Pune-based DSK Motowheels, which assembles & sells South Korean Hyosung motorcycles, has announced its plans to establish a motorcycle plant in Maharashtra.

The planned facility will be used to produce smaller capacity motorbikes under the brand "DSK Hyosung" from the stable of the South Korea-based firm S and T group, over the coming 2-3 years in India.

Seoul, April 25 - Hyundai Motor, South Korea's top automaker, saw its operating profit fall 10.7 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, a regulatory filing showed Thursday.

Operating profit was 1.87 trillion won ($1.68 billion) in the three months ending March 31, down 10.7 percent from the same period of last year, reported Xinhua.

Sales increased 6 percent from a year before to 21.37 trillion won in the first quarter, while net income declined 14.9 percent to 2.09 trillion won. (IANS)

Paris, April 25 : France's second largest carmaker Renault has said its revenue fell by 11.8 percent to 8.26 billion euros ($10.75 billion) during the first quarter amid persistent economic downturn in the European bloc.

In a statement issued by Renault Wednesday, the company said it sold 608,455 vehicles in the first three months of 2013, down by 4.7 percent for the same period last year as "in Europe, the market was tougher than expected", where the group reported 10-percent fall in its sales.

As to the automotive division, it contributed negatively to the group total revenue with 7.73 billion euros, down 12.6 percent, reported Xinhua.

India's leading automaker, Maruti Suzuki has announced the launch of a limited edition variant of its popular Dzire model called, Dzire Regal in the Indian market.

The company launched the special edition model to mark the fifth anniversary of the Dzire in Indian market. The special edition variant has changes on the interior as well as on the exterior and it will be powered by the same The 1.2-litre K series 87PS petrol engine. The new variant is offering a new Serene Blue colour to the customers and the grille, fog lamps and ORVMs now have a silver-finish.

Czech carmaker Skoda has announced the launch of a limited edition of its Rapid Prestige model in the Indian market.

The limited edition of edition variant of the Rapid, called Rapid Prestige will only be available in the diesel version in the country. The company is offering a host of new features like parking sensors, wind visors, textile floor mats and navigation system in the new special edition variant.

Kolkata, April 22 : Japanese auto maker Honda, which has recently entered India's diesel vehicle segment with the launch of the entry-level sedan Amaze, Monday said it would continue to bring diesel versions of the cars along with petrol which would be rolled out in the next two-three years in the country.

"We bring in the sedan for the dieselisation of the market. We have to go along with the market. And all the models to be launched in the next two-three years will have petrol as well as diesel variants," Honda Siel Cars India Ltd senior vice president Jnaneswar Sen told reporters after launching its new sedan Amaze here.

Japanese auto maker, Honda Motor Company is aiming to sell 50,000 units of both petrol and diesel version of its new Amaze model during the current fiscal year, 2013-14 in the Indian market.

Hyderabad, April 19 : Auto major Ford India, which is gearing up to roll out its much-awaited compact Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) Ford Ecosport in a couple of months, plans to make India the export hub. It is targeting 25 percent exports of its total vehicle capacity in the country.

The vehicle capacity at both its existing plant in Chennai and the upcoming plant near Ahmedabad, which scheduled to become operational next year, will be 440,000 per annum. The engine capacity will be 610,000 units.

Gurgaon April 18 : Passenger car market leader Maruti Suzuki's Swift Dzire and Ertiga cars have been awarded the India Design Mark Award, a company official said here Thursday.

The award is given to products which are trustworthy, reliable, offer value for money, and most importantly, are manufactured in a responsible manner, a Maruti Suzuki spokesperson said.

This is the second consecutive year when this award has been bestowed on Maruti Suzuki models. In 2012, the company's Wagon R and Swift were the winners of this award.

Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India has announced the launch of its new Dream Neo commuter motorcycle, which is claimed to be the cheapest model in the country.

The new Dream Neo will be sold under the company's Dream Yuga commuter motorcycle family that also includes CB Twister. The new entry-level `Dream' series motorcycle is powered by a carburettor-fed, four stroke, single-cylinder, 109cc engine and the company claims that it provides a mileage of 74 km per litre of petrol.

