lighten up, people Rarely do I come to the defense of a competitive member of the fourth estate, but the people at Car and Driver are getting the hooey knocked out of them by everyone from "professional media representatives" to the NASCAR faithful. What was CD's egregious sin? Its editors concocted...   DOWNSHIFT: New design chiefs at Ford, Volvo and Mazda It's a day of change in the auto design world: Peter Horbury is headed back to Volvo, Moray Callum takes over Ford design in the U.S. and the designer of the RX-8 now runs the show at Mazda. Managing Editor Roger Hart and Interactive Editor Dale Jewett discuss the changes....   Peter Bryant, creator of Can-Am's 'Titanium Car,' dead at 71 Peter Bryant, the Cockney racing mechanic who designed and built two of the stiffest challengers to the mighty McLaren Can-Am cars, died of an apparent heart attack at his Las Vegas home on March 31, four days short of his 72nd birthday. As told in his recent autobiography, Can-Am... CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the AutoWeek Daily Drive E-mail or to sign up for other AutoWeek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add AutoWeek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.

ALERT: Lewis Hamilton disqualified from Australian GP for lying