Feeling like your Mercedes isn’t getting you quite enough attention? How about a $550 lit-up three-point star on the grille that shows off the latest in LED technology?

“It’s your opportunity to announce to the world: ‘This is my Mercedes-Benz!'” the company gushes in its printed media pitch for the option.

If you want to be that guy, the trinket will be available on new vehicles in August. Current owners of some models can have it retrofitted.

But there’s a catch: Mercedes owners will have to be content announcing themselves to the world from driveways and parking spaces. U.S. lighting regulations say a logo can light up only while a car is parked, not while it is in motion.

The Mercedes star will light up for 40 seconds when the car is unlocked and for five seconds when a door is opened. It turns off when all doors are closed or the vehicle is started.

Magna squeezing more profit from Mercedes boom

Magna International, the world’s fourth-largest auto supplier, says it can squeeze more profit from Europe as it moves factories east to feed booming U.S. demand for German cars.

Opel-Buick link to grow stronger

General Motors’ Buick brand, which is sold in the U.S. and China, has taken on a decidedly European flavor in the past three years

Hyundai’s Krafcik: Nissan price cuts put industry on edge

Automakers are scrutinizing Nissan’s move to cut prices on its cars and trucks in the United States as a test of whether the auto industry can avoid a price war, the head of Hyundai’s U.S. unit said.

Magna sees profits growing in Europe on shift to the east

Magna International, the world’s fourth-largest auto supplier, says it can squeeze more profit from Europe as it moves factories east to feed booming U.S. demand for German cars.

Chinese cities capping car sales to cut smog

One of China’s most polluted cities will limit vehicle ownership through a lottery, becoming the latest locality to do so in the world’s largest auto market as air quality and traffic congestion worsen. Shijiazhuang, the capital of steel-producing Hebei province surrounding Beijing, will restrict the number of new vehicles to 100,000 this year and limit households to owning two cars, according to a Shijiazhuang Daily report posted on the local government’s Web site.

BYD: Electric-vehicle charger melted in Hong Kong parking lot

BYD Co., the Chinese electric carmaker partly owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc., said a charger at a Hong Kong parking lot partially melted because of a faulty connection to the electricity grid. The incident at the Oi Man Plaza parking lot on June 18 didn’t cause other damage and won’t affect BYD’s electric-vehicle operations in Hong Kong, the Shenzhen, China-based automaker said in a statement posted on its official microblog.

GM preps Caddy plant for battle with Audi

General Motors and the Volkswagen Group, China’s two largest foreign automakers, have each sold 1.3 million vehicles in the country in the first five months of the year. While matching VW in total sales, GM still lags far behind its German rival in China’s luxury market, where Audi is a recognized leader and Cadillac is still a small player. In the first five months, Audi sold 183,660 units while Cadillac delivered only 14,000 units.

New entry-level Caterham will be priced from £15,000

Couple of weeks ago Caterham announced they are working on a new unnamed entry-level model priced at under £17,000, which will pay homage to the brand’s engineering DNA of ‘adding lightness’, with a super-compact, flexible and EU6-compliant engine.

Caterham has now announced the new entry-level model will cost £15,000.

The new entry-level classic Seven replacement will be revealed in September and is described by CEO Graham Macdonald as “a car built for the driver who wants to drive, but also for one who doesn’t need extreme power.”

Germany offers new proposal to weaken EU car emissions law

Germany has put forward a new proposal to weaken European draft rules on vehicle CO2 emissions as it struggles to persuade other nations to help it protect its powerful car industry, EU sources said

Fiat’s Turkish unit raises market forecast as lower interest rates boost sales

Tofas, a venture between Fiat and a Turkish partner, raised its forecast for growth in the country’s car and van market this year as lower interest rates fuel purchases.

Chery lays off hundreds of workers as sales, exports decline

Chery Automobile Co., vexed by slow sales in China and sluggish demand in overseas markets, will lay off hundreds of employees, The Wall Street Journal reported. The number of overall layoffs is a relatively small percentage of Chery’s 25,000 employees, said Huang Huaqiong, Chery’s assistant to the president. Huang told The Journal that Chery’s domestic sales declined 15 percent in the first five months to 130,000 units.

Brilliance to build, use turbocharged BMW engine

Brilliance China Automotive Holdings Ltd., BMW AG’s joint venture partner in China, will start building a BMW turbocharged engine for its own vehicles in June 2014. The engine will be produced at a new plant operated by Brilliance’s engine subsidiary, Xinchen China Power Holdings Limited, in Mianyang of southwest China’s Sichuan province.

China auditor: VW, GM failed to qualify for ‘green’ energy subsidies

Shanghai Volkswagen Automotive Co. and Shanghai General Motors unlawfully obtained subsidies in the past two years for vehicles that failed to meet the government’s energy efficiency standards, China’s national audit office has determined. In 2011 and 2012, Shanghai VW received subsidies worth 16.7 million yuan ($2.7 million) for 5,570 vehicles that were later found to fall short of fuel economy standards. Shanghai GM received subsidies worth 546,000 yuan, the office said last week.

Britain’s Morgan launches first Beijing dealership

Britain’s Morgan Motor Co. has opened its first luxury-car dealership in Beijing, the China Car Times reported. The 320-square meter showroom is located near Bentley and Lotus dealerships, the Chinese Web site reported. The dealership is displaying the Plus 8 model — available for the first time in China — powered by a 4.8-liter BMW-built gasoline engine with a six-speed manual transmission.

