Jaguar Land Rover CEO leaves company

Jaguar Land Rover said CEO David Smith will leave the company.

The company said Ravi Kant, managing director of JLR owner Tata Motors, will assume Smith's responsibilities until a successor is announced.

Tata appointed Smith, 48, as JLR CEO in 2008 after the Indian conglomerate bought the British maker of sports cars and SUVs from Ford Motor Co.

"The company would like to thank David for his efforts in the role and for his service to Jaguar and Land Rover over many years," JLR said in a statement on Monday.

Smith, an Englishman, joined Ford in 1983 and served as a finance and strategy expert for Ford of Europe and its Premier Automotive Group during a long career with the U.S. automaker.

He was JLR's chief financial officer before Tata bought the carmaker and served as the company's acting CEO after death of then-CEO Geoff Polites in April 2008. Two months later Tata confirmed Smith's CEO role.

Last month, press reports in the UK and Germany said Carl-Peter Forster, who quit as head of General Motors Europe last November, will take over a senior position at JLR.

The Financial Times said Tata wants Forster to help JLR's plans to switch its product portfolio to low-emission vehicles. During his time with GM Europe Forster led a quality offensive at Opel and a move into low-emission and electric cars.

Forster gained experience with Land Rover during his time as head of production at BMW in the 1990s when BMW owned the British SUV brand, the Financial Times said.

The German weekly magazine Focus also said Forster will join Tata but said he would lead the introduction of the Nano minicar in Europe in 2011.

New Ford hybrid sedans post 41 mpg in the city

Ford Motor Co. said today that its Ford Fusion and Mercury Milanhybrid sedans have been certified by the EPA at 41 mpg city/36 highway.

The ratings put the hybrids' fuel economy at the front of the mid-sized pack, Ford said in a statement. Ford engineers spent three years revamping the gasoline-electric powertrain that debuted in the 2004 Escape Hybrid crossover.

The announcement underscores efforts by the Detroit 3 to bring more fuel-efficient vehicles to market.

During recent congressional hearings for federal bailout funds, the Detroit 3 were criticized for their past adherence to larger vehicles with poor fuel economy.

The latest version of Ford's hybrid powertrain again uses a one-speed continuously variable transmission. The size of the gasoline engine has been increased to 2.5 liters from from 2.3. The nickel-metal hydride battery pack is smaller and lighter but puts out 20 percent more power.

The Fusion Hybrid arrives in dealerships next spring with a base price of $27,270, excluding delivery charges that have not been announced. No price has been announced for the Milan Hybrid.

Competition is stiff among fuel-efficient cars.

Volkswagen's compact diesel-powered Jetta sedan delivers 30 mpg city/41 highway, while the Honda Civic Hybrid sedan gets 40 city/45 highway. The Toyota Camry Hybrid, similar in size to the Fusion and Milan, is rated at 33 city/34 highway.

But Ford may have the edge when it comes to driving on pure electric power. The Fusion Hybrid and Milan Hybrid can reach speeds of 47 mph on electricity alone, a higher speed than other hybrids.

"The Fusion Hybrid's ability to run at much higher speed in electric mode allows drivers to maximize fuel efficiently in many driving situations," said Praveen Cherian, Fusion Hybrid program leader. "This would allow drivers to travel around their subdivision and parking areas in all-electric mode."

Tata may need to invest $1B in Jaguar

 India's Tata group may have to spend at least $1 billion to revive premium brands Jaguar and Land Rover, which were bought by Tata Motors earlier this year, the Economic Timesreported on Tuesday.

Tata Sons, the holding company that holds large stakes in group firms, and unlisted financial services unit Tata Capital are among the options being considered to raise the cash, the newspaper said, quoting unnamed company sources.

"We will do everything in our ability to resource all our operations," the paper quoted a Tata Motors' spokesman as saying. Tata Motors paid $2.3 billion to buy Jaguar and Land Rover from Ford Motor Co. earlier this year, just as global auto sales began collapsing. He declined comment on the size of funds required.

A spokesman for Tata Motors could not be immediately reached by Reuters for comment.

On Monday, UK's Financial Times had reported that Tata Motors had agreed to inject "tens of millions of pounds" into Jaguar and Land Rover to prevent an immediate cash flow crisis.

Tata Motors, which has a market value of about $1.5 billion, has dropped 74 percent so far this year while the main BSE index is down more than half.

Ford has 2 finalists for car, truck of the year

Ford Motor Co. placed two candidates on the short list of finalists for the 2009 North American Car and Truck of the Year awards.

Ford's Flex car and the F-150 pickup are among the six vehicles to make it through the latest round of voting by 50 automotive journalists in the United States and Canada.

The other cars were the diesel-powered Volkswagen Jetta TDI and Hyundai's Genesis luxury sedan. No Korean automaker has made the cut before.

The Mercedes-Benz ML320 Bluetec and the Dodge Ram pickup round out the truck field.

The VW and Mercedes models are the first vehicles with diesel engines to qualify as finalists in the 16-year history of the awards. The winners will be announced Jan. 11 at the Detroit auto show.

Last year, the Chevrolet Malibu won car of the year, and the Mazda CX-9 was honored as the top truck.

Domestic automakers have won the car trophy eight times, the Europeans four times and the Japanese three times.

In trucks, domestics have won nine times, followed by the Japanese four times and the Europeans twice.

Additionally, hybrids have won four times.

More than 50 vehicles were considered this year; 14 cars and 11 trucks made the initial ballot.