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MINI celebrates 100 years of car production in Oxford

MINI will be celebrating a century of car production in Oxford on 28th March 2013, 100 years since the first Bullnose Morris Oxford was produced. It’s 100 years since the first Bullnose Morris Oxford rolled out on 28th March 1903, since when 11,655,000 cars have been built – with as many as 28,000 people employed in its heyday – and even Tiger Moth planes and Iron Lungs built alongside 80,000 repairs to Spitfires and Hurricanes during WWII. What is now MINI’s Plant Oxford was founded by William Morris – and Morris Motors kept control until 1952 – and has been owned and run by BMC, then British Motor Holdings (when Jaguar arrived), British Leyland (when Leyland Trucks, Triumph and Rover joined), nationalisation in the 1970s saw a variety of names, Rover Group arrived in 1986 and was subsequently privatised and sold in 1994 to BMW.

Hyundai HCD-14 concept revealed

Hyundai has given us a sneak preview of its HCD-14 concept vehicle ahead of its debut next week in Detroit. The teaser shot shows a prominent feature line extending from the headlamps to the tail lamps and highlights plenty of curves. It's likely to preview the next-generation of the popular Hyundai Genesis, slated for 2014.

GM's Lutz to retire May 1

General Motors Vice Chairman Bob Lutz plans to retire from the automaker effective May 1, according to a statement released by GM on Wednesday. Lutz, 78, had been serving as a senior adviser to GM Chairman and CEO Ed Whitacre after shelving retirement plans to take charge of the automaker's marketing after it emerged from bankruptcy in July 2009. An outspoken executive who both challenged global warming and championed GM's all-electric Volt, Lutz is credited with revitalizing GM's product development efforts after being hired by former GM CEO Rick Wagoner in 2001.