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Nissan opens new design studio in Beijing

Delayed by the deadly earthquake that hit Japan earlier this year, Nissan Motor Co.'s new design center in Beijing finally received a proper opening this week, when global design chief Shiro Nakamura showed off the studio as a new source of ideas for Nissan and Infiniti. Nissan Design China, as the Beijing-based center is known, "is not a studio to just generate ideas for China," Nakamura said in an interview with Car Design News. It's equipped to handle designs of show cars and production cars for both Nissan and Infiniti brands, aimed at customers in China, as well as around the world.

Ferrari to revive GTO name

Ferrari is set to return the evocative GTO (Gran Turismo Omolagato) name to its lineup on a limited-edition, two-seat version of the F599 Fiorano GTB. The new car, conceived to run bodywork and mechanical components from the Italian carmaker's race-bound 599XX, is expected to make its public debut at the Paris motor show in September--marking the first time the GTO badge has been applied to one of Ferrari's road cars since the launch of the much-revered 288 GTO in 1984. Among the changes brought to the new car is a series of carbon-fiber exterior panels, a stripped-out interior and specially developed alloy wheels--all aimed at lowering the weight by 132 pounds from the 3,718 pounds of the F599 Fiorano GTB.

Used cars 'getting cheaper'

CONSUMERS holding on to their motor for longer are driving down the cost of used cars, according to new research. The average price for a second-hand car in July-September 2011 was £8,870 - a 2.4% decline compared with the same period a year ago, according to the Auto Trader company. It is the first time the price has dipped below £9,000 since the company started tracking the market in January 2010.