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Crunch watch Sept 09: the auto industry in crisis

By Tim Pollard Motor Industry 30 September 2009 11:30 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 September 2009• Mitsubishi's global production in August was 62,924 units, a decline of 32.1% compared to August 2008. It was also the 18th consecutive monthly decrease for the Japanese car company (Mitsubishi)• Fernando Alonso has signed a three-year deal to drive for the Scuderia Ferrari F1 team.

Volkswagen Golf R 400 Concept with 395bhp heading for Beijing

The VW Golf R 400 can hit 62mph in 3.9 seconds Volkswagen usually reserve their extreme concepts for the Worthersee Show, but they’re heading to next week’s Beijing Motor Show with a very extreme Golf R. The VW Golf R 400 Concept takes the regular Golf R – perhaps the most ‘grown-up’ hot hatch you can buy – and not only adds more power but extreme styling too. That means the 2.0 litre turbo 4-cylinder engine in the Golf R being crankes up to deliver 395bhp (400PS) which cuts the 0-62mph time by a full second over the production Golf R with the DSG ‘box to a supercar-bashing 3.9 seconds.

Europe's Car of the Year 2011 shortlist announced

The 41 contenders for Europe's 2011 Car of the Year trophy have been whittled down to the final seven as the European CoTY shortlist is announced today. The winner will be voted for by 59 of Europe's most influential motoring journalists, including two CAR writers: editor Phil McNamara and European editor Georg Kacher. The 2010 winner - by just 10 points ahead of the Toyota iQ - was the Volkswagen Polo. Like the Eurovision Song Contest, Car of the Year has proved controversial in the past with accusations of block-voting and blind patriotism, yet the award remains one of the most prestigious in the motor industry.