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Aston Martin make Nissan’s Andy Palmer their new CEO

Andy Palmer (pictured) is taking the reins at Aston Martin Lagonda Aston Martin has effectively been without a boss since Ulrich Bez stepped down from the role last year, but that changes with the announcement that Andrew Palmer – until now, Chief Planning Officer of Nissan – is to step in to the role. There’s no specific start date for Andy Palmer at Aston, but Nissan has announced that Philippe Klein will take up Palmer’s role at Nissan on 15 September, so it shouldn’t be long before Palmer holds the reins at Aston Martin. But what exactly has persuaded Andy Palmer to jump from a big corporate behemoth like Nissan to a struggling luxury car maker with owners who either want to tug the operating strings (the Kuwaitis) or are looking for a quick return (Investindustrial)?

Tesla Model S outselling Chevrolet Volt & Nissan LEAF

Tesla never managed to make any money out of their electric Lotus – the Tesla Roadster – but it does look like they’re on to a winner with their electric  executive saloon, the Tesla Model S. Despite moans that the headline-grabbing sub-$50k Model S was never a reality – and a starting point of $70k – the Model S looks set to outsell the two most successful ‘alternatively fuelled’ cars – the electric Nissan LEAF and the range extender Chevrolet Volt – in the first quarter of 2013. Sales of the electric Nissan LEAF, which costs from $29k in the US, in the first quarter of 2013 were 3,965 units and the Chevrolet Volt, which costs from $40k, sold 4,421 units.

Pruett Vineyard releases wine celebrating the Rolex 24 at Daytona anniversary

Race-car driver Scott Pruett is a master in the vineyard as well as at the track, and his Pruett Vineyard has released four new vintages this fall in time for the gift-giving seasons. The recent releases include a 2008 Pruett Napa Cab, a 2010 Pruett Grenache, a 2009 Lucky Lauren Red and a 2009 Pruett Estate Syrah--which tastes of purple fruits with traces of ginger and black pepper--that commemorates the 50th anniversary of the Rolex 24 at Daytona. Prices for the fall releases range from $29 to $50, and the wines can be found at www.pruettvineyard.com.