The next presidential limousine might look like this

A few days ago, the United States Secret Service posted the bid requirements for a new presidential limousine, which is set to debut during the 2017 inauguration of our nation's 45th chief executive. It's hard to believe that the General Motors-built Cadillac dubbed "The Beast" is already due for replacement, but the fleet of presidential limousines is cycled every four or eight years, with bids accepted from any American automaker. We'll spoil the show for you: the odds of a company other than General Motors winning the bid is pretty slim.

New car sales in UK still growing – up 14.8% April 2013. Driven by PPI Claims?

It is quite hard to fathom just how UK new car sales (well, registrations) continue to rise inexorably against a backdrop of otherwise stagnant economic activity, but they do. April 2013 has seen a total of 163,357 new car registrations, up a huge 14.8 per cent on April 2012 and the best figure since 2008, and these sales figures are not being driven by fleet buyers but by private motorists – private sector registrations grew by 32.3 per cent in April and are up by 15.2 per cent year to date. Not surprisingly, it’s the Superminis that are performing strongly – although all sectors are showing a rise – and it’s the Ford Fiesta that continues to be the best seller in the UK with sales of over 8,000 in April and over 42,000 so far in 2013, and the rise of superminis has also seen an increase in sales of petrol-engined cars thanks to the wave of small capacity, frugal petrol options.

General Motors to drop Goodwrench brand in the United States

UPDATED -- General Motors Co. is dropping the GM Goodwrench car mechanic brand in the United States as the company moves to redirect the marketing emphasis around its four core vehicle brands, the company announced. The long-standing Goodwrench brand--used by GM dealers to promote vehicle repair and maintenance services--will be replaced by Chevrolet Certified Service, Cadillac Certified Service, Buick Certified Service and GMC Certified Service, GM said in a statement released Monday evening.