Paris - The French government will provide funds to subsidize the development and construction of environmentally friendly automobiles, President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Thursday.

"We will earmark more than 400 million euros (550 million dollars) of state funds over the next four years," Sarkozy said in an address at the Paris Automobile Fair.

The money will be used "exclusively" to fund the research and development of "carbon-free cars, that is vehicles with the least possible emission of carbon dioxide, whether electric cars or hybrids," Sarkozy said.

Cologne, Germany - Amid renewed world interest in thrifty little motor scooters, the world's biggest motorcycle trade show, Intermot, opened Wednesday in the German city of Cologne.

"There is a gigantic boom going on in scooters," said Thomas Alber, a motorcycling specialist at Germany's national motoring club ADAC. In Germany alone, new scooter registrations soared 14 per cent this year.

Buyers in Europe have tended to the more powerful models, with at least 125 cubic centimetres (cc) of cylinder capacity.

A 250-cc scooter uses only half as much fuel as a small car, according to Germany's motorcycle industry federation. Scooters also evade traffic jams better and are easier to park in crowded cities.

Ahmedabad/Singur, Oct 8: While Gujarat is rejoicing over Tata Motors decision to shift its ultra low-cost Nano car plant to Sanand near Ahmedabad, residents in Singur are regretting that the makers had to pull out of West Bengal because of violent protests.

Residents in Ahmedabad said that this decision would mean more industrialization for the state.

The team of TATA motors is visiting various locations in different states to shift the mother plant of Nano from Singur. Gujarat can be a favorite location for the company as per the reports from confidential sources. 

The MD of TATA Motors, Ravi Kant is likely to meet Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, to discuss the matter with the state government. Meanwhile, state chief minister has called a meeting of his cabinet to transfer land in Sanand to Ratan Tata for Nano car project.

Wolfsburg- Volkswagen celebrates this month the 40th birthday of the VW 411 sedan that in many ways marked a new era for a carmaker, until then known primarily for the production of the Beetle.

Launched with much fanfare under the slogan: "There has never been a VW like this before," some 367,728 units were produced from 1968 until production ceased in July 1974.

Ingolstadt, Germany - Audi has revamped its top of the range S4 and S4 Avant, giving it a more athletic look and a completely redesigned V6 engine which offers improved performance and efficiency.

First shown to the public at this month's Paris Motor Show, the three-litre V6 with direct fuel injection and mechanical turbocharging, delivers 245 kW/333 hp.

Acceleration of the sedan from zero to 100 km/h is listed at 5.1 seconds with an average fuel consumption of 9.7 litres of fuel per 100 kilometres. The top speed is electronically regulated at 250 km/h.