TOP 7  -  Porsche DNA Crosses Six Decades

At every press conference for every new car or truck introduction since the days of, say, Watson and Crick, an eager and sweaty brand manager has stood up and said something to the effect of: "The Durango 95 Mark III is a reflection of who we are as a company, our brand DNA."This assertion generally is nonsense, a dump truck of smelly marketing sardines poured at our feet and called caviar. But it's an utterly essential lie, especially for products that are resurrections of grand old marques or nameplates. Take, for example, Bugatti.

[ Source : courant ]

TOP 6  -  Nissan to make nine new models at Chennai plant

Japanese auto major Nissan today announced that it has plans to manufacture nine new models at its Chennai plant, which will become operational by 2010. Out of the nine, five will be for the Indian market.Nissan Motors India Managing Director Shouhei Kimura said, “India is a very important market for us. We have been focusing on how to localise the products and bring more models into the market.

[ Source : business-standard ]

TOP 5  -  RENNtech Mercedes-Benz 6.3 AMG, First Pictures And Details

The horsepower brokers over at RENNtech have turned their wrenches to the already powerful Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG to create what they consider to be a fitting heir to the Mercedes 6.3, appropriate given the name and the fact that latest C-Class has grown nearly to the size of that ultimate sedan. In order to achieve proper Überness, they've released the 6.2 AMG V8 from the grips of unnecessary restriction and managed to squeeze out nearly 100 additional horsepower. The sleek sedan achieves up to 548 HP and 510 lb-ft of torque thanks to new engine management, long-tube headers and new pipes. To handle all of that extra power you might want to opt for the new RENNtech brake kit and, just to be safe, throw in the height control suspension system and some Hasselhoff to complete the German experience. Full details in the release below the jump.

[ Source : jalopnik ]

TOP 4  -  Ford reports continued sales declines

As Ford Motor Co. executives work to retool plants and introduce models that spark consumer interest, sales of many current models continue to be dismal.

[ Source : bizjournals ]

TOP 3  -  Fiat seeks China partners as Euro sales sag

Vehicle maker Fiat (FIA.MI: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is in talks with a number of potential partners in China as it seeks to offset sluggish sales in Italy and the rest of Europe, its chief executive said on Thursday."For Italy, 2008 will be a painful year, 2009 will be better ... the rest of Europe won't see a stellar performance in 2008," Sergio Marchionne said on the sidelines of an automotive industry conference in the Indian capital."We are handling the weakness in Europe with strong performance in the BRIC economies," he said, adding the company was sticking to its earlier earnings' forecasts for 2008 and 2009.

[ Source : reuters ]

TOP 2  -  Audi Reports August Sales

Audi of America announced today auto sales for the month of August totaling 6,406, a decrease of 16% from last year's figures. Despite strong economic headwinds, Audi new vehicle sales in the U.S. are down just 3.7% year-to-date. Audi Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) sales continued to grow with another record-setting month; compared with last year's August figures, CPO sales rose to 2,841 units, up 20.8%.

[ Source : marketwatch ]

TOP 1  -  BMW sales rise as GM Ford fall

The automaker said Wednesday that U.S. sales of the X5 soared 32.2 percent in August, even as the German brand's overall sales were off 4.1 percent. With BMW's Mini brand factored in, the company registered a 1 percent increase in domestic sales from August 2008.

[ Source : greenvilleonline ]