Gm Factory Shark Fin Antenna Assembly Oem (yellow) on 2040-parts.com

Who's Where: Martin Uhlarik appointed SAIC UK Design Director

SAIC Motor has announced the appointment of Martin Uhlarik as its new UK Design Director amidst plans to significantly expand its European Design Center at Longbridge, UK. Canadian-born Uhlarik has been appointed by Tony Williams-Kenny, who takes over as Global Design Director at SAIC's Shanghai design base. Uhlarik comes in with experience as Senior Interior Designer for Skoda's Prague studio, Project Design Leader for Nissan Design Europe in London.

Porsche big up the Panamera S E-Hybrid (video)

The Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid (pictured) is a performance Porsche too We’ve long seen hybrids, and plug-in hybrids, as the perfect performance weapon for high-end cars, where the addition of an electric motor offers an unbeatable combination of power and economy. That’s the line that Porsche are taking with the new Panamera S E-Hybrid, and they demonstrated that recently by revealing that the new E-Hybrid managed to average 62mpg in the hands of a bunch of motoring journalists on a test day. Which is an impressive number for any car in the hands of a group of people with lead-lined right feet and clearly demonstrates that the Panamera Hybrid really can do silly mpg even in the real world.

French government vows Renault reform after meeting with Ghosn

The French government will see to it that the individuals responsible for the now debunked Renault SA espionage affair are dealt with, the Finance and Industry ministers said in a statement. "The ministers underscored that they will pay close attention to organizational reform and individual responsibility (at Renault) based on the result of the audit," Finance minister Christine Lagarde and Industry Minister Eric Besson said in a joint statement after meeting with Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn on Thursday. The French state, which owns 15 percent of Renault, has called for a thorough investigation into discredited claims that three Renault executives were spying on the carmaker, possibly for a foreign government.