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New Mazda3 to drive 9,300 miles from Hiroshima, Japan, to Frankfurt, Germany

The new Mazda3 (pictured) is trekking from Hiroshima to Frankfurt If you’re going to set a challenge for a new car, a drive from Hiroshima to Frankfurt – 9,300 miles – is probably one designed to show any flaws. And that’s exactly what Mazda are doing with the new Mazda3. The ‘Mazda Route3 – Hiroshima to Frankfurt Challenger Tour 2013′ will see eight new Mazda3s setting off from the Mazda factory in Hiroshima, heading for Russia, through Belarus and Poland before ending up in Frankfurt, Germany.

Jaguar XF Estate on the way

Jaguar XF Estate - Expected to show as a Concept at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September Jaguar doesn’t have the best history on estate cars (the X-Type Estate, although a reasonable car – and 4WD – was just a Mondeo with smart clothes) but the Jaguar XF is such a triumph for Jaguar that I’m sure we’ll see the XF Estate taking the fight to the Germans in a big way. It’s reasonable to expect the standard engines and trim versions to carry over to the Estate, but apparently so will the mighty XFR trim. Which means we will see a Jaguar Estate car which will be able to take on the likes of the M5 Estate, the E63 AMG Estate and the RS6 Estate.

BMW makes 1,000 workers permanent

AROUND 1,000 agency workers at car giant BMW are to be made permanent employees, guaranteeing job security for years. The change, being made in two phases, was warmly welcomed by the Unite union, describing it as a great Christmas present. The announcement covers workers across a number of BMW sites including the Mini plant in Oxford, pressings plant in Swindon and Hams Hall engine site near Birmingham.