Is there more than a joint minivan project in the future for Chrysler and VW? The Car Connection feeds the flames of corporate speculation. "There is going to be another round of mergers in the auto industry," the chairman for the Center for Automotive research asserts. "And the one company that matches up well with Volkswagen is Chrysler." David Cole feels Chrysler has a lot to offer the German automaker: U.S. production facilities, a large dealer network and recently reduced labor costs. With VW's stated goal of selling a million vehicles in the U.S. per year, they'll have to do something new. That said, the last Chrysler - VW collaboration gave unto us the Volksie-engined  Dodge Omni/Plymouth Horizon twins. Just think of the possibilities now… The next Chrysler 300 could be built on the A6 platform, a revitalized Crossfire could feature a Boxster drivetrain, or the Golf/Rabbit could be the donor for the next Caliber. Of course, if if you switch that around, we could be looking at an A4-a-like with a Sebring-grade interior.

The Car Connection »

Source: Wild Ass Rumor of the Day: VW to Buy Chrysler

 Lambo versus Tornado  23.11.2007 The car is the one on the ground

It was an obvious challenge - the stealth fighter inspired Lamborghini Reventon against a real fighter jet.

The 3km acceleration race took place this week at Brescia military airport.

The high-speed challenge saw an A200-A Tornado aircraft provided by the airbase pitted against the Reventón driven by an official Lamborghini test driver.

Car vs. Jet races have been seen before, most memorably when Top Gear’s Richard Hammond raced a Bugatti Veyron against a Eurofighter.

There are only 20 Reventón cars available, each with a price tag of 1 million euros plus taxes.

All are already sold and will be built and delivered in 2008.

The Lamborghini Reventón, officially presented to the public at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September, has also won the “Most Beautiful Automobile in the World 2007″ award this month.

So back to our race, who won?

The Reventón took the lead in the first leg of the race, but the Tornado caught up in the last few metres, taking off and flying over the Reventón that was travelling at a speed of over 340 km/h.

Back to the drawing board then, Lamborghini…

Source: Lambo Vs a Fighter Jet

A Mercedes-Benz employee of the Laguna Niguel dealership that’s located 50 miles southeast of Los Angeles was convicted to serve 18 months in a federal penitentiary by U.S. District Court in Los Angeles for defrauding the store of more than $1 million.

According to court documents, David Delgado used his position as supervisor of temporary workers to create phony time sheets. Delgado recruited and approved phony time cards for at least 27 temporary workers from 2004 to February 2007- porters and attendants at the dealership's on-site car wash. The workers reported their (unworked) hours to the companies, who billed the dealership based on Delgado's approvals. The staffing agency would then pay the temps who would then split the cash with Delgado. The temporary workers came from two outside staffing agencies, Manpower Inc. and Volt Management Corp. -Continued after the jump

In all, the scammers managed to fill their pockets with $1,053,970. As you probably have guessed already, Delgado was turned in by an employee who revealed the scam to the dealership's general manager, Pat Bolter. Following charges on May 8, Delgado agreed to a plea bargain were we will serve 18 months in a federal penitentiary and repay the $1,053,970 lost by the dealership.

Via: Autonews (sub. Req.)

Source: Mercedes-Benz Employee Steals $1 Million From Dealer!