Bosch opens new proving ground in Donghai, China

German parts supplier Robert Bosch GmbH last week opened the first phase of a proving ground in Donghai in east China’s Jiangsu province. The facility, its second in China, will allow year-round testing of Bosch’s antilock brakes, electronic stability control systems, as well as its driver assistance systems for passenger vehicles, motorcycles and trucks, according to the company.

Eberspaecher opens Shanghai, China exhaust component plant

German supplier J. Eberspaecher GmbH says it has opened a new 8,000-square meter plant and Asian headquarters in Shanghai to produce catalytic converters, mufflers and manifold modules. The company will produce components for Western and Asian automakers, plus complete exhaust systems for a local producer of commercial vehicles.

Ghosn’s Nissan pay remains stable at $10 million as profit growth stalls

Renault-Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn earned $10 million in salary and bonuses for his role as Nissan’s top executive for the fiscal year ended March 31.

Germany’s Duerr sees auto investment climate improving

Duerr, which supplies paintshops to carmakers, may increase its full-year targets later this year thanks to booming business in China and the United States.

GM designer Adams returns to Europe to boost Opel-Buick synergies

General Motors designer Mark Adams will return to the automaker’s Opel/Vauxhall division charged with boosting synergies with GM’s Buick marque

Peugeot family ready to step aside for GM, report says

PSA’s founding family has offered to give up control of the French automaker as it tries to revive plans for a closer tie-up with GM backed by a fresh capital injection, sources said.

Fiat plans to exercise next Chrysler stake option amid dispute

Fiat plans to exercise an option to buy another 3.3 percent stake in Chrysler from a union health-care trust amid a lawsuit over the value of an earlier stock purchase

Fiat adds seven-seat minivan to 500 range

Fiat has released pictures of the seven-seat 500L Living minivan, the latest variant to the 500 range and one of only two product launches from the brand this year

GM designer Adams returns to Europe to boost Opel-Buick synergies

General Motors designer Mark Adams will return to the automaker’s Opel/Vauxhall division charged with boosting synergies with GM’s Buick marque.

Chevy-Opel clash in Europe needs fixing

GM chief Dan Akerson says his company needs to reassess how Chevrolet and Opel fit together in Europe. Most observers’ reaction will be: “It’s about time.”

GM’s South Korea workers to stage partial strike July 4

Workers at GM’s Korea unit will stage a walkout because of disputes over wages and production plans. Employees are worried that Chevrolet Cruze output could be moved to an Opel plant in Europe

Opel strategy chief Sedran will head Chevrolet Europe

Opel strategy chief Thomas Sedran will be the new head of Chevrolet and Cadillac in Europe. Sedran faces a tough task boosting Chevrolet’s falling sales in the crisis-hit region

Bosch opens second proving ground in China

Bosch has opened a second proving ground in China, which will allow the supplier to test antilock brakes, electronic stability control systems, as well as driver assistance technology for passenger vehicles, motorcycles and trucks.

Renault pushes Twingo upscale; will drop 3-door version

Renault has high hopes for its new Twingo minicar, which will switch to a five-door layout in a move that may help the automaker win customers downsizing from larger vehicles.

VW opens logistics center in Tenn. to speed Passat parts delivery

Volkswagen opened a $40 million logistics center in Roane County, Tenn., to reduce delivery times of components for the Passat mid-sized sedan

Fiat adds seven-seat minivan to 500 range

Fiat has released pictures of the seven-seat 500L Living minivan, the latest variant to the 500 range and one of only two product launches from the brand this year

GM reloads, takes aim at Toyota ‘safe haven’ in Indonesia
Dealers pressed to sign ‘loyalty pledges’

Indonesia — or the “Toyota Republic” — is too tempting of an emerging market for GM and other automakers to ignore anymore. While Toyota has ruled the country for years, Indonesia has also become one of the hottest emerging markets of all now that GM is seriously competing there with new product and a big retail push.

Ghosn becomes chairman of Russian carmaker AvtoVAZ

Renault-Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn was appointed chairman of the board of directors at AvtoVAZ, strengthening the alliance’s control over Russia’s biggest automaker which builds Lada cars.

Beijing Auto targets 400,000 exports

Beijing Auto expects to sell 400,000 vehicles cumulatively overseas by 2020. Russia is one of the company’s strategic export markets.

Volvo gets gov’t OK for second China plant

Volvo’s plan to build a second Chinese production plant in Daqing has been approved by the government, according to city authorities. The automaker’s first plant in Chengdu will begin building a stretched variant of the S60 later this year, according to local media reports

GM-PSA rumors may be a ‘stalking horse’

Reports that the Peugeot family is willing to hand over its automotive business to General Motors or China’s Dongfeng Motor may have an ulterior motive.

PSA unions, analysts skeptical on GM tie-up

PSA/Peugeot-Citroen unions voiced concern over a deeper tie-up plan with General Motors that sources say the French carmaker is seeking to revive

Ford criticizes EU delay on 95g/km CO2 target

Ford criticized the EU’s decision to delay a vote on imposing stricter CO2 emissions for all new cars in the EU starting in 2020.