Scania buyout off
GOTHENBURG - AB Volvo said it would not make a hostile bid for Swedish heavy truck rival Scania. Volvo has spent Skr9.5 billion (euro 1 billion, $1.1 billion) building up a 20 percent stake in Scania. But Investor AB - Scania's main shareholder - has resisted takeover attempts. Volvo Chief Executive Leif Johansson said instead he wanted the two groups to work together to develop a new medium-range truck.
Ford invests in UK
LONDON - Ford will spend more than $800 million over the next two to three years upgrading its Dagenham, England, plant. Capacity will be increased from 272,000 to 450,000 units. The capacity will be split between a Fiesta replacement and a new Fiesta-based model, code named B257.
Ian Morton
Bosch's Japan deal
Bosch is set to acquire Japanese brake supplier Jidosha Kiki on 1 October, subject to regulatory approval. The firm will be renamed Bosch Braking Systems. Jidosha Kiki is a leading manufacturer of brake boosters in Japan. The acquisition would take Bosch's sales in Japan to over DM4 billion (euro 2 billion, $2.2 billion.)
Edmund Chew
Audi fights name
Audi has objected to Renault calling its new coupe/minivan hybrid Avantime. Audi uses the name Avant, and considers that Avantime is a variation on this title. Renault said: 'Discussions are underway with Audi to try and resolve the problem.'
F50 follow-up plan
MODENA - Ferrari President Luca Cordero di Montezemolo has confirmed the F50 supercar will have a successor. 'We are currently planning a special limited edition series,' Montezemolo said. 'It will ideally replace the F50 in the early 2000s.' The car is likely to be called the F60. Ferrari ceased production of the F50 in summer 1997. According to sources, the F60 will feature a carbon fiber chassis and a V-12 6.2-liter engine.
Luca Ciferri
PSA, Siemens JV
PSA/Peugeot-Citroen and Siemens Automotive SA have formed a joint venture to develop a new direct-injection gasoline pump. The pump will be offered on Peugeot and Citroen models beginning in 2000.
Megane for Russia
Avtoframos, the joint venture between Renault and the city of Moscow, has started to assemble semi-knockdown versions of the Megane at the Moskvich plant in the Russian capital. The production target is 2,000 units this year and 8,000 in 2000. Renault plans to make 100,000 cars per year in Russia by 2005.
Stephane Farhi
