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Motor 1999
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The information below comes from the UK Activity Report.
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Virgin is planning to sell cut-price cars imported from other EU countries over the internet. 30-Dec-1999 Jaguar is to set up its own woodland at the new National Forest in the Midlands, in order to supply walnut for use in car dashboards. 29-Dec-1999 Woodville Polymer Engineering is creating 40 new jobs at its airbags factory in Swadlincote, having won new contracts from Fiat, Volkswagen and Mercedes Benz. 20-Dec-1999 Walon has won a new contract from Toyota for vehicle logistics and preparation services at its site at the Royal Portbury Docks in Bristol, and will take over responsibility for all Toyota vehicle imports. 20-Dec-1999 BMW has announced plans to halve Rover Group purchases from the UK motor components industry, which will result in suppliers losing up to £2bn of business and the possible loss of thousands of jobs. 17-Dec-1999 GKN is to buy a vehicle components plant in Kaiserslautern that produces constant velocity joints from Adam Opel for undisclosed terms. 17-Dec-1999 BMW is to relocate 220 product development engineers and designers from Munich to Gaydon in Warwickshire early next year, in order to develop a new small car for Rover. 16-Dec-1999 John Clark Motor Group is planning to relocate its BMW dealership in Aberdeen to larger premises on Wellington Road. 15-Dec-1999 Transense Technologies is planning to raise £1.8m in a share placing, in order to expand its business designing technology to measure temperature and pressure on automotive parts. 13-Dec-1999 BMW is to go-ahead with a £1.5bn investment programme at the Rover plant in Longbridge, despite the European Commission investigation into the government's £152m aid package for the project. 10-Dec-1999 TK-ECC of Japan has announced a £12m government-backed investment at its seat belt factory in Dundonald, Northern Ireland, in order to improve its service to the major car manufacturers. 08-Dec-1999 Nissan is planning to reach full production of the new Almera car by March 2000, just six weeks after output at the Sunderland plant is started. 08-Dec-1999 Hays has won a £200m contract to distribute truck parts for Iveco, which will involve a warehouse in Cheshire and the creation of 180 jobs. 07-Dec-1999 Johnson Controls Automotive of the US is planning to set up a manufacturing facility in Redditch by June 2000, with the creation of up to 300 jobs. 26-Nov-1999 Helphire is planning to raise £35m in a share placing, in order to expand its vehicle hire and accident management business by acquisition. 26-Nov-1999 Lucas Diesel Systems has been acquired by Delphi Automotive Systems of the US for £538m, which will involve the transfer of 3,200 workers at eight UK sites and continues the break-up of LucasVarity. 25-Nov-1999 LDV has appointed Bethell Group as its van dealership in the Bolton area, following a £1.5m investment by Bethell. 24-Nov-1999 Apax Partners has bought a 49% stake in Prodrive, the motor racing group that runs the Subaru rally team. 22-Nov-1999 Burmah Castrol has announced a global partnership with BMW to develop the next generation of lubricants, and BMW will use Castrol oil in its cars and motorcycles. 22-Nov-1999 Tallent Engineering is to expand output of chassis and suspension frameworks for the automotive industry at its plant in Newton Aycliffe, following a £15m investment programme. 20-Nov-1999 Avis Europe is planning to set up two pan-European call centres to be based in Manchester and France, in order to improve its car rental reservation service. 20-Nov-1999 Trafficmaster is raising £65m in a share offer in order to fund the expansion of its traffic information systems across Europe, and has also formed an alliance with Webraska of France to launch services via the internet and mobile phones. 17-Nov-1999 Walon has unveiled a new £2m car-handling facility at Bristol's Royal Portbury Dock, and the site now employs 450 staff and provides storage for up to 40,000 cars. 16-Nov-1999 Ford is to invest £18m at its Bridgend plant in order to produce Zetec SE four-cylinder engines, and £150m of equipment will be transferred to the plant from other European sites. 13-Nov-1999 M-Sport is to relocate its Cumbria-based Ford World Rally team to a £10m development at the Dovenby Hall estate near Cockermouth in January. 13-Nov-1999 BMW is said to be planning to cut a further 1,800 jobs at Rover over the next three years, by shifting engine production to the new Hams Hall plant and by outsourcing the seating for its new small car. 12-Nov-1999 Motorworld has started construction of a new Volkswagen dealership at Kidlington near Oxford, which will be part of large motor park housing eight car dealerships. 10-Nov-1999 Anderson Cars is to relocate its Aberdeen-based Honda dealership to the premises currently occupied by its Mitsubishi dealership in Lang Stracht, while the Mitsubishi business will be rehoused in Craigshaw Drive. 