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Autoweek in review: Sergio Pininfarina dies; ZL1 and GT500 hit the drag strip

The automotive world lost one of its most influential figures this week. Sergio Pininfarina, longtime chairman of his family's Italian design firm, died on July 2 after an undisclosed illness. He was 85 years old.

Spy Shots: Chevy SS caught testing, rendered

Way back in June, Autoweek published a speculative rendering of the forthcoming Chevrolet SS. The Zeta-platform, rear-wheel-drive, V8-powered follow-up to the late Pontiac G8 was recently spotted testing by the spy photographers at Chris Doane Automotive. Doane was so inspired by General Motors' nascent performance sedan that he commissioned his own Chevy SS rendering.

Mazda opens new plant in Salamanca, Mexico

Mazda Motor Corp. chairman Takashi Yamanouchi opened the company's new small-car assembly plant in Mexico today, calling it the company's "most important global strategic base." The factory, which will produce up to 230,000 vehicles each year, is a cornerstone of the structural reform plan "upon which the very future of company hinges," Yamanouchi said in remarks prepared for the opening ceremony. "Mazda's Structural Reform Plan, upon which the very future of the company hinges, positions this plant as our most important global strategic base," Yamanouchi said of the factory, which is about three hours northwest of Mexico City in Guanajuato State.