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Volkswagen creates driving style-linked music app

VOLKSWAGEN has created a new smartphone that improvises its own music based on how the car is being driven. Working with British electronic musicians Underworld, Volkswagen has built the experimental ‘Play the Road’ app to help celebrate the launch of the seventh generation Golf GTI. It works by connecting to the car and using its own in-built accelerometer to analyse speed, engine revs, steering, throttle and braking inputs and the urgency of each to create a unique, ever-changing music that ranges from serene background chillout vibes to fast-paced electronica.

Pininfarina takeover would boost Magna expertise in key areas

Magna International Inc. would become a stronger competitor for design and development jobs if it takes over struggling car styling and engineering firm Pininfarina S.p.A., executives say. “Magna badly needs design competence, and Pininfarina has top staff,” said Paolo Tumminelli, CEO of Goodbrands GmbH, a brand and marketing consultancy based in Cologne, Germany.

GM to modify Chevrolet Volts to guard against battery fire

General Motors will add a structural reinforcement and devices to prevent overfilling of the battery cooling system in the Chevrolet Volt hybrid sedan to prevent the possibility of a fire after a side crash. The changes come seven months after a Volt caught fire three weeks after being crash-tested by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The government agency in November opened a defect investigation into the Volt because of the battery fire.