Max Auto Updates - 08/04/2010

Daimler, Renault, Nissan Form Global Car Alliance

http://www.maxauto.co.za/CntView.aspx?CatID=26&CntID=1400

German, French and Japanese automotive conglomerates Daimler, Renault and Nissan respectively have signed a cooperate agreement that comes into effect immediately. Renault and Nissan already have a wide-ranging alliance and are both run by the same man in Carlos Ghosn.

The new agreement involves the sharing and co-development of petrol and diesel engines, a cross-pollination of shareholdings and co-operation in the commercial vehicle sector. Basically each company will end up holding a 3.1% share in the other two.

Renault is now working with Mercedes-Benz in the development of the next-generation smart fortwo and Renault Twingo, both of which will be electric powered, rear-wheel-driven and can be expected to launch in 2013.

On the engine side, Renault and Nissan will provide 3 and 4-cylinder engines (petrol and diesel) to Daimler to use in its future small premium cars. On the other hand Daimler will give some of its existing 4 and 6-cylinder petrol and diesel engines to Nissan's luxury brand Infiniti. All engines will be made to fit the characteristics of each particular brand.

Finally the three companies will be working together in the light commercial vehicle sector where Mercedes-Benz for example, will produce a new entry-level vehicle from 2012 using Renault's basic architecture.

A steering committee headed by Daimler chairman Dieter Zetsche and Ghosn has been set up to manage the new alliance.

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Hummer Shut Down Begins After No Buyer Found

http://www.maxauto.co.za/CntView.aspx?CatID=26&CntID=1401

Hummer, a brand that became a symbol of excess in the late 1990s, will be shut down by General Motors. The marque was spawned from a contract for U.S. military vehicles won by AMC-Jeep before the brand was bought by GM in 1998.

A tentative deal struck between GM and the Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery firm for an estimated $150 million fell apart in February when the Chinese government did not green-light the plan.

Now the brand is officially being shuttered, as no other substantial offers have come to the table. Hummer CEO Jim Taylor has retired, and Hummer dealerships were notified earlier yesterday of the decision.

The move to close the brand marks the end of GM's marque overhaul that included the sale of Saab to Spyker, and the closure of Pontiac and Saturn. A deal to sell Saturn to Penske collapsed last September. GM had also shown interest in selling Opel/Vauxhall, but a negotiation with Magna dissolved last November.

New Hummer buyers will be able to get either $4,000 off 2010 H3 or H3T models, $5,000 off 2009 H3Ts, and $6,000 off 2009 H2 and H3 units, or 72 months financing at 0 percent. GM had previously announced that they will honor the duration of Hummer new vehicle warranties.

GM has roughly 2,200 Hummer models currently in stock. The fate of Hummer's 3,650 employees in Indiana, Louisiana, and Michigan has not been formally announced.

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Sportec Updates SP580 Program for 997 Turbo



http://www.maxauto.co.za/CntView.aspx?CatID=26&CntID=1402

The new Sportec 997 Turbo SP580 tuning kit is now available for the Porsche 997.

Engineers from Sportec have boosted power from 368 kW to 427 kW.

If those numbers sound familiar, it is because the Swiss tuning firm developed a package that provided the same horsepower on the last SP580 (hence, the model name). However, the torque rating is reduced on this model, but is the same as the standard Porsche 997 turbo facelift.

Now, the new model sprints to 100 km/h in just 3.2 seconds, and to 200 km/h in 10.3 seconds. Top speed on the car is 323 km/h. The sprint times are faster than the old SP580, but the previous model topped out at 338 km/h.

New forged 20-inch wheels have been developed for the car. However, the aero kit with front spoiler, big rear wing, and side skirts seems to be carried over from the pre-facelift kit. You can read more about the kit in the press release below.