Marchionne's dilemma: To sell or not to sell Alfa to Volkswagen?

Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne's self-confidence has helped him tackle problems that lesser executives would duck, but he may have met his match. In a public test of Marchionne's faith in his own turnaround strategy, in September Volkswagen Chairman Ferdinand Piech bluntly announced that he wants to buy Alfa Romeo. Piech was suggesting that VW--and only VW--could transform Fiat's perennial money-losing brand into a real moneymaker.

Council Street Light Switch Off Policy Challenged

THE AA has raised concerns over the practice of turning off street lights at night, saying that councils are "ignoring the findings of road-accident inquests" in their bid to save money. The motoring organisation cited the fact that at least five pedestrians and a cyclist have been killed since 2009 because, according to accident investigators at inquests, drivers had little or no chance of avoiding the collisions on blacked-out roads with speed limits of 40mph or higher. The AA added that although some councils have recognised the danger and turned their street lights back on, others were "ignoring inquest findings".

Porsche 911 GT3 R hybrid back to racing in 2012

Porsche will return to the track in 2012 with the third generation of its rolling laboratory, the 911 GT3 R hybrid. The company continues to push its technology, noting its future in the sport. “There is no way around the hybrid technology in motorsport,” said Wolfgang Hatz, board member for research and development.