The Maserati MC12 successfully completed a long run during the American Le Mans Series test day at Mosport International Raceway on Thursday. Fabrizio de Simone drove most of the 90-minute test session, recording the team's fastest lap in one minute 16.228 seconds on the fast 2.459-mile circuit, fourth fastest in the GT1 class. Maserati factory driver Andrea Bertolini took the wheel for the final minutes of the session. Both drivers noted the track had changed considerably since Monday and Tuesday, when they participated in a promoter track test. With other cars and series on track Thursday, the tire rubber left on the track was a different composition. Changing weather conditions also affected the track surface. Andrea Bertolini: "I had only a couple of laps after Fabrizio, because Fabrizio took the start of the session to simulate a long run. I tried just to get a feeling for the balance of the car with the same set of tires. It was different today compared to the other test day, but it wasn't too bad. Tomorrow is more important for us because we will be testing a new tire construction." Fabrizio de Simone: "I found the track conditions very different compared to Monday, a lot less grip, so probably the cars in the other categories left different rubber on the ground. The pace we could keep was quite good compared to the Saleen and the Corvettes. We have to work a little bit to get the right direction under these conditions, but it didn't feel too bad."

Following the successful repositioning of the Alfa Romeo 147 in the Australian car market earlier this year, the award-winning Alfa Romeo 156 has had its price adjusted to maintain Alfa Romeo's reputation for offering outstanding value for money, as well as performance, style and driving excitement. From 1 September 2005 the Alfa Romeo 156 range will open at AUS$44,990 for the 156 JTS manual, while fitted with the Formula One derived sequential manual gearbox, the Alfa Romeo 156 Selespeed is now AUS$47,990. The 156 Ti, which gains unique 17 inch alloys and sports leather upholstery is now AUS$45,990 in manual form and AUS$48,990 with the Selespeed gearbox. The Alfa Romeo 156 Sportwagon, praised for its unique blend of style and versatility, is now available from AUS$48,490 in manual form and AUS$51,490 in Selespeed. The range-topping Alfa Romeo 156 V6, which is fitted with an automatic gearbox as standard, now has a recommended retail price of AUS$57,490. There are no equipment changes to the already specified Alfa Romeo 156 range. "The Australian car market is so dynamic and competitive that to maintain our reputation for value for money we must continually revaluate our pricing so that we maintain our edge," explains David Stone, General Manager for Alfa Romeo in Australia. "The Alfa Romeo 156 is so fully equipped that to maintain our value for money position relative not just to the market place, but also compared to the new Alfa 147, we had to take a sharp pencil to the price list. With this new price structure, the Alfa 156 continues to be the value for money, as well as style and performance, prestige benchmark."

The Reiter Engineering Lamborghini Murcielago R-GT will be aiming at its first podium finish of the season on its home circuit of Oschersleben the weekend. The impressive black car will be driven at the forthcoming round of the FIA GT Championship by Peter Kox and Norman Simon. So far, the car started from 7th position on the grid in Monza and Magny-Cours, and from 6th position in Brno.

The Iveco Spanish branch, Iveco Pegaso S.L., has received an order from the FCC Group, for the supply of 48 vehicles for urban waste collection in the city of Valencia. 21 vehicles will be fueled with compressed natural gas; they will have a gross vehicle weight of 26 ton and a configuration of 3 axles (6x2x4), with  a singlewheeled, steering tag axle, and automatic gearbox; the engine will be the Iveco 8469 CNG, with 9.5-litre displacement and 260bhp. The engine has a gas multi-point electronic injection system, with stoichiometric combustion controlled by a closed Lambda probe circuit. Thanks to this system, engine emissions comply with the Enhanced Environmental Vehicle limits which are, of course, much lower than those of Euro 4 & 5. The remaining vehicles of the order will be: five 3.5 ton Daily; five 14 ton EuroCargo  and fifteen 26 ton Stralis.

