AUTO

Toyota Motor Corp said on Thursday it is studying plans to reorganize its domestic manufacturing operations to consolidate production of similar vehicles regardless of brands across its group companies.

General Motors Co plans to lease retail space in four U.S. cities to offer shoppers the chance to test drive not only three Chevrolet vehicles but those of its largest rivals, a top marketing executive for the U.S. automaker said on Wednesday.

Volvo AB said shipments rose in February, its first month of year-on-year growth since before the global financial crisis, as firmer demand in Asia helped offset lingering weakness on both sides of the Atlantic.

Industrial group Fiat SpA aims to raise the number of job cuts in Italy to 5,000 and may spin off its car activities sooner than thought, an Italian newspaper said on Wednesday, sharply boosting its shares.

General Motors unveiled a new electric concept car in China on Wednesday , aiming to burnish its image as a supplier of non-polluting cars tailored to the crowded mega-cities of the future.

Swedish automaker Saab is in talks with possible partners about exchanging technologies as it tries to return to profit by 2012, the head of new owners Spyker Cars said on Wednesday.

Nissan Motor Co is in talks with Daimler AG to procure large engines from the German firm, the Nikkei business daily said on Tuesday.

Honda Motor Co will steer clear of cooperating with rival automakers as it seeks to boost its presence in Asia, defying a resurgent trend toward tie-ups in the industry, a top executive said.

Ford Motor Co Chief Executive Alan Mulally's total compensation rose almost 6 percent to $17.9 million in 2009 from the previous year, the automaker said on Monday.

Chrysler Group LLC said on Monday it would introduce an all-electric Fiat 500 to the U.S. market in 2012 and drop plans to develop a hybrid 2011 Ram pickup truck.

General Motors Co's South Korean unit plans to recall some 60,000 of the Chevy Cruze small car and the Captiva sports utility vehicle (SUV) in South Korea.

German sportscar maker Porsche sees potential for double-digit growth in Asia this year while growth in North America will take longer to return to pre-crisis levels, a magazine reported.

The representatives of two major Swedish funds resigned from Scania's nomination committee on Friday, citing a disagreement with the truck maker's main owner, Volkswagen.

Toyota Motor Corp slipped for the second consecutive year in an influential vehicle dependability study released on Thursday.

German carmaker Daimler has renewed its commitment to a EADS shareholder pool, leaving a politically sensitive Franco-German balance of power at the European aerospace group intact.

U.S. safety officials believe driver error may be behind the crash in New York of a Toyota Motor Corp Prius that has been investigated as a possible case of unintended acceleration, federal investigators said on Thursday.

South Korea's No. 2 carmaker Kia Motors said on Thursday it will invest 100 million euros ($137 million) building a new engine plant at its assembly site in Slovakia.

Britain announced hundreds of millions of pounds in aid to Ford Motor and Nissan Motor for the development of environmentally friendly technologies as it seeks to become a world leader in ultra low-carbon vehicles.

A California Highway Patrol report released on Wednesday in a sensational runaway Toyota Prius incident appears to support the version of events given by the driver, which the automaker has called into question.

Japan's Nissan Motor Co will begin building the Leaf electric compact car at its Sunderland plant from early 2013, making Britain its third global production site for the zero-emission vehicle.

Canadian lawmakers accused Toyota Motor Corp executives on Tuesday of waiting too long to inform the government of problems with faulty accelerators in some of the company's vehicles.

Honda Motor Co will recall about 412,000 vehicles in the United States to address the risk that brake pedals may feel soft and slip closer to the floor over time.

BMW, the world's biggest premium carmaker, forecast a hefty rise in 2010 pretax profit with better results across its entire business, boosted by new car models like its popular BMW 5 Series.

Zhejiang Geely Holding and Ford said they were still on track to sign a deal this month for Ford's Volvo cars unit, after a Chinese newspaper said Geely's planned $2 billion purchase faced hurdles.

Honda Motor Co said on Tuesday it had received about 8,000 orders for the CR-Z sporty hybrid car in Japan after less than three weeks on the market, or eight times the monthly sales target of 1,000 units.

Toyota Motor Corp said on Monday it had found no evidence to support the driver's version of a widely publicized runaway Prius episode a week ago, suggesting that authorities examine whether the incident happened as reported to police.

BYD Co, the Chinese car and battery maker backed by U.S. billionaire Warren Buffett, posted a forecast-beating fourth-quarter result on Sunday.

Toyota Motor Corp has slashed production of the Prius hybrid model by 10 percent from March due to a slowdown in sales from a peak last year.

Opel workers demanded reassurances that its European brand will not be disadvantaged at the expense of sister brand Chevrolet, after Opel lost responsibility for the Russian region to an Asian arm of General Motors.