GM's Australian holding Holden is launching the fastest, most powerful, most expensive road car ever made in Australia at today's Melbourne International Motor Show. The HSV (Holden Special Vehicles) Commodore is based on the company's rear-wheel-drive Commodore platform (headed to the states in Pontiac G8 form). Hand-assembled at the Holden Team Racing headquarters, the new HSV Commodore boasts the Corvette Z06's 7.0-liter, dry-sump V8. With over 500 horses on tap, the Aussie supersedan has more horsepower than any of GM's stateside four-door offerings… at least until the '09 CTS-V arrives with 550 supercharged ponies. But is a $150k, premium-slurping V8 monster going to sell in the land of Mad Max with oil likely over $100/barrel for good? Unsurprisingly, HSV boss Scott Grant reckons so. More surprising is the rationale he gave the Sydney Morning Herald: "Holden and HSV have had record sales of V8s over the past 12 months and we believe there is definitely a market for this car." Whether there's a non-fleet market for V8's in Australia now, or after a few more years of rising gas prices, remains to be seen.

In an interview with the International Herald Tribune, Renault-Nissan honcho Carlos Ghosn reveals that he's still interested in an American partner for his Franco-Japanese alliance. Between endless paeans to Nissans miracle turnaround and the underlying strength of diversity in the Renault-Nissan alliance, Ghosn holds off on the PR long enough to let a few nuggets slip through about his mergers and acquisitions strategy. Although talks between Renault-Nissan and GM led nowhere in '06, a recent joint venture with Chrysler to sell rebranded Nissan vehicles in Brazil may point to Ghosn's dancing partner of choice. And with talk of Chrysler's dismemberment never far from the lips of Cerberus-watchers, Renault-Nissan could come into an American nameplate sooner rather than later. Whomever his eventual bedmate may be, if Carlos the Jackal can be trusted at all, the stars will begin aligning before any announcements come through. "This is for the long term," Ghosn tells the IHT about his visions of an American partnership. "But when it comes, then you will know we have been consistent." Is he referring to the Chrysler/Brazil deal, or is there much more to come? Time, and not much of it, will tell…

After a $4.97b loss last year, Ford is reporting a slightly smaller shortfall this year. After releasing preliminary losses at $2.67b in January, Ford has revised the number slightly to $2.72b. As we reported below, Bill Ford is spinning this smaller loss as an indication of profits to come on the auto-making end of the business. If those profits are to be realized, FoMoCo will have to overcome the drag projected for Ford's finance wing. Reuters reports Ford Motor Credit was down about 40 percent last year, reflecting larger credit market jitters. Ford now thinks 2008 could see credit profits drop even lower. Credit and depreciation losses are driving this shortfall, the latter likely accounting for the overall loss in loan volume. Ford relies on in-house financing to move 78 percent of its inventory financing and 38 percent of customer financing. But if the credit crunch spells the end of the buyer-incentive interest rates era at Ford, an unanswered question remains: how else do they plan on moving those vehicles?

GM Canada is applauding a new Canadian government program to distribute $3m over two years for a pilot program to "demonstrate E85 fueling infrastructure and promote its commercialization." The measure is part of a $250m Automotive Innovation Fund aimed at supporting the Canadian auto industry's transition to greater mandated fuel efficiency. The PR flacks at GM Canada crow [via Marketwire], that The General's head start in ethanol-capable technology "offers another very practical and affordable way for Canadian drivers to literally cut their net vehicle CO2 emissions in half"– as long as they ignore the environmental and crop price impacts associated with ethanol production. Oh, and Canada has set aside another $10m for two years worth of biofuels emissions research. 

The Detroit Free Press reports that Chrysler has extended its short-term agreement with bankrupt supplier Plastech. The deal was expected by industry observers after Chrysler lost a court battle to strip Plastech of the toolings required to manufacture many of the plastic components in Chrysler's vehicles. The previous interim agreement was scheduled to lapse tonight, potentially stopping production at other Chrysler plants, but the extension will keep factories open through at least March third. This incredibly short-term measure keeps the prospect of further wrangling between Chrysler and its troubled supplier on the front burner. Between Plastech's reputed quality issues, Chrysler's clearly adversarial attitude towards its supplier and the ongoing resolution of Plastechs $488m in debts, this story is just starting to get interesting. Watch this space. 

