(October 12, 2012) NEW YORK — Kia Motors has teamed up with DC Entertainment and RIDES magazine to create a brooding, Batman-inspired Optima that goes on display this week at the Time Warner Center and signals the beginning of a 10-month partnership based on the iconic characters that make up the Justice League.  

(October 11, 2012) ROANOKE, Ind. — Sometimes good news can be a double-edged sword. Such was the case when General Motors’ Fort Wayne Assembly plant learned it would be inheriting the assembly of heavy-duty pickup trucks being transferred from the Pontiac (Mich.) Assembly Plant. Fort Wayne plant leadership and employees were ecstatic at the news following GM’s 2009 bankruptcy.

(October 11, 2012) WOODCLIFF LAKE, N.J.  — Last week marked the conclusion of a highly successful season for MINI in the 2012 Grand AM Total Performance Showcase (B-Spec) championship, with the private Mini teams scoring an impressive tally of three wins in the six-race series.  The competing Minis also powered their way to claim four pole positions, and out of the possible 18 podium finishes, 10 were claimed by Mini drivers.

(October 11, 2012) FRANKLIN, Tenn. — Nissan on Wednesday announced a starting price of $28,270 for the totally redesigned 2013 Pathfinder SUV, which goes on sale at U.S. Nissan dealers nationwide in late October. Nissan says the latest iteration of Nissan's popular family adventure-ready SUV is designed to reset the standard for the segment with an unprecedented level of premium style, comfort, fuel economy and thoughtful technology.

(October 11, 2012) DUSSELDORF, Germany — Ford today demonstrated a prototype carbon fibre hood that could help lower fuel consumption for Ford customers. The carbon fibre reinforced plastic Ford Focus hood displayed at the Composites Europe event in Dusseldorf, Germany, is constructed from the super-strong material usually associated with racing vehicles or high-performance sports cars.

(October 11, 2012) Acura says the ZDX crossover vehicle, introduced in 2009, will receive numerous styling and technology enhancements for the 2013 model year, which will be its final year on the market as the Acura brand sharpens its focus on new models and core products, the company announced today.

(October 10, 2012) TORRANCE, Calif. — Recently, law enforcement officials apprehended a counterfeit airbag ring in North Carolina leading to the confiscation of over 1,500 counterfeit airbags for a variety of manufacturers and vehicle models.

Counterfeit airbags are an industry wide problem and not limited to Toyota or Lexus.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) issued a Consumer Advisory today concerning counterfeit airbags and advised what consumers can do to protect themselves.



(October 10, 2012) Toyota plans to recall 7.43 million vehicles worldwide — including 2.47 million vehicles in the United States — in the single biggest automotive recall since 1996 to fix faulty power window switches.

The U.S. action covers various 2007 through 2009 models of the Camry, Camry Hybrid, Yaris, RAV4, Tundra, Scion xD, Scion xA, Sequoia, Highlander, Highlander Hybrid, Corolla and Matrix. About 240,000 vehicles in Canada are also affected.

(October 10, 2012) TORRANCE, Calif. — Fighting back against a spike in gasoline prices and building on momentum from record sales of the Civic Natural Gas Vehicle, Honda today announced that it is working with Clean Energy Fuels Corp., America's largest owner of public compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling stations, and participating Honda dealers to provide a special savings to customers purchasing a new 2012 Civic Natural Gas Vehicle — a debit card pre-loaded with $3,000 that can be used at Clean Energy CNG fueling stations around the country to purchase fuel.

(October 10, 2012) WOLFSBURG, Germany – Volkswagen set a new passenger car sales record for the first three quarters of 2012 delivering over four million vehicles. From January to September, Europe’s largest automaker handed over 4.21 million vehicles to customers. The brand delivered 492,500 vehicles in  September.