Quicksilver Verado Air Element 893318t02 on 2040-parts.com

Ford completes $14 million overhaul at its German design studio

Ford has opened a $14.5 million expansion of its design studios at Merkenich-Cologne in Germany. Global design work for Ford's subcompact and compact vehicles, including the Fiesta and the Focus, is done at the center, which is close to the automaker's Cologne factory where the Fiesta is built. The expansion is the largest since the studios were constructed in 1968 and increases the size by about 32,300 square feet to about 172,000 square feet.

Lincoln offers free maintenance for three years on new cars

If you buy or lease a new Lincoln, forget about paying for routine maintenance for awhile. Lincoln announced a promotion starting Friday that offers free scheduled maintenance for three years or 45,000 miles. The incentive runs through Sept.

Crunch watch Dec 09: the auto industry in crisis

Welcome to CAR's news aggregator as we round up the seismic change in the auto industry. Top tip: news summaries are added from the top hour-by-hour Wednesday 30 December 2009• Saab's PR chief told AN that GM is extending the deadline for a sale to 7 January – and the Trollhattan factory will resume limited manufacturing in early January to build the new 9-5 and some 9-3 cabrios (Automotive News, subscription required)• Last night Bloomberg reported a Saab board member claiming that the 31 December deadline for a Saab sale or closure 'is not holy'. If GM receives a bid that is 'sufficiently interesting', it'll extend the deadline, said the Saab suit (Automotive News, subscription required)• GM is offering massive discounts on Pontiac and Saturn cars, as it seeks to get rid of the remaining stock from these terminated brands.