FAW Volkswagen, the German company’s Chinese joint business, began producing the Jetta model at its Changchun plant in northeast China two days ago, as Gasgoo reports.
The current Jetta has secured a good position on the booming Chinese market, as the car’s 2008 sales reached 200,000 units, accounting for 40 percent of the total FAW VW sales during that year. The company wants to maintain this sales trend.
FAW-VW began the production of the Jetta in 2007, at FAW’s Chengdu production site…. (read more)
Although he’s not exactly a fan of the Ferrari marque – or maybe he is, who knows? – Australian driver Mark Webber echoed the Scuderia’s recent comments regarding the new-entered teams in the 2010 F1 series. Even if not as harsh as the Prancing Horse, Webber insisted it’s embarrassing to see teams that haven’t tested a single mile throughout the winter take part in the championship.
Many automakers reported impressive sales jumps in February. As the market has grown, Mitsubishi Motors North America’s sales have decreased as compared to January, which is not a good sign at all. The car manufacturer managed to sell 4,019 cars, meaning that sales have dropped by almost 1 percent. The bad momentum has been attributed to the bad weather that hit the North American continent, which kept people away from visiting showrooms. 
The acclaimed fix to all accelerator problems for Japanese carmaker Toyota, installed these days in affected vehicles seems to be worthless, as more and more reports come to say the cars still accelerate on their own, despite the repairs. 
Austrian motorcycle manufacturer KTM today announced it is looking the 2010 Toughest Rider, in conjunction with off-road event organizer Baboons. Riders only need to be registered for one of the series (GCC, ICC or ACC) on a KTM. According to KTM, only riders in the XC Pro class will be excluded.
Subaru had a great year in the United States, as the Japanese car manufacturer managed to pull the unthinkable and sold more cars in 2009 than in 2008. Subaru of America officially announced that it has achieved an absolute sales record of 216,652 units for 2009, representing a 15% year-to-year increase over the 2008 figures. And you have to agree that this is quite an accomplishment, especially as only few automakers were able to do that.
What was announced through the voice of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin was confirmed earlier today, when Genii Capital-controlled Renault F1 Team has confirmed a partnership with Lada for the 2010 season of Formula One.
After announcing Alicante, Cape Town and Lisbon as host ports, Volvo Ocean Race adds Lorient on the list for the summer of 2012, being the penultimate stopover in the race. Moreover, Lorient will also host a stopover in the 2014-15 edition of the race. The leg to Lorient, which is around 700 nm, will start in Lisbon.
Late last year, after the British Grand Prix was finally rescued and confirmed at Silverstone for the upcoming 17 years of Formula One, some feared the 2010 race would not be as watched as the 2009 edition, because of the event’s clash with the FIFA World Cup final, scheduled for the same exact date.
NOTICE: The audio and video below contain elements which may be considered disturbing. Following last and this weeks’ hearings in DC, a shroud of relative quiet seems to have settled over the Toyota recall. At least this is how things appear, as in fact they are heating up behind the scene. 
Driving Audi’s R8 at full speed instantly pumps the adrenaline through your veins but some people simply believe that this is not enough. This is how Abt’s R8 GTR was born, a model that "does not just ooze power, but also doesn’t have a single gram of fat in its body," as the tuning house said in a statement.
Car collectors can start rubbing their hands, as a special event is coming up: RM Auctions will hold the 2010 Classic Car Auction of Michigan at the Rock Financial Showplace in Novi, April 24 and 25.
The North American division of Toyota announced yesterday US pricing for the redesign 2011 Avalon and 2011 Sienna models with the new Auto Access Seat, first introduced at the 2010 NAIAS. Both the Sienna and Avalon are set to go on sale at nationwide Toyota dealerships in mid-March. 
With the news that US F1 will not be joining the 2010 Formula One Championship due to internal issues, the International Automobile Federation (FIA) released what we believe will be the final entry list for the upcoming campaign.
The Geneva Auto Show is not an important venue only for producers, but also for tire manufacturers. Therefore Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company’s decided to present its new products at the 80th edition of the Swiss motor show. The company which owns Goodyear and Dunlop brands displayed four concept and prototype tires that feature innovations for future use on earth and in outer space, as well as five new tires for use by European motorists today.
Even if the sale of HUMMER to Sichuan Tengzhong failed to go through, Geely is still in discussion to complete the Volvo acquisition, representatives of the Swedish brand said at the 2010 Geneva Auto Show in Switzerland. Volvo CEO’s Stephen Odell said in a statement for Reuters that Ford and Geely are expecting to complete the sale in the first quarter of 2010, which means a final decision is likely to come by the end of March.
German carmaker BMW announced today the dates for this year’s Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este. Scheduled to be held on April 23-25 at the Grand Hotel Villa d’Este, the event will be celebrating the 70th anniversary of BMW Motorsport’s victory in the 1940 Mille Miglia.
Although returnee Michael Schumacher has almost constantly outpaced Nico Rosberg in testing during the month of February, the son of 1982 F1 champion Keke Rosberg insisted that he doesn’t see himself trailing the 7-time world champion just yet.
R3 Motorsports announced in the beginning of the week the signing of Coleman Pressley as driver of the No. 23 Chevrolet for several races in the current Nationwide season. Primary driver for the team will remain Robert Richardson Jr. 
One of the tuning world’s favorite children, the Porsche 911 Turbo, received another complete transformation kit, this time from the German tuner SpeedART.