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Carlos Ghosn's automaker mantra: Go big or you'll go away

Size matters in auto company survival, Renault and Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn told an audience in Detroit on Tuesday. To cope with the escalating costs and scope of a global industry, successful automakers must complete a trifecta--be able to compete in every technology, every market and every segment, Ghosn said during a luncheon speech at the Detroit Economic Club “No 3 million-unit carmaker can make it,” Ghosn said, explaining why his Renault-Nissan alliance forged an alliance with Germany's Daimler AG. Competency in one or two of the three skills is not enough, and only very large companies can afford all three, he said.

Saab says asset sale to BAIC gives it cash for a fresh start

Saab believes that a deal to sell some key assets to Beijing Automotive Industry Holdings Co. will help secure the money-losing automaker's future. "The money will finance the new Saab and contribute to a good start under new ownership," Saab spokeswoman Gunilla Gustavs said without revealing financial details of the deal.

AW Design Forum: Icon Aircraft banks on design and performance

Icon Aircraft is hard evidence that design can be a difference maker. The startup company plans to launch the Icon A5 amphibious aircraft by late 2011, and its eye-catching design and versatility--it can bank on water and fly--has created a stir among enthusiasts of all stripes. Its philosophy is simple: "Is it badass?