A survey by organizers of the British International Motor Show shows that Britons are more likely to remember their first car better than their first kiss. In fact, the survey shows that over 40% of the study group remembers the license plate number of their first car. The poll of 2,011 adults also shows that younger respondents anticipated getting their first car more than first kisses and 18th birthdays. Why the strong attraction to first cars? More than a third of respondents reported engaging in carnal acts in the back seat of their first car, and over half left home after securing their first set of wheels. "People develop powerful bonds with their cars, especially their first," says show organizer Kirsty Perkinson. "First cars represent an explosion of independence and a gateway to untold adventures, which is why they are so special." No word yet on whether carbon-hating London Mayor Ken Livingstone plans on challenging the results of this survey.

Thomson Financial News [via CNN Money] reports that GM will announce a joint venture with the GAZ Group of Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska's Basic Element company. The team plan to build the Chevrolet Lacetti (Suzuki Forenza/Reno) at a factory based in Deripaska's home oblast of Nizhny Novgorod. The plant will initially produce 50k of the Daewoo-designed vehicles per year, increasing to a planned to 300k units p/a. Basic Element, will invest a billion dollars in the project. This is not Deripaska's first flirtation with the American car industry. Last May, he bought a $1.5b stake in Magna International, a move which allowed the Canadian company to tender an ultimately unsuccessful bid for Chrysler. Despite his new joint venture with GM and a crucial stake in Chrysler's supply line, Russia's youngest and richest billionaire in Russia isn't allowed to visit the United States due to "suspected links to the criminal community" Given this inconvenience, Mr. Deripaska will likely look once more to Magna to act on his behalf when American automakers start holding holding pre-bankruptcy fire sales.

Autocar reports that a new poll financed by Porsche suggests that 74 percent of Londoners think London's new, higher (for some) CO2-based charge is "unfair." Having released complete polling data from that study, Porsche is challenging Livingstone to produce similarly comprehensive data from the Ipsos-MORI poll which the left-wing mayor claims to show support for the environmental measure. The incompleteness of available data from the Ipsos-MORI poll has prompted Porsche to file a complaint with the British Polling Council for failing to uphold public transparency standards. Porsche clearly smells blood in the water; Livingstone has staked his re-election campaign on environmental issues. With a May first election looming, and two opponents who oppose the fee, Livingstone is retaking the offensive by attacking Porsche at a recent press conference. "(Porsche) should be redoubling efforts to produce less- polluting cars,'' said Livingstone. "I can imagine how annoyed Berliners would be if a British company tried to intervene in a mayoral election.'' Meanwhile, Livingstone has still not released his polls data, showing that whatever his purported allegiance to the environment, his populism does not prevent him from hiding information when his political survival is at stake.

California's leaders are dreaming of a biofueled future, and they see E85 ethanol as a step in the right direction… for their campaign war chests. The LA Times reports that California wants to increase the availability of the 85 percent corn-based biofuel, by earmarking $25m in grants to set up 34 new E85 refueling stations. Unfortunately for those Californians who value clean air and energy efficiency, E85 takes more (fossil) fuel to refine than it offers, actually decreases fuel efficiency and increases emissions. Pretty ironic considering that the plan is justified by the California Environmental Protection Agency's Air Resource Board as a crucial component of the state's Climate Action Plan. So why is the state of California subsidizing the infrastructure of such a short-sighted fuel product? So that people in the fuel business don't have to actually pay for it themselves, of course. Installing an E85 pump costs about $50k. As Chevron spokesman Leif Sollid puts it "our marketers and retailers have not expressed a widespread desire to install E85 at their stations." Well, of course they haven't… because they know the only way to sell an unpopular product is to get the government to subsidize it. They also know that their $50k buys a lot more value as campaign campaign contributions.

Toyota will introduce two new hybrid models at the 2009 Detroit North American International Auto Show: the third-gen Prius and a new Lexus-badged hybrid. Motor Trend reports that the new Lexus will be based on the Prius platform and drivetrain, aimed squarely at the "lifestyle wagon" segment. Offering Toyota's proven Hybrid Synergy Drive in a category of small but pricey wagons (think Audi A3) seems like a smart move; the "hybrid premium" will not scare away shoppers who are already considering dropping $30k on what amounts to a compact car. Unfortunately, the artist's rendering which accompanies this announcement looks like little more than the Prius donor car. Hopefully ToMoCo will put a little more effort into the looks of the final product.

