Audi is aiming at selling its high-end sedans in the United States in hopes to move its brand further upscale. With the launch of the 2011 Audi A8, Audi of America’s President Johan de Nysschen said that he expects the A8 sedan, A6 sedan and the upcoming A7 four-door coupe to account for 25 percent of U.S. sales within 5 years.

In 2009, the A8 and A6 models only accounted for 10 percent of Audi’s volume last year.

The A4 is now our center of gravity and half of our sales,” said de Nysschen. “If you have a higher presence in the high end, your brand will be perceived as more powerful, and it drives your profile.

De Nysschen wants the compact A4 to represent about 40 percent of Audi’s sales. Last year, Audi sold 82,716 vehicles in the United States.

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Ford Motor Company is pushing in-car technology in a huge way at the 2010 International Consumer Electronics show. Announcing MyFord Touch, an electronic dashboard that brings the intuitive nature of MP3 players and mobile phones to Ford vehicles. Technology that will redefine driver connectivity and interaction with their car.

MyFord™ which will be branded as MyLincoln Touch and MyMercury Touch on respective Lincoln and Mercury brand products, redesigns the in-car interface, mirroring how consumers interact with most devices in their lives using touch-sensitive buttons, touch screens, thumb-wheel controls and voice recognition. …click here to read more

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General Motors confirmed today that the proposed sale of its Saab subsidiary to Koenigsegg Group AB was terminated at the discretion of the buyer.

“We’re obviously very disappointed with the decision to pull out of the Saab purchase,” said GM President and CEO, Fritz Henderson. “Many have worked tirelessly over the past several months to create a sustainable plan for the future of Saab by selling the brand and its manufacturing interests to Koenigsegg Group AB. Given the sudden change in direction, we will take the next several days to assess the situation and will advise on the next steps next week.”

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Lexus is trying to control the inflation that comes with launching a new exotic car, especially ones that are limited-production models. Exotic car speculators often drive up the price and usually end up destroying the marketplace. Lexus plans to only offer a two-year lease of the new supercar at a fixed price that has yet to be announced.

At the end of the term, leaseholders will have the opportunity to purchase the car outright, at that time the title would be released to the purchaser. As Lexus’ vice president of sales and dealer development Brian Smith tells it, his company wants “people out driving the car and not just parking it in a museum or selling it at an inflated price.”

Lexus will also train 15 LFA specialists that will be located at the company’s four regional outposts, and the automaker will also pay for dealers to receive the special tools and training that will service the vehicles. …click here to read more

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Chrysler’s dealers must feel like they can’t catch a break. Low inventory levels along with a lack of new vehicles, nearly 150 dealers haven’t been able to finalize floorplan financing. Since Chrysler Financial no longer exists with the dealer networks, GMAC has stepped in, but to no avail dealers are having a hard time meeting its terms. 85 dealers have been turned down completely, while another 60 or so are trying to secure financing.

GMAC has been asking for more collateral and they are looking for the dealer to alter the lending structure of their mortgages, held by Chrysler Financial. This has begun to send rumors that the Chrysler Financial Group is trying to wind down its operations.

Should the number of dealers fall, this means that the planned closers would be nearly reach 1000, up from its original 789 announced earlier this year.

Photo: AP News

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Silicon Valley automaker Tesla Motors is preparing to go public soon, two people familiar with the situation said, outlining plans to sell stock and cash in on investor appetite for green technology and interest in battery-powered vehicles.

The six-year-old start-up’s investors include Google Inc founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page.

An IPO filing from Tesla, best known for its $109,000 all-electric Roadster, is expected any day, said one of the sources. The person did not give a specific time frame.

Tesla spokesman Ricardo Reyes declined to comment on what he called “rumor or speculation.”
Source: Reuters

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World championship drifter Vaughn Gittin Jr. has introduced a new generation of Mustang to the world with the Mustang RTR today at the 2009 SEMA Show. The Mustang RTR will be a dealer-installed performance and appearance package available at select dealers in coming in 2010. The packages will come with an assortment of hand picked parts from JR & Ford along with becoming a part of the exclusive RTR registry.

Official Pics, Video and press release are after the jump. …click here to read more

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