+++ AUDI Chief Executive Rupert Stadler’s contract will be extended by another 5 years through 2022, people familiar with the matter said. The Volkswagen luxury division’s supervisory board will approve a third term for Stadler at a meeting later on Wednesday, 2 sources close to VW group told Reuters. The contract of Stadler, who has been under fire in recent months for his handling of the carmaker’s diesel emissions scandal, will be extended through Dec. 31, 2022, the sources said. His current contract is due to expire at the end of this year. +++
+++ Britain has declined to release details of talks held last year with luxury carmaker BENTLEY about a new investment decision ahead of Brexit, telling any disclosure could harm its ability to get a good deal with the European Union. The Volkswagen-owned firm, which built over 11,000 luxury vehicles at its central English plant last year, is due to make a decision connected to the production of future models at the start of 2018. In December a meeting was held between the firm and junior Brexit minister David Jones, according to a log posted on the government’s website, but in response to a freedom of information request from Reuters the department said it was not in the public interest to release any of the correspondence. “Part of the negotiation and exit process requires the UK to be able to effectively pursue and protect our interests abroad. Prematurely publicizing information will prejudice our ability to successfully conduct that business”, it said. The Department for Exiting the European Union said that releasing any commercially sensitive information could make firms reluctant to speak to government in future. “The potential lack of this key exchange of ideas, or the release of the information, may in turn weaken the government’s position in these negotiations and make it harder for the UK to secure the best possible deal with the EU”. Bentley declined to comment. Britain’s largely foreign-owned car industry is worried Brexit could add tariffs to imports and exports, make it harder to move staff between sites and lead to border checks on the movement of components which would slow down production, risking the viability of their plants. In March, Bentley’s chief executive Wolfgang Dürheimer told he would be seeking guarantees from the government in the months ahead. “You can get commitments and I count on commitments also from the UK government and, as I understood, they already gave commitments to other brands at certain times so when we come closer, we will see what we have in our hands”, he said. A Brexit deal with Japanese carmaker Nissan met with some political concern last year after the firm said it would build 2 new models at its English plant following a call for compensation in the event of tariffs. An industry source said that the decision was secured with a government promise of extra support to counter any Brexit-induced loss of competitiveness. Business minister Greg Clark declined to publish a copy of a letter sent to the carmaker, telling lawmakers in December they would only release it once commercial confidentialities no longer apply. Clark’s department took over 4 months to respond to a freedom of information request made by Reuters requesting correspondence between Nissan and the government. The standard response period is up to 20 working days. However, it did eventually provide a number of partially redacted emails and letters including one document showing the firm discussed with Clark how to boost the uptake of electric cars. Several government initiatives have since been announced. Last week Britain’s biggest vehicle engine maker Ford, which runs 2 plants, said that a transitional deal with the European Union was crucial to determining its future in Britain, and suggested it would also be asking for government help. “We are spending a lot of time thinking and talking about how we need to change our operations and what support we need from the government and other entities, not only in the UK, to make sure trade friction doesn’t get created”, Ford of Europe’s chief executive Jim Farley said. +++
+++ The super saloon has clearly reached a new point. The one that cars at the upper end of the hot hatchback class hit several years ago; that power and performance threshold that can only be passed by switching from one driven axle to two. In a formerly front-driven, 1.5-tonne hot hatchback, it came at about 300-horsepower; for a rear-driven 1.9-tonne executive express car, it’s come at twice that. But it has certainly come. The demise of the traditional rear-wheel-drive Mercedes-AMG E-Class (now a 612 hp car itself) suggested as much earlier this year, and now the BMW M Division’s decision to switch its 40 year old performance icon, the M5, from ‘standard drive’ to all-wheel drive confirms it. Hot Audis have been that way all along. Alpina’s recently unveiled B5 is a four-wheel driver, and any SVR-badged Jaguar XF is sure to be that way too, in order to be in line with JLR’s stated vision for its performance sub-brand. Time for new rules, then, at least at the very top of the bahn-stormer saloon tree: the inevitable response to what we might call a technological paradigm shift, if we wanted to get all highfaluting about it. Over the next few years we’ll find out who will be able to execute the four-wheel drive super saloon the cleverest; who will best use the very latest drivetrain technology to broaden the versatility and reach of the breed without abandoning the handling purity and balance that’s been a primary pillar of their appeal for so long. BMW’s M Division plainly thinks it’ll be them. For ‘M’, four-wheel drive is a sales and marketing necessity. North America remains BMW M’s biggest market by some distance, and having a four-wheel-drive M-car saloon option could dramatically improve sales there; not just on the eastern seaboard, but in California and elsewhere too, where customers are increasingly looking for performance cars they can continue to use during the winter months. But sales success will remain important on this side of the pond as well, where attitudes towards a switch to four-wheel drive among BMW M’s core European customers may not quite be so receptive. +++
+++ Italy is disappointed by the European Union’s plan to launch legal action against Rome over emissions at FIAT CHRYSLER , the country’s transport minister said, adding authorities had from start ruled out the presence of any cheating devices at the carmaker. The European Union is set to launch legal action against Italy for failing to properly police allegations of emissions-test cheating by Fiat Chrysler following the Volkswagen dieselgate scandal, EU sources have said. “I was sorry to hear that despite all the detailed information we’ve supplied to the Commission and to Germany, you plan to open an infringement procedure”, Italian Transport Minister Graziano Delrio wrote in a letter to EU Industry Commissioner Elzbieta Bienkowska, as confirmed by a spokeswoman. The European Commission has been mediating a dispute between Rome and Berlin after Germany accused Fiat Chrysler of using an illegal device in its Fiat 500X, Fiat Doblo and Jeep Renegade models. That mediation ended without fanfare in March. “It’s particularly disappointing, especially given the fact that after the end of the mediation process, we’ve not received any further requests from Brussels”. +++