German luxury carmaker, BMW Group has announced that it will begin production of it's the Mini Countryman at its plant near Chennai in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu.

The company is planning to begin the production of the model locally just a year after it entered the Indian market. The company might be looking to offer the model at a cheaper price in the country after beginning local production at the plant. It will be first time BMW will produce the iconic British brand's cars at a plant outside of Europe.

According to the latest figures released, Tata Motors was able to sell just 229,157 Nanos since the company started selling its models in the country.

The Tata Nano car was launched in 2009 however its demand fell in the country drastically after a few models were reported to have caught fire while in use. The company pointed out that the fire incidences were isolated and one off accidents but the demand for more expensive models remained high while Nano did not an increase in demand.

The Indian unit of German luxury car maker, Audi has announced the launch of A6 special edition in the India market to compete better with rivals.

The special edition variant of its A6 premium saloon will be offered to the Indian customers as it marks the sale of 6,000 A6 sedans in the country. The company sold 6,000 A6 units in India during the previous six years in the country. The base trim of Audi A6 special edition comes with e 2.0 litre TDI engine carries.

Japanese automotive giant, Honda has announced the launch of a new motorcycle called ‘Dream Neo’ in the popular segment.

The company will offer the new Dream Neo with a price tag of just Rs. 43,150, which would make it the cheapest two-wheeler in the segment. Honda’s Motorcycle & Scooter India’s (HMSI) 110cc scooter ‘Dio’ was the lowest two-wheeler model at a price tag of Rs. 44,718.

Japan-based Nissan Motor Co on Tuesday reshuffled its senior management team for India operations.

Japanese auto maker Nissan today announced rejig of top management in India with Kenichiro Yomura being appointed as President.

The auto giant announced that it appointed Kenichiro Yomura as the new President of Nissan Motor India. Yomura, who was previously serving the company as MD and CEO, will now be responsible for the company's overall functioning in India.

German carmaker, Volkswagen has indicated that it is planning to launch its new Polo GT model in the Indian market on 25 April, 2013.

The Polo GT will feature a body kit that is similar to Polo SR and will be powered by 1.2-litre TSI motor with a powerful combination of direct injection and turbocharging providing a power output of 105bhp. The company will offer impressive DQ200 seven-speed DSG transmission with the engine for the vehicle.

According to several reports, some leaked pictures of Mahindra and Mahindra's Verito Vibe hatchback have appeared on several websites on the internet.

Bloggers and enthusiast say that the pictures shows that the Verito Vibe has much C pillars than a traditional hatchback model. It appears to be another version of Verito sedan with a rear that can be best described as moderate. The upcoming Verito Vibe, which is likely to compete with the likes of Maruti Suzuki Swift, the Chevrolet Sail and the Hyundai i20, will be launched next month.

The WardsAuto World's list of `10 Best Interiors of 2013' was recently announced by the industry magazine's editors, who selected the best interior designs from among 46 new or notably redesigned vehicles.

The vehicles which featured on the `10 Best Interiors of 2013' list of WardsAuto World included: the Chevrolet Spark four-door hatchback; the compact Kia Forte; midsize Mazda Mazda6 sedan; full-size Toyota Avalon sedan; Cadillac XTS luxury sedan; Lexus GS 450h luxury sedan; Acura RDX; Hyundai Santa Fe Sport SUV; Nissan Pathfinder crossover SUVs; and Ram 1500 full-size pickup's Laramie Longhorn version.

Luxury carmaker, Mercedes Benz (MB) is gearing up to compete in better in the Indian market with new advanced models as the competition heats up between the top three German premium car manufacturers.

Mercedes Benz has been competing with BMW and Audi in the growing Indian luxury car market for market share. The company's engineers are working on new improved versions with higher speeds and quality. All the new models will come with a fresh new MB face and feature advanced technologies that rival others in the market.

Indian automotive major, Hero MotoCorp, which is the world's largest two wheeler maker by volume, has launched a new warranty plan under which it will offer a 5 years or 70,000 kilometer warranty on all its motorcycles.