Following almost a year of acid remarks and accusations, American manufacturer GM and the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) declared a truce over the weekend, following a conciliatory meeting.
We set the tone between GM and NADA that this can’t go on anymore, Mark Reuss, GM North America president said after the meeting, according to Autonews. I said: ‘I never want to talk about what’s in the past anymore. It’s all going forward.’
The meeting was not only intended to m… (read more)
Italian chassis constructor Dallara admitted that their involvement in Formula One this season has been slowed down by factors outside their control. Talking to the media about his company’s Formula One project with Campos Meta, Dallara owner and boss Gian Paolo Dallara made it very clear that his engineers proceeded faultless in setting up a competitive chassis for the 2010 campaign for the Spanish team.
The North American division of Kawasaki recently announced the launch of a new line of powersport oils. According to the manufacturer, the new Kawasaki Performance Oils line includes full-synthetic, semi-synthetic and mineral based formulations in multiple grades of motorcycle oils, plus new ATV/UTV and PWC formulations. 
Leaving the company’s financial problems aside, SsangYong is ready to rise from the dead. The South Korean carmaker is currently testing the C200, a concept displayed for the first time at the 2008 Paris Motor Show and the first model to be launched after the end of the long financial chaos the company was involved in.
Jaguar Land Rover understood that good communication can be the key to better sales. As both car manufacturer have new models on the market and want to take advantage of the increasing car sales, JLR announced it intends to integrate its dealer communications platform with the DealerTrack Dealer Management System (DMS) during 2010.
It has been officially confirmed that Mercury will get a new car underpinned by the recently-introduced Ford Focus’ platform.
With an overwhelming majority, Spyker’s shareholders have approved the takeover plan for GM’s Swedish unit Saab, with the goal set at making the new entity profitable within two years. According to just-auto.com, out of the 8.4 million shares represented at Spyker’s meeting, only 1,174 abstained, allowing for the deal to be approved. 
Focusing a lot on the expansion strategy lately, the Porsche Design Group increased the number of stores within the last six months, opening its 100th unit in the world just a few days ago in New Delhi, India. 
The Maruti 800, one of the small cars which made history in India, will be withdrawn from Calcutta and 12 other cities, starting in April. The reason is quite simple: Suzuki Motors of Japan, which has a 54.21 per cent stake in the Indian automaker, decided not to upgrade the car’s engine to Euro IV requirements.
Faced with serious concerns over its vehicles in recent months, Japanese carmaker Toyota is not only trying to find solutions to the problems which caused the recall of some 9 million cars, but apparently is also devising ways to avoid such problems in the future. 
Felipe Massa hasn’t forgot all about his former teammate from Sauber F1, Nick Heidfeld. The two used to drive for Peter Sauber’s team back in 2002, but only the Brazilian managed to maintain his place on the F1 grid year after year and into the 2010 campaign. As confirmed by Mercedes GP a few weeks ago, Heidfeld has signed a one-year reserve driver deal with the German manufacturer, leaving him outside the F1 action this season.
What do you call the biggest gathering of automotive dealers in the US? A business opportunity! This is probably what Innovative Vehicle Solutions (IVS), a manufacturer in metro Detroit thought when it presented the HAVOC Camaro Aero Kit for the new pony during the 2010 National Automotive Dealers Association (NADA) convention.
We’re getting closer to the official debut of Dacia’s first ever SUV and the Romanian brand is making the final preparation for this major event. The guys over at daciaclub.ro published some new photos with the Duster caught on the Romanian highway A1 that connects the city of Pitesti to the capital Bucharest.
Following the natural disaster that seriously affected the Haitians in January, more and more celebs and carmakers join forces to help the relief effort there. Such is the case with Lotus Cars and former supermodel Naomi Campbell, who will be auctioning eight special edition Naomi for Haiti Lotus Evora sports cars to support the cause.
Kimi Raikkonen didn’t do great on his first rally outing with Citroen Junior Team, but the Finnish driver’s good pace through the Saturday and Sunday stages did look quite promising. Hadn’t it been for his hitting a snow bank on Friday, the former F1 driver would have probably made the Top 10 at the end of Rally Sweden, and that’s something he can build on before Rally Mexico next month.
Toyota’s biggest recall involving about 8 million units is due to a faulty accelerator pedal, and the Japanese car manufacturer explained that the error was not related to the accelerator’s software.
It’s been a while since our eyes caught a glimpse of something like the Disturbing the Peace 1968 Project Camaro, a joint effort between Cherry Bomb and YearOne. The very long name of the vehicle now in the works is in fact an effort to combine the modern day technology with the hotrod style of the 1960s. 
Yesterday, we reported that Renault will rebrand its technocentre, calling it La Losagne. It looks like the company’s internal and external marketing schemes are being crossed, as it announced that it will build two nursery schools for the infants of its Technocentre employees located in Guyancourt, France.
Ralf Schumacher denied the allegations according to which he had underwent surgery on his shoulder last month. A reports issued by Germany’s publication Express last week suggested that the 34-year old had injured his shoulder while skiing in Austria. 
Two of the smallest vehicles in Ford’s lineup made a decisive contribution to the 4.2 percent increase in sales registered by the American manufacturer in January, bringing the total number of Ford branded vehicles to find new owners in Europe in the first month of the year to 105,300 units.