As a result, the ratio of Ford’s ownership of Mazda stock will be reduced from 33.4 percent to just over 13 percent, with the new agreement allowing the two companies to continue their strategic relationship that spans nearly 30 years.

“The sale of Mazda shares by our partner, Ford, will not result in any change in Mazda’s strategic direction and we will continue to accelerate our product-led brand improvement and cost innovation initiatives,” says Mazda’s Chairman, President and CEO, Hisakazu Imaki. “We will continue our strategic relationship through our ongoing joint ventures with Ford, as well as the sharing of platforms and powertrains.”

“This agreement allows Ford to raise capital that will help fund our product-led transformation, and at the same time, allows Ford and Mazda to continue our successful strategic relationship in the best interest of both companies,” said Ford President and CEO Alan Mulally.

Ford’s sale of the Mazda stock will be achieved through Mazda and a group of Mazda’s strategic business partners each buying a portion of the shares.

The two companies will continue their strategic relationship

The unveiling of the Mopar Drift Dodge Challenger at SEMA continues Mopar’s long commitment to the rising motorsport of drifting. Mopar and Hübinette teamed up to capture the inaugural FD championship in 2004, with Hübinette also taking the 2006 FD title. Hübinette has claimed nine career FD victories, a series high, spreading the word about Mopar power to the younger demographic of race fans that follow drifting.

“The debut of the Mopar Drift Dodge Challenger solidifies the Mopar theme — if you can dream it, you can build it with Mopar,” said Steve Shugg, Director of Sales and Marketing – Mopar, Chrysler LLC. “Mopar is reaching out to today’s car enthusiast by combining its storied racing heritage with a variety of performance and accessory products that allow customers to make a personal statement with their vehicle.”

Shaun Carlson and Samuel Hübinette on the 2009 Mopar Drift Dodge Challenger The creation of the Mopar Drift Dodge Challenger was no easy task for Carlson and his NuFormz Racing crew.

“We learned a lot from building the Mopar Drift Dodge Charger, which Sam drove during the 2007 season, and transferred that knowledge to the Mopar Drift Dodge Challenger,” said Carlson. ”When we decided to bring out a new competition drift car, what better platform than the new Dodge Challenger. It has cool styling, great aerodynamics and it’s a car that we feel is going to create a lot of buzz among fans of the FD Series.”

The Mopar Drift Dodge Challenger underwent modifications, including a variety of safety components such as a full roll-cage and a five-point harness. A front carbon-fiber splitter and rear carbon-fiber wing were added for improved aero dynamics, and weight was trimmed off the Dodge Challenger SRT8 chassis by utilizing a custom carbon-fiber body by NuFormz Racing.

“One of the biggest modifications was making the car light,” Carlson remarked. “Much of the body is now carbon-fiber, which cut quite a bit of weight. We’ve been able to put a lot of time, effort and hard work into this car. It’s going to be strong.”

The powerplant of the Mopar Drift Dodge Challenger features a Mopar A8 aluminum engine built by Gary Stanton Racing Engines, with Mopar W9 raised port heads, pumping out an estimated 850 hp and 849 lb-ft of torque to BFGoodrich tires. Additional Mopar components include Mopar front and rear sway bars on the suspension.

“This is going to be an exciting time, bringing out another car and another platform,” said Hübinette, who in 2009 will mark his sixth year as a member of Team Mopar. “All that we learned from building the Dodge Charger drift car is transformed into this car and really makes it competitive. The Dodge Challenger is definitely the hot vehicle right now — everybody’s talking about it. Having the vehicle built as a competition drift car is just going to add even more excitement. We’re pumped up about launching this car, doing some testing over the winter and getting it ready to rock, and then taking home some victories next year.”

Photo's of this bad boy are in our SEMA Photo gallery which can be viewed Here.

The new MAZDA3 is perfectly positioned for the rapidly changing auto market. It offers a mix of quality, styling, power, dynamics and fit and finish that hits the bulls-eye for today's customers. In typical Mazda fashion, MAZDA3 will offer standard and optional equipment simply not found on other cars in this class - exactly what buyers looking for more value and less bulk want.

Environmental and safety features, based on Mazda's long-term "Sustainable Zoom-Zoom" vision, aim to balance fun-to-drive with what's right for the environment. Add in bold, expressive styling incorporating Mazda's dynamic design elements, and the all-new MAZDA3 is everything a driver could ask for in a compact sedan.

Since its launch in 2003, the current MAZDA3 has sold nearly 1.8 million vehicles in over 100 countries and has won more than 90 global motoring awards to date. The MAZDA3 accounts for almost one in three Mazdas sold.

