The good oil: Cayenne little bro on way

The Porsche Cayenne is set to get 'a smaller brother.' Photo / Supplied

Porsche will build a new SUV as part of plans to expand its product range to boost sales. Volkswagen board chairman Martin Winterkorn said the new SUV would be a "smaller brother to the Cayenne and may be named Cajun". VW is taking over Porsche's car-making operations as the companies build on a partnership that includes sharing vehicle platforms. The Porsche Cayenne shares a platform with the VW Touareg and Audi Q7. The new Porsche SUV is expected to appear early in 2015.

Saab buddies up with BMW

BMW is to supply engines for Saab's next generation of cars. The German carmaker will provide 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol units for the mid-sized Saab 9-3 range, due towards the end of 2012. The engines will be adapted to meet Saab's requirements. Victor Muller, chairman of the Swedish carmaker, said: "This is a major step for Saab on our road to becoming a profitable independent premium carmaker." Saab's future in New Zealand and Australia is still up in the air now that it no longer has an official distributor.

Sleek and sexy still coolest

Aston Martin has been named Britain's coolest brand - for the fourth time in five years. The CoolBrands initiative began in 2001 and seeks to define which brands combine desirable products with a dynamic public image. Some 10,000 brands are assessed each year, before being whittled down to the coolest 500. Aston Martin triumphed over leading design-driven names, including Apple and Bang & Olufsen. Stephen Cheliotis, chairman of the CoolBrands Council, said: "Aston Martin's sleek, polished and sexy cars ensure the brand continues to dominate the list."

Ford backs up on nameplates

Ford is looking to pare back its global product line-up to as few as 20 nameplates, says CEO Alan Mulally. "There will be less than 30, on our way to 20 to 25," Mulally told a motoring industry meeting in London. "Fewer brands means you can put more focus into improving the quality of engineering." Ford offered 97 nameplates when Mulally became CEO of the company in 2006. The line-up has since been reduced by terminating some products and selling luxury brands such as Volvo, Jaguar, Land Rover and Aston Martin.

Ferrari listing speculation

Italy's Fiat is considering listing part of its sports car unit, Ferrari, to raise cash in order to increase its stake in US carmaker Chrysler, say reports in Europe. But a Fiat spokesman denied the report, saying: "There are no plans for any Ferrari listing." Fiat, which owns 20 per cent of US-based Chrysler, is expected to increase its holding to 35 per cent once it meets restructuring goals. It has an option to grow to 51 per cent.

Dan's the man when it comes to plots

In the US, the Republican candidate for governor of Colorado, Dan Maes, began his campaign supporting "green" programmes, such as Denver's "bike-sharing" project. Since then, he's rethought his position. He reckons environmental programmes are, in reality, plots. "If you do your homework and research, you realise that encouraging people to park their cars and ride bikes in the city is part of a greater strategy to rein in American cities under a United Nations treaty."

Discretion still greater part of valourPeugeot chief Xavier Peugeot on why the family company has a reputation for being discreet: "Discretion is linked to the family culture, which means putting everything into the company rather than promoting so and so. This may explain why we are still here, 200 years down the road." The company set up shop in France in 1810 making tools.

We are the world

Scottish brewer BrewDog reckons it has cooked up the world's strongest beer. It's a heady ale called The End of History, so named perhaps because you would quickly be history after a wee drop. It is 55 per cent alcohol - and sells for about $1100 a bottle. BrewDog released the first few bottles inside the cured carcasses of roadkill. It wasn't an attempt to enrage anti-alcohol and animal-welfare activists but rather to "elevate the status of beer in our culture". Hmmm ...