Fiat will temporarily suspend production at its Pomigliano plant in southern Italy from Oct. 16-27 amid weak demand. The Fiat Panda minicar is built at the factory.
Category Archives: Motoring News
Toyota recalling 20,000 late-model vehicles on potential fuel leak
by Bernie Woodall
Toyota said on Thursday it will recall about 20,000 vehicles worldwide for possible fuel leaks.
2015 VW Jetta earns IIHS Top Safety Pick+ award
The 2015 Volkswagen Jetta earned the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s highest award, Top Safety Pick+, after a structural upgrade to improve small overlap protection and the addition of an optional front crash prevention system.
Although the car didn’t get a full redesign, the A-pillars and door sills were strengthened for the 2015 model year. As a result, the Jetta’s small overlap rating improved to good, compared with the marginal rating of earlier models.
ArcelorMittal develops two steel solutions to reduce weight
ArcelorMittal, the world’s largest steel and mining company, has created two sets of steel solutions to reduce the average weight of pick-ups, following on from the award-winning launch of its S-in motion catalogue for standard, C-segment cars. ArcelorMittal has refined and extended these innovations to help meet the specific challenges facing the North American light truck market.
The first set uses currently available advanced high strength steels and press-hardenable steel grades such as Usibor 1500 and Ductibor 500 and can reduce weight by up to 174 kg (384 lbs) or 23% of the combined weight of a pick-up’s cab, box, frame and closures, compared with a modern (2014) baseline vehicle.
Americans Loving Their New Cars, Neglecting Auto Loan Payments
By Brian O’Connell
It’s all champagne and caviar for automakers, as U.S. car, SUV and truck sales are at an eight-year high. Fiat Chrysler reported sales up 20% so far in 2014, while BMW reported an 11% gain through August.
