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Crunch watch Jan 09: the auto industry in crisis

By Tim Pollard, Ben Pulman and Gareth Evans Motor Industry 30 January 2009 12:39 Friday 30 January 2009• Honda is about to close the Swindon factory for four months when Friday's shifts are finished; the shutdown will affect 2500 of the 3700 staff, who will receive full pay for two months and then 60% pay for the next eight weeks (BBC News)• Porsche has announced a sharp drop in sales and likely profits. It forecasts a 27% drop in 911, Boxster, Cayman and Cayenne sales to around 34,000 units in the six months to the end of January 2009 (Financial Times, subscription required)• Ford wants Washington to do more to stimulate car sales, after posting a record loss of nearly $14.6 billion earlier this week (Detroit News)• Honda's quarterly profit has crashed by 90% – forcing the Japanese car maker to halve its annual profit target (Detroit Free Press)Thursday 29 January 2009• Ford of Europe is a bright spot in the Blue Oval's quarterly results today, making $1.06 billion pre-tax profit in 2008 (up from $997m in 2007). It's the first profit of more than $1bn since 1989 (Automotive News Europe, subscription required)• Volvo suffered a 'disastrous 2008' with a pre-tax loss of $1.46bn.

Vauxhall Insignia VXR SuperSport gets a tweak for 2014

The Vauxhall Insignia VXR SuperSport (pictured) gets tweaked for 2014 If you want a swift and able car that costs under £30k, then the Vauxhall Insignia VXR SuperSport, as a hatch or Sports Tourer (estate) should be a car to consider. An now it’s had a tweak for 2014 to make it a bit more appealing in line with the tweaks to the rest of the Insignia range. The changes aren’t really enough to call this a facelift for the SuperSport, but despite the very minor cosmetic tweaks the changes under the skin are worthy of note.

Formula One: Whitmarsh says McLaren won't give up on 2011

McLaren-Mercedes team boss Martin Whitmarsh says his team wants to win the remaining races of this season while also taking the opportunity to test development parts for its 2012 car. Whitmarsh says that the conclusion of both the drivers' and constructors' title battles--with Red Bull Racing claiming both crowns--has made no difference to McLaren's approach. “There's not been a great distinction,” Whitmarsh said on Friday ahead of next weekend's inaugural Indian Grand Prix.