+++ Owners of the first generation of the modern Mini should be doing a happy dance today, because if a certain rumor is true the man behind the iconic, retro-inspired design could be coming home to the brand. It is reported that designer Frank Stephenson, who currently heads design at MCLAREN , will return to the BMW-owned brand sometime in the near future. Now, if you’re not a Mini person, you probably have no idea why this is big news. Allow me to explain. See, Stephenson designed the first of the new Minis, which is inarguably the high-water mark for the brand’s design (I’ll fight anyone that says otherwise). The R50 Cooper and R53 Cooper S did the floating roof 15 years before it was in vogue. It revived the contrasting paint scheme, which you can now find on Aston Martins, Toyotas, and Fords. Side grilles? The Cooper brought them back into the mainstream (for better or worse). What Sir Alec Issigonis’ original Mini did for small-car innovation, Stephenson’s Mini did for vehicle design. What’s that? You don’t like the first-generation Mini? Fine. Here are a few of Stephenson’s other designs: first-generation BMW X5, Fiat 500, Maserati MC12, Ferrari 430, and pretty much every McLaren that’s come after the 12C. He’s also done stints at Pininfarina and Alfa Romeo Centro Stile. Now do you get why this is a big deal for Mini (if it’s true)? But it gets better. See, Stephenson has not been quiet about his disdain for Mini’s designs since his departure. “Oh, my gosh, I don’t like it”, Stephenson said when journalist Jamie Kitman asked him about the original Mini Countryman at its launch. “I mean I don’t like the whole new trend at all. I think they just wildly abused the brand”. I couldn’t agree with that sentiment more. Stephenson’s comments reference the second-generation Mini line; it’s not clear how he feels about the third generation models on sale today (although I’m betting/hoping his opinion hasn’t changed much). Still, it’s worth mentioning that today’s design environment is quite different than the one that saw Stephenson design the R50. Pedestrian safety standards are far more strict. For example, former Mini design boss Anders Warming, who left Mini last summer, told me at the launch for the second-generation Clubman that the R50’s design simply wouldn’t work today because of pedestrian safety standards. In other words, I’m not expecting a miracle from Stephenson. But that doesn’t mean I’m not hopeful he won’t usher in a return to attractive Minis. +++
+++ The MINI range won’t see any further body style additions during this generation. Sources at the small car specialist have informed the current generation will be limited to the 5 existing body styles: three- and five-door hatchbacks, a convertible, the Countryman SUV, and the Clubman wagon. Earlier reports indicated the third-generation range would grow to include a sedan model, which would be targeted at the Chinese and American markets. This model seems to be shelved, with the China-only front-wheel drive 1 Series sedan serving as the BMW Group’s entry-level sedan in that market. If this report is on the money, the 2014 Superleggera Vision roadster concept won’t become a production vehicle. The shrinking size of the already small sports car market made it difficult to produce such a vehicle at a profit. Also off the table is a smaller Mini hatchback based on the 2011 Rocketman concept. Apparently, the company concluded the market for a more compact was too small, and a 2-seat Mini hatch wouldn’t be that much smaller than today’s 3-door. With the launch of the third-generation range, Mini has already culled a number of niche models, including the coupe, roadster and Paceman three-door crossover. Although there will be no further major additions to the existing Mini range, updates are on the way, such as the updated Mini three-door hatch and convertible. Visually, only the most committed Mini fans will be able to spot the differences, but rumours indicate the revised models will have reworked engines, ambient interior lighting, and the option of a dual-clutch transmission. +++
+++ German prosecutors said they have launched a formal investigation of PORSCHE SE executives Matthias Müller and Hans Dieter Pötsch on grounds of suspected market manipulation. The prosecutor’s office in Stuttgart said it is investigating Müller, the current Chief Executive of Volkswagen, for his role as board member of Porsche Automobil Holding SE and Hans Dieter Pötsch, who is currently Porsche SE Chief Executive, on suspicion they may have informed investors too late about risks to the Porsche holding firm from Volkswagen’s diesel emissions scandal. The inquiry is similar to one launched by prosecutors last year in Braunschweig, near VW’s Wolfsburg headquarters, into current and former VW board members over whether they delayed the release of information about the cheating of diesel emissions tests. Porsche SE, which is headquartered in Stuttgart, controls 52.2 percent of VW’s voting shares. +++
+++ The fifth generation of the well-known RENAULT Espace MPV has become even more interesting as it adopted the latest design language and even some crossover cues, and continues to be an impressive offering in the segment in terms of technology as well. You can have the Espace in flagship Initiale Paris trim and with a feisty 1.6-liter Energy TCe 200, making 200 hp. But starting with the 2017 model year, that won’t be the case anymore because the top power version of the Espace has been updated to gain the automaker’s “all-new Energy TCe 225”. It comes with a 7-speed dual-clutch EDC transmission, and comes to replace the former 200 hp version, packing some 225 horsepower now. The engine has been developed by Renault Sport and it’s actually the same as the one found in the Clio RS, but now the Energy TCe 225 comes with 225 PS and 300 Nm of torque. The model retains its credentials though, with 6.8 liters per 100 kilometers on average according to the NEDC cycle. Available for the Zen, Intense and Initiale Paris versions, the TCe 225 is not the only novelty for the 2017 model year: there are also new 18- and 19-inch alloys, a new color (Titanium Grey), as well as and Grey leather upholstery, ventilated seats, and smartphone connection via Apple CarPlay and Android Auto on the inside. +++