Standard Motor Products S1161 Connector/pigtail (body Sw & Rly) on 2040-parts.com

Daimler raises its stake in Aston Martin to 5%, as alliance deepens

By Tim Pollard Motor Industry 04 August 2014 17:42 Daimler has raised its stake in British sports car maker Aston Martin as the Anglo-German alliance strengthens, it emerged today. The Mercedes-Benz parent company grew its stakeholding by 1% on 31 July 2014, the company confirmed. Daimler now owns 5% of Aston Martin.

London Taxi maker Manganese Bronze bought by China’s Geely

China automotive giant Geely has bought Manganese Bronze – makers of the iconic London Black Cab – in an £11.04 million deal. The iconic London Black Cab has been an accident waiting to happen for years, as under investment in making the Black Cab fit for the 21st century saw competition – like the Mercedes Vito Taxi and the Nissan NV200 Cab – start to offer serious competition to the taxi that identifies London. Despite an investment by China’s Geely – when Geely bought 20 per cent of Manganese Bronze, makers of the Black Cab – and the bulk of the Black Cab being produced in China and bolted together in the Midlands, the final nail in the coffin for Manganese Bronze was the recall of 400 TX4 cabs over a steering fault.

Subaru WRX Concept: New York Auto Show 2013 – UPDATED + video

Subaru has revealed a concept for the next generation WRX at the New York Motor Show this week, but will it make it to the UK? The Subaru WRX is the poster child for the Playstation Generation, but Subaru in the UK seem to have fallen out of love with the idea of a budget supercar, preferring to concentrate on fluffy bunny dreams of hybrids and fresh air from the tailpipe. So there’s a lot of uncertainty if the next generation WRX – previewed this week in New York by the WRX Concept – will make it to the UK when it turns in to a production model.