Delbrueck, Germany - The Artega GT sports car that celebrated its debut at the Geneva Motor Show in 2006 will be delivered to the first customers in early 2009, the sports car manufacturer has announced.

Powered by a 3.6-litre V6 VW engine, the Artega GT has an output of 220 kW/300 hp with acceleration from zero to 100 km/h in five seconds.

With a length of 4.01 metres, the car is slightly shorter than a VW Golf but has almost the width of a Mercedes S-Class at 1.88 metres. It weighs only 1,100 kilogrammes.

Washington  - US lawmakers were making progress Tuesday toward a 15-billion-dollar bail-out for the US car industry, but some conservative legislators were still balking at the idea of the federal government rescuing a failing industry.

The package being considered is less than half the money that General Motors Corp, Chrysler LLC and Ford Motor Co have sought from Congress. It contains a series of tough conditions including the creation of a White House "car czar" to oversee their restructuring.

Washington , Dec 9 : A majority of Americans believe that bankruptcy for US automakers would have a major impact on the economy, and are evenly split about the prospect of providing government financial assistance for the big three, according to a new CBS News poll.

Forty-five percent of those surveyed approve of government assistance for Ford, General Motors and Chrysler, while nearly as many - 44 percent - disapprove.

Washington  - US President George W Bush and Congress are nearing a deal to approve a 15-billion-dollar bail-out plan for the troubled automotive industry, the White House said Monday.

"Indications are that the legislation is moving more towards what the president could support," White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said, adding "it's very likely" the two sides will arrive at a proposal by late Monday.

Washington  - US President George W Bush and Congress are nearing a deal to soon approve a 15-billion-dollar bailout plan for the troubled automotive industry, the White House said Monday.

"Indications are that the legislation is moving more towards what the president could support," White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said, adding "it's very likely" the two sides will arrive at a proposal by the end of Monday.

Stockholm - Volvo Cars, the Swedish carmaker owned by US giant Ford, is to shed some 2,700 jobs mainly in its home base, the company said Monday.

The announcement was made after unions and management concluded talks. The outcome suggested that 1,000 fewer jobs were to be cut than initially signalled.

Volvo Cars chief executive Stephen Odell said that while he regretted the measures he was "satisfied with the fact that our cost reduction program has been successful and it has enabled us to stay with a lower number of redundancies."