News watch May 2011: today's auto industry news

Come to CAR Magazine's news aggregator as we round up the daily stories in the auto industry. Top tip: news summaries are added from the top hour-by-hourTuesday 31 May 2011 • Canada will look to sell their 1.7% share in Chrysler to Fiat, but will be biding their time to see what the US goervment obtain for their own share first.  (autonews.com)• Nissan's St Petersburg, Russia assembly plant will shut down for five days due to lack of engines. The plant, which builds the X-Trail, Murano and Teana midsize saloon models, receives its engines from Japan.

2014 Chevrolet Reaper bumps Silverado to 550 hp

It was only a matter of time before a Chevy Silverado decided to give the Ford Raptor a run for its money, in this case via noted tuner John Lingenfelter. The company announced its new Chevrolet Reaper project at the National Automotive Dealers Association last Friday. The 2014 Reaper is the result of a conversion kit that takes an average Silverado -- already a good truck -- and puts it on steroids, so to speak.

Tesla plans to launch Nissan Leaf fighter in 2016

Tesla Motors will launch its smaller electric sedan in late 2016, with a range of at least 200 miles and a price point "half" of the flagship Model S, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said. Musk's timeline, range and price announcement is the most definitive data so far regarding the so-called "Gen III" vehicle. The current Model S starts at $62,400, meaning the Gen III car will start at about the same price as the Nissan Leaf SV and have triple the real-world range.