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GM to slash global vehicle platforms by more than half, to 14, by 2018

General Motors says it will cut the number of vehicle platforms it uses globally by more than half over the next decade, in a bid to reduce complexity and save on product-development costs. “More of our components will be common, and more of our vehicles will be on global architectures,” GM CEO Dan Akerson told analysts on Tuesday. His remarks came as GM kicked off a series of presentations online, billed as its 2011 Global Business Conference.

Preview: Goodwood Festival of Speed 2009 – True Grit

By Ben Whitworth Motor Shows 20 March 2009 16:11 The 2009 Festival of Speed – held this year over the weekend of 3-5 July – will honour motorsport’s endurance heroes with a celebration of Le Mans’ 60th anniversary. ‘The Festival will pay tribute to the men who fought against the odds on the track and won,’ Lord March told CAR Online. ‘With drivers like Jochen Mass, Jacky Ickx, Jackie Stewart and Sterling Moss joining us – drivers that went the extra mile in the pursuit of victory – I’m really looking forward to seeing some of the great endurance drivers, riders and machines in action.’ The Festival will also take in a number of other important anniversaries – both Audi and Morgan will be celebrating their centenaries, the Mini will turn 50, and it will mark 40 years of Frank Williams’ involvement in Formula 1.

Mitsubishi to kill current U.S.-made lineup, bring in new platform

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. plans to kill its current lineup of U.S.-made vehicles, including the Eclipse sporty car and Endeavor crossover, over the next three years and switch to producing global vehicles at its Illinois plant, partly to target export markets. The current nameplates will be phased out by 2014 as part of the carmaker's “Jump 2013” mid-term business plan unveiled Thursday by president Osamu Masuko.