Highlights of the 2010 MAZDA3 sedan include, either as standard or optional:

* Available new 167 horsepower MZR 2.5L engine
* Self leveling Bi-Xenon headlights
* Adaptive Front Lighting System
* Mazda's advanced keyless entry and push-button start
* Hands-free Bluetooth® cell phone and audio player integration
* Class-leading levels of reduced wind and road noise
* Class-leading aerodynamics - 0.29 coefficient of drag
* A strategically placed Multi-Information Display (MID) that displays important driver information such as audio settings, trip computer and navigation
* Power driver seat with memory
* 10 speaker BOSE® Centerpoint surround-sound audio system

Following the world debut of the North American-specification four-door sedan at the show, the five-door hatchback version will be revealed in line with Mazda's global sales schedule.

The balance of Mazda's full 2009 lineup will also be on display at the show, including the all-new 2009 MAZDA6 sports sedan, CX-9, CX-7, MAZDA5, RX-8, MX-5 Miata, Tribute and Tribute HEV. All attending media are invited to the company's press conference on the Mazda show stand at 12:20 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2008. The Los Angeles Auto Show is open to the public November 21-30, 2008, at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

Headquartered in Irvine, Calif., Mazda North American Operations oversees the sales, marketing, parts and customer service support of Mazda vehicles in the United States, Canada and Mexico through nearly 900 dealers. Operations in Canada are managed by Mazda Canada, Inc., located in Ontario, Canada, and in Mexico by Mazda Motor de Mexico in Mexico City.

“Many jury members appreciated the looks and visual quality of this model but the new C/D (mid-sized) car from Rüsselsheim is much more than style,” the non-profit COTY organization said.

“Active and passive safety, comfort and a wide array of efficient engines characterize this model. The richness of equipment can be increased with sophisticated options such as the ‘Opel Eye’, that reads road signals, FlexRide suspension and nine-mode Adaptive Forward Lighting.”

Hans Demant, Managing Director of Opel and Vice President of Engineering for General Motors Europe, says: “We are extremely proud the Insignia has been named Car of the Year. This is confirmation of the hard work of our designers, engineers and workers; and their commitment to quality that makes the Insignia a true flagship for our brand.”

The Car of the Year is a designation given by 59 senior motoring correspondents from 23 European countries. They chose the Insignia from a tough field of 37 contenders in this year’s competition. Twenty journalists placed the Insignia as number one.

To be named the best car of 2009, the journalists must take into consideration criteria such as design, safety, handling and performance. “Technical innovation and value-for-money are particularly important factors,” COTY said.

With its breathtaking design and leading technology, the new Opel Insignia, available on the market in notch, hatchback and station wagon variants, truly surpasses these criteria.

The Insignia’s elegant styling can be summed up as sculptural artistry meets German precision. The car also proves to be particularly efficient aerodynamically with a spectacular Cd of 0.27 which positively influences the economic, dynamic and acoustic qualities of the car. Moreover, innovations, like the Opel Eye, which can read road signs and warn drivers when they veer out of the lane, are also segment-leading technologies.

The new car will hit dealerships in Europe this year and early 2009 with a line-up of seven engines. All meet Euro 5 emissions standards and come with six-speed transmissions, either manual or automatic.

The four gasoline engines range from a four-cylinder 115 hp unit to a V6 with 260 hp. The three new direct-injection turbo-diesels exclusively developed for the Insignia feature displacement of 2.0 liters. They offer outputs spanning from 110 to 190 hp and excellent torque values ranging from 260 to 400 Nm. All combinations compare competitively in CO 2 emissions. An ecoFLEX variant with remarkably low fuel consumption and CO 2 emission levels will be added in the near future.

With this designation, the Insignia is the third Opel/Vauxhall model to win this prestigious award. The Kadett won the top spot in 1985; the Omega two years after that. Moreover, it is the first mid-sized sedan to win the award since 1998.

These images show the sports car in all angles, the images i have provided come from GT-R World.

Under the hood the 370Z comes with a 3.7-litre spitting out 332hp and 265 lb/ft of torque. I have also included in this post an apparent leaked image of the Nismo 370Z.

Nismos creation features a sporty bodykit and rear spoiler to improve aerodynamics. However, the revisions aren’t simply skin deep. Nismo is Nissan’s official tuning arm, so there will be plenty of changes under the surface, too. The rear-wheel-drive model should get more power, with the 0-60mph sprint time slashed to around five seconds, while lowered and stiffened suspension sharpens the handling.