Nearly half of all U.S. military deaths in Iraq are caused by roadside bombs, the cobbled-together explosives known by the now-household acronym IED (Improvised Explosive Device). These homemade killers are powerful enough to launch an up-armored Humvee in the air, penetrate it and split it in half. Which is why the military is hustling to get a new generation of MRAPs– that's Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles– to Iraq. The New York Times reports that 2,500 MRAPs have already been deployed; 5500 are due in theater by June. The MRAPs range in size from the four-wheeled, 40k pound "Category 1" MaxxPro, to the six-wheeled Buffalo, which sports a mine-clearing robotic arm and a 12-liter diesel International straight six (yeah, that's two liters per cylinder). With mine-resistant undercarriages, AK47 repellent windows, city bus-inspired shock absorbing driver compartments, and Corbeau four-point racing harnesses, MRAP's are considered to be 300 percent safer in an IED blast than an up-armored Hummer. Which leaves only one question: how long before one of these bad boys ends up in a rap video?

In 2005, Mexican President Vincente Fox accelerated the opening of Mexico's markets to American used cars, allowing the free importation of American vehicles between 10 and 15 years old. In the last two-and-a-half years, an estimated three million used American cars answering to that description have found their way into Mexico. As the San Francisco Chronicle reports, the business of importing American junkers has been good to the 25k families who earn their living in the trade, but not everyone is muy alegre. Mexico's new car dealers are feeling the pinch; sales have stagnated at 1.1m per year. Sales of subcompacts have dropped over 16 percent, as Mexicans opts for cheaper, more spacious American metal. And when the Mexican car industry sneezes, American manufacturers catch a cold. GM, Ford and Chrysler are all top sellers in Mexico. They stand to lose big as the wave of American jalopies continues to take the air out of the Mexican new car market.

While you were about to enjoy your weekend, a German court found former VW Labor rep Klaus Volkert guilty of 48 counts of incitement to fraud. Forbes reports that Volkert will face nearly three years in prison for his role in a long-running scheme which siphoned $3m in illegal "bonuses" from the German automaker's corporate coffers. Amongst other things, the money covered a $600k hush payment to Volkert's Brazilian lover and first-class international brothel excursions for Volkert and his union cronies (complete with Viagra prescribed by the company medical provider). Court testimony indicates that VW made the payments to ensure labor support for buying Bugatti and Bentley in 1998. "This is a crude case of class justice," Volkert's lawyer pronounced after the ruling. Although Volkert is obviously no working class hero, he may be taking the fall for corruption at the highest levels of VW management. Former Vee Dub exec Klaus-Joachim Gebauer– who received a one-year suspended sentence for his part in the scandal– testified that company Chairman Ferdinand Piech was aware of the "labor relations" slush fund. VW's CEO at the time and current Board Chairman has steadfastly maintained implausible deniability his ignorance of the fund. If Piech was in the dark, it begs the question: why didn't he know?

Channel4 reports that VW is set to unveil a "near-production" diesel-electric Golf at The Geneva International Auto Show. The battery-assisted oil-burner caims 70mpg while passing 50-state Tier-2 BIN 5 emissions standards. Not to be outgreened, Wired reports that BMW will ta-da its Vision EfficientDynamics Concept. The modded next gen X5 sports a 36mpg twin turbo diesel-electric drivetrain hooked-up to an eight-speed ZF autobox. (The Bimmer concept also boasts photovoltaic panels on the moonroof to preheat the transmission fluid and wheels that require one less horsepower to maintain 100mph than "standard" wheels.) As previously editorialized, the new diesel hybrids signal the end of German automakers' participation in the two-mode hybrid technology jointly developed with Chrysler and GM. Bottom line: BMW's hybrid diesel sips half the gas of a 3.0-liter X5; the Yukon Tahoe hybrid offers a 25 percent mpg gain. 

Auto Motor und Sport reports that a gas explosion rocked Porsche's famed Zuffenhausen factory early this morning. The blast originated in the factory paint shop at five a.m. local time, when gas apparently escaped a drying kiln and ignited. The explosion triggered the factories automatic sprinkler system, which prevented the spread of fire, but also left the paint shop and other portions of the 911 assembly line underwater. Two factory workers were hospitalized for unspecified injuries, but no fatalities were reported. Damage from the explosion and the sprinkler system will halt the production of up to 500 911's during the planned two to three day cleanup period. Despite the shutdown of 911 production, Zuffenhausen-sourced components for the Leipzig-built Cayenne and Finnish-finished Boxster will continue to roll out of the factory, meaning that for at least a few days the cynics were right, and Porsche will be building everything but a real 911.