Fiat Auto UK is introducing a three year 'peace of mind' package for customers of its new Croma, which goes on sale in the UK on Saturday, 20 August. Consisting of three years'/54,000 miles free servicing at an authorised Fiat dealer, and three years' comprehensive AA cover, as well as the current two year manufacturer plus one year dealer warranty which is standard on the car, the peace of mind package underwrites Fiat Auto's confidence in new Croma's quality, reliability and durability, as well as adding significantly to customer reassurance. Fiat Auto's peace of mind package for new Croma, which has a customer value of around £1200, is available for just £199, and is also available in conjunction with an attractive low rate PCP offer; meaning that new Croma customers – for instance, family drivers who require fixed budgeting – will know that they will pay just £240 per month over a three year period for their new Croma 1.9 8v MultiJet Dynamic, after which they will enjoy a guaranteed residual value, so depreciation costs, as well as service and any roadside assistance, are completely covered.

Yesterday was the second and final day of testing this week for Scuderia Ferrari, working once again at the Fiorano circuit. Marc Gene again took to the track at the wheel of an F2004, to continue with the development work begun yesterday when the for the first time the new V8 engine ran on track. This engine development programme aimed at next season's new rules. The Spanish test driver completed 58 laps (7 of them on the short version of the track,) with a best time of 59.305. Today, still at Fiorano, Gene will carry out the shakedown of the cars that the Scuderia will use at the forthcoming Turkish Grand Prix.Circuit: Test Details - Fiorano track (2.976 km – short course 1.413 km); Driver: Marc Gene; Car:F2004; Weather: air temperature 26/27 °C, track temperature 38/47 °C; a bit cloudy.

Mediobanca, Commerzbank and the Banca Popolare dell'Emilia Romagna finalised sale to Mubdala Development Company (a company owned by the Abu Dhabi government) of 5 pct of Ferrari for 114 million euro, executing the agreement which was signed on 26th July. Mediobanca itself sold 264,706 shares (3.31 pct) for around 75 million, in the process reducing its own stake in Ferrari from 15 to 11.7 pct.

Autodelta have confirmed that they will be taking part in the Alfa Romeo Owners' Club of the Netherlands-organised 'Spettacolo Sportivo Alfa Romeo', on 3rd and 4th September, which this year promises to be an even bigger, better and more well attended event than has become usual. This annual gathering of Alfa Romeos from throughout the marque's 95 year history, is the high point each year of the Dutch Alfa Romeo calendar, and will - once again - be held at the gorgeous seaside Zandvoort race track in Holland. Autodelta will be bringing at least eight cars, including a full model line-up, over from their London headquarters, including the three bespoke models in the range: the Autodelta GT 3.2 Super, the Autodelta 147 GTA AM 3.7 Super, and the Autodelta 156 GTA AM 3.7.

Fiat Auto once again dominated the Brazilian new car market last month. 34,812 new cars were registered in July, giving the Turin carmaker - who has production facilities in the South American nation - a 26.7 pct share of the market. Fiat's overall share for the first six month of 2005 (Jan-Jul) was 25.4 pct, with 224,574 new cars registered, said Brazilian auto trade body, Anfavea, yesterday, who also reported that last month (which saw a total of 138,700 new vehicles registered) was up 3.7 pct on July 2004.

Michael Schumacher commented today on the appointment of Felipe Massa to drive for Scuderia Ferrari during the 2006 F1 season. "I am happy for Felipe. In my view he deserves this change as he is doing a good job since quite a while now," commented the reigning F1 world Champion. "We have seen his talent lately in F1 but also when he was test driver for us. And we have not been the only ones who were interested in him. With Rubens I shared a nice time and a lot of beautiful memories. I wish him all the best in his new team," he concluded.

The Ferrari Fan Club members have an appointment at Maranello on 30 August. On the day they will be able to put forward their proposals to the Prancing Horse ahead of the Club’s national convention, programmed for 22 October at Mugello. “We believe that the reactions to the new statute, often lively and passionate, were positive and constructive”, declared the head of the sports press office, Luca Colajanni. “We would like to hear from fans directly, without intermediaries, in order to discuss the future of the Club. We hope to find the best way to avoid the negative behaviour of a minority which forced us to express strong disapproval. It is important for us all to prepare well for 22 October. We value our fans and communication with them is always open”.

