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Ford EcoSport heading for Europe

At Ford’s ‘Go Further’ even in Amsterdam today, it’s been revealed that the compact SUV Ford EcoSport will be sold in Europe. Ford in Brazil has been building a small SUV based on the Fiesta for almost a decade, and the new Ford EcoSport is a new version based on the latest Fiesta platform and already on sale in South America and India. Now Ford has confirmed – to no one’s great surprise – that they will be launching the EcoSport in the UK and Europe in the next eighteen months.

Explosion at GM Tech Center; lithium battery is the suspected cause

According to WWJ CBS Detroit, there was an explosion at the General Motors Tech Center in Warren, Mich., on Wednesday morning. Deputy Fire Chief Gary Wilkinson said the explosion most likely was related to a lithium battery. Wilkinson told Autoweek that a responder notified the HAZMAT team via radio that the explosion involved lithium batteries in the research facility's Alternative Energy Center.

GM bets on new four-cylinder family in Europe; U.S. plans unclear

General Motors' European subsidiary, Opel, has revealed a turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder direct-injection gasoline engine that will be offered from early 2013 across its lineup, starting with the soon-to-be-revealed Astra-based Cascada convertible. The aluminum block unit, the first in a new range of so-called SIDI (spark ignition direct injection) ECOTEC engines, forms the centerpiece of the company's downsizing strategy for displacement. The engine is claimed to have improved torque characteristics and a significant reduction in consumption compared with its predecessor.