It didn't take the auto industry long after the holidays to crank up the news machine again. Let's start with Ford Motor Co., which has chosen India's Tata Motors as the automaker it wants to negotiate with for the sale of Ford's Jaguar and Land Rover brands.
Tata, a huge conglomerate, also plans to introduce the world's lowest-price car, the $2,500 "1-lakh" at the New Delhi Auto Expo later this month.
This year also marks General Motors Corp.'s 100th anniversary, which GM kicked off on Thursday with the introduction of what's being called a Wikipedia-type Web site, GMnext.com The site contains videos about GM's planned new technologies, podcasts, bloggers and historical information about the automaker, founded by Billy Durant in 1908.
GM is planning a larger celebration on Sept. 16, the date Flint businessman Durant incorporated GM.
GM has been the world's largest automaker for more than 70 years, but analysts expect it to be overtaken by Toyota Motor Corp. when the two companies announce global sales later this month.
This week, Toyota passed Ford Motor Co. as the second-largest seller of cars and truck in the United States.
What's next? The North American International Auto Show in Detroit, of course. Media previews of the latest cars and trucks begin Jan. 13. Fasten your seat belts--2008 promises to be another wild ride for the auto industry.