Mr Giorgio Gorelli, Managing Director of Fiat Auto South Africa, accepted the award for the "Most Improved Franchiser for 2005" from Ray Nethercott, the chairman of NADA, and Paul Botha, from Deloitte, at the recent National Automobile Dealers' Association (NADA) Awards. According to Mr Gorelli, the recognition Fiat has received from NADA is a positive indication that the company is on the right track. "We have worked really hard over the last year to improve our communication, training, marketing support and processes, and the dealers have responded by putting all the right ticks in the 14 categories in which we were judged as a manufacturer. Also, from a product renewal point of view, 2005 is a pivotal year for us - exciting model additions like the Panda and the Strada have placed dealers in a far more favourable retailing position, Mr Gorelli said. Further, Mr Gorelli his expressed satisfaction with the mechanism of the Dealer Satisfaction Index, saying that not only was it an invaluable market research tool but that it serves as, "a very real guide to help us plot a course that will see us continually improve in our relations with our dealers." Gorelli concluded by saying that as an organisation, Fiat Auto South Africa is working towards one common objective, and that is to improve its capacity to deliver the best retail service to customers.

Fiat has just released photographs of the all-new Grande Punto, which goes on sale in Europe in September. It’s destined for South African shores in the first quarter of 2006. Following in the wheeltracks of the original, hugely successful Punto hatchback, which has accounted for over six million sales since its launch in 1993, the new Grande Punto's objective is to regain leadership of the highly competitive and crucially important European compact hatchback market.

Long-running negotiations between Fiat Auto and Serbian carmaker Zastava Automobili to assemble the current Fiat Punto model at the Balkan firm's plants are believed to be drawing to a positive conclusion. "We are in the final phase of talks that will result in assembling the Fiat Punto," commented Serbia's Deputy Foreign Economic Relations Minister Vlatko Sekulovic during a press conference in late June. Stumbling blocks have centered around debts that Zastava - who previously built Fiat model's under license but bearing their own brand name - still owe to Fiat Auto, and over levels of Serbian government financial input required to make the project viable. However most issues are now believed to have been resolved.

Lamborghini will build between 70 and 90 units of the striking Concept S showcar it has been revealed. The Concept S was presented at the 75th Geneva Salon on 1st March 2005. Based on the 5.0-litre V10 powered Gallardo model, it offers pointers to the convertible model due to be revealed at September's Frankfurt IAA. Created in-house by Lamborghini the Concept S is a 'roadster' Gallardo with a low cut windshield and a distinctive board running between the front seats.

As of July 1st, 2005, Massimo Faraò takes up the responsibility of the Fiat Brand’s Product. Mr. Faraò reports to Giuseppe Bonollo, who is the Senior Vice President, Product Portfolio Management of Fiat Auto. Born in Rome in 1966, Massimo Faraò graduated in economics at the “La Sapienza” University in Rome. From 1995 to 2000, he worked for Ford Motor Co. in the Sales and Marketing areas in Italy and Great Britain. In 2001, Mr. Faraò joined Fiat Auto as European Regional Marketing Manager and the following year he was named Marketing Manager, Italy for the Fiat Brand. In 2003, Mr. Faraò also took over the responsibility of Sales, Italy for the Fiat Brand, and, in 2004, he was appointed Head of Marketing Worldwide, Fiat Brand.

Fabio Babini will be back behind the wheel of the Maserati MC12 in the ALMS championship on 4 July. After taking the Trident GT out for its debut in the 12 Hours of Sebring, Babini will be alongside Andrea Bertolini at the New England Grand Prix. The race will be held at Lime Rock Park, Connecticut. Babini, who currently races for team Vitaphone in the FIA GT Championship, will be substituting for Fabrizio De Simone who has a bad foot.

From 1 July 2005, Fiat Auto Belgium and Fiat Auto Nederland will be combining their operations, which will then be based in Brussels for cost saving reasons. As a result of this structural change, twenty one jobs will go in Belgium, although it has not been revealed how many will be lost in the Netherlands.

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