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Bob Tasca III earns Nitro Funny Car license

PHOENIX, Ariz. – Bob Tasca III and the Tasca Racing team completed the final step needed for entrance into the NHRA Nitro Funny Car class with a 4.96 second, 317 mph run during testing at Firebird International Raceway on Jan. 31, according to a news statement.

The run qualified Tasca’s NHRA license to be upgraded from Top Alcohol to Nitro Funny Car status.

“It has been a long test session,” said Tasca, driver of the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Shelby Mustang. “A new car, new team and a tough track to deal with, but we did it. It was a big difference in acceleration compared to my Top Alcohol car. To run over 317 mph in under five seconds – it was incredible. We made great progress on our tune-up and the guys got up to speed on servicing the car. Pomona, here we come.”

Tasca will start his run for Rookie-of-the-Year honors in the Nitro Funny Car class next week with the NHRA season-opening Winternationals in Pomona, Calif.

Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth  at 3:24 PM to Racing | Permalink | Comments 0

Ford '07 retail share drops: Toyota, Honda record gains; GM stable; Chrysler down

Automakers report their U.S. sales for January today amid a continuing economic slowdown. But new information about last year's showroom sales already reveals who has momentum in the struggling market, according to the Detroit Free Press.

Ford was the biggest loser in U.S. retail sales last year, dropping nearly a full percentage point of retail market share, according to the latest retail sales estimates provided exclusively to the Free Press by the Power Information Network.

In all, Ford's share dropped from 15.1% in 2006 to 14.2% last year, a decline that represents about half the production for an assembly factory.

Meanwhile, Toyota and Honda picked up most of Ford's decline in the U.S. market. And General Motors has stabilized its retail share, with about 22% of the U.S. market.

Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth  at 10:18 AM to Chrysler , Ford , GM , Honda , Toyota | Permalink | Comments 0

UAW Local fights Chrysler

UAW Local 412 leaders claim Chrysler LLC broke their new labor agreement when it laid off 119 workers Thursday. The union leaders vowed to fight the move, making it the first union local to go public with a labor disagreement since new contracts were signed last fall with the Detroit automakers, according to the Detroit Free Press.

More than 100 UAW members rallied at the local's Warren headquarters over the lunch hour Thursday, just hours after being told by the company that those salaried designers would be laid off indefinitely.

Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth  at 10:16 AM to Chrysler , Unions | Permalink | Comments 0

OPEC: No Boost in Oil Output

VIENNA, Austria -- Shrugging off calls to pump more oil, OPEC ministers said Friday that output levels will not be increased out of fear that a softening global economy will translate into weakened demand, according to the Associated Press.

Any decision by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to produce more would have acted as a shot in the arm for countries struggling with weak growth, the fallout from the U.S. subprime crisis and negative economic factors.

"In view of the current situation, coupled with the projected economic slowdown, the conference decided that current production is sufficient to meet ... demand for the first quarter of the year," an OPEC statement read.

Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth  at 10:13 AM to Crude oil market | Permalink | Comments 0

Oil Prices Extend Decline

Oil prices were slightly lower Friday but showed little reaction to news that OPEC would maintain current output levels, as worries of a possible U.S. recession weighed on crude futures, according to the Associated Press.

Claims for unemployment benefits in the United States jumped by 69,000 last week, the Labor Department said, more than three times what economists expected.

Light, sweet crude for March delivery lost 39 cents to $91.36 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange by midday in Europe.

Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth  at 10:08 AM to Crude oil market | Permalink | Comments 0