Vauxhall has reduced the list of standard equipment on its new Vectra without changing the car's list price.
A women-only motor racing championship is to be launched by Mazda. The series will use Mazda's new RX-8 sports car in the single marque formula which opens with selection trials at UK race circuits during May and June this year.
Jurgen Knorr has replaced Herbert Born as managing director of paint manufacturer Standox GmbH. Previously sales manager for western and southern Europe.
A firm of Yorkshire architects specialising in car retail showroom design has landed a contract to carry out a $20m (£12.6m) refurbishment of a New York landmark.
American giant Clorox Car Care is poised to unleash a £1.25m advertising and promotional campaign to help push its Armor All Wipes range to market leadership in the UK.
Workers at two of the UK's most productive and successful car plants – Nissan and Peugeot factories – are threatening to down tools and plunge the automotive industry into a fresh crisis.
Record new car sales figures are masking troubled times for retailers, a new report reveals. PricewaterhouseCoopers says the UK bubble has burst for franchised dealers and expects the number of retailers to fall from 6000 to 4000 over the next 10 years.
Skoda is set to make an entrance into the world of affordable hot hatches with a vRS version of its popular Fabia supermini.
DaimlerChrysler UK intends to open more brand experience centres – provided its M25 site in Weybridge, Surrey, scheduled to be launched in 2005, proves successful.
Toyota has released prices for the new Avensis, which goes on sale on March 1. The entry-level D-sector model, available in estate, hatchback and saloon with five different trim levels, starts at £13,995, rising to £20,995.
Alperton Ford, a solus retailer based near Wembley, has closed its operations, making more than 150 employees redundant.
The Government's bid to make the UK a centre of excellence for car design and production techniques will be outlined in March with the first concrete steps taken before the end of the year.
The Garage Equipment Association is collaborating with the Health and Safety Executive to help garages and workshops avoid breaches of requirements.
Hundreds of Motability dealers are being informed this week of the biggest shake-up in the history of the national charity, which was established in 1977.
Struggling pressings producer Cardale Engineering has been placed into administrative receivership, handing the UK engineering sector a fresh crisis.
A conservative New Year strategy based on “consolidation, consolidation, consolidation” has been unveiled by Hyundai. David Walker, Hyundai UK managing director, tells AM that 2003 will be a year of incremental growth and stability for its dealers.
Members of the main unions at Peugeot's Ryton plant have voted for strike action in support of the on-going pay dispute.
Changes in the regulations governing the way bodyshops deal with dangerous chemicals have been welcomed by the Retail Motor Industry Federation (RMI).
Nissan has opened its new design studio in London. Nissan Design Europe will be home to around 50 international designers, modellers and support staff and will be linked to six design studios worldwide.
<hr> <b>Kevin Brown</b>, market manager at Valeo Service, says garages will only take full advantage of the profit-making potential of air conditioning system maintenance if it becomes a standard element of the annual service. <hr><p>
Ford has moved into direct retailing for the first time in its UK history after buying 11 of the 12 Quartic Group solus franchise sites it put into administrative receivership in October.
GM has begun evaluating a Suzuki-built mini-SUV for possible sale in the UK and Europe. The car, which is sold in Japan, south-east Asia and Australia as the Cruze – with Chevrolet and Holden badges – is based on the Suzuki Ignis, but features revised suspension, larger diameter wheels and a four-wheel drive powertrain.
Lloyds TSB Asset Finance Division has bought the Dutton-Forshaw Group – listed at No 18 in the AM100 – for a cash consideration of £48.7m.
Hartwell Automotive Group has ambitions to join the AM100 billionaires' club after buying seven Ford dealerships from Arriva. The sites in Chippenham, Halifax, Holmfirth, Huddersfield, Swindon and two in Nottingham represent three territories.
Fiat Auto has reported 2002 fourth quarter losses of 200m euros after previous forecasts suggested the struggling carmaker would break even.
Lloyds TSB and HBOS continue to be the frontrunners among the six potential bidders for First National Bank, the Abbey National subsidiary which includes First National Motor Finance, according to today's Financial Times.
Dixon Motors has offloaded its highly regarded Car Clinics accident repair division to Bikenet, the failed online motorcycle retailer.
Car production rose 9.1 per cent in 2002, to 1,628,020 units, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics.The ONS says the rise was fuelled by a 17.1 per cent jump in exports, representing more than 150,000 additional cars, compared to 2001.
Claims that supermarkets will not enter car retailing because margins are too low are based on a myth, according to a leading analyst. However, he still believes few companies will consider entering the sector because it doesn't sit well with their methods of operating.
MG Rover hopes to appease retailers who have been calling for a new small car after agreeing a supply deal with Indian industrial giant Tata.