09-Nov-1999 Auto Indemnity, the provider of accident management services to motorists, is planning to raise about £3.7m in a flotation on Aim. 08-Nov-1999 Horncastle Ford of Reading has taken over the Arrowhead Accident Repair Centre in Theale in order to double the size of its accident repair facilities, and it is now looking to acquire another car sales site. 06-Nov-1999 Ford is seeking 290 volunteers for redundancy, including 86 at its Halewood transmission plant, as part of an ongoing drive to improve competitiveness. 04-Nov-1999 Sovereign Cars, the Swansea-based Nissan dealership, has ceased trading with the loss of up to 30 jobs. 03-Nov-1999 Arriva has announced plans to develop the site of its main Ford dealership at Trimdon Street on Wearside into a 45,000 sq ft retailing centre. 03-Nov-1999 Siemens Business Services has been selected as preferred bidder for a £100m scheme to computerise the MOT testing system for ensuring the roadworthiness of vehicles. 02-Nov-1999 Corkills Motor Group is looking to recruit an additional 30 staff at its new Volkswagen showroom in Liverpool. 29-Oct-1999 Draexlmaier Automotive of Germany is to set up a £5m factory at Rubery to manufacture car components for Rover's nearby Longbridge plant, with the creation of 200 jobs. 29-Oct-1999 Creative Tooling is to create 11 new jobs at its Oswestry factory to manufacture tooling for the new Jensen sports car that will be built on Merseyside. 29-Oct-1999 Jaguar is considering plans to launch a diesel version of the new X400 model, but no decision has yet been made on where they might be built. 25-Oct-1999 Brands Hatch Leisure, the motor racing circuits group, has received a preliminary approach from an unnamed company that could lead to a takeover offer. 23-Oct-1999 Lexus is to set up a network of more than 50 Solus car dealerships by the end of next year. 22-Oct-1999 Nissan has confirmed plans to invest £200m at its Sunderland plant to manufacture a new generation of Primera cars, despite a restructuring programme by its Japanese parent that will reduce the global workforce by 21,000. 22-Oct-1999 BMW is said to be considering Derby as a potential site for a new factory to build Rolls-Royce cars. 21-Oct-1999 Lotus has started work on the expansion of its Norfolk factory to produce a two-seater sports car for General Motors, and the investment will more than double the company's 3,000 cars-a-year output. 19-Oct-1999 LDV is to cut about 60 jobs at its van plant in Birmingham, due to the effect of overseas competition. 19-Oct-1999 Kwik-Fit is considering plans to launch a £110m bid for Auto Windscreens, the car wind screen fitting business. 16-Oct-1999 F Cross & Sons, the Volkswagen specialist, is seeking permission to build a new car dealership in Scunthorpe. 15-Oct-1999 Vauxhall is to launch a web site to sell cars directly to the public in November. 15-Oct-1999 Jensen Motors is to set up a £10m factory on Merseyside to manufacture a new two-seater sports car, building up to 600 units a year and employing 60 people. 13-Oct-1999 Tibbett & Britten is to build a £1m automotive pre-delivery inspection centre at Tynedock through its Axial Logistics division, with the creation of 120 jobs. 13-Oct-1999 Lola Cars, the racing car manufacturer, is planning a flotation in about two years, having recently diversified into automotive consultancy and composite plastics. 13-Oct-1999 Plymouth City Council has approved plans from Vickring to build a Volkswagen showroom at Millbay. 12-Oct-1999 The Consumers Association is to launch its own car dealership to import cut-price cars from continental Europe, as part of an attempt to force car manufacturers to reduce prices. 11-Oct-1999 Mayflower is to set up a new £15m parts manufacturing facility at Larbert, near its existing bus plant in Falkirk. 07-Oct-1999 Goode Durrant has relocated its head office to Darlington and is being renamed Northgate, in preparation for a nationwide expansion of its vehicle hire business that will create 500 jobs over the next five years. 05-Oct-1999 J&J Dyson is closing its Sheffield-based Rover car franchise, Sandygate Motors, with the loss of 24 jobs. 05-Oct-1999 Daewoo of South Korea is in discussions with Sainsbury to extend a pilot scheme selling new cars in supermarkets. 04-Oct-1999 Toyota has announced plans to train hundreds of French car workers at its factory in Derbyshire, in preparation for the opening of the Valenciennes plant in 2001. 02-Oct-1999 Silflex, the South Wales manufacturer of silicon hoses for the automotive industry, is to relocate its production to new premises at Pontyclun. 02-Oct-1999 Caterpillar Logistics Services is to extend its Desford warehouse facilities in Leicestershire having won a contract to distribute parts for Rover, with the creation of 300 jobs. 01-Oct-1999 Braintree District Council is considering plans from JL French to build a new £20m automotive castings factory in Witham, with the creation of 200 jobs. 30-Sep-1999 Ford has opened a new £80m environmental testing centre at Dunton, which can subject cars to a wide range of weather conditions. 28-Sep-1999 GTD, the manufacturer of a replica classic sports car, has relocated its factory from Poole to the Chantry Industrial Estate at Curdworth, Sutton Coldfield. 28-Sep-1999 Wheelers, the Newbury-based Renault garage, is planning to open a showroom in Andover later this year, having been awarded the additional territory by the French car importer. 25-Sep-1999 Viktor Achter is seeking an additional 80 workers for its car seat factory in Burnley. 23-Sep-1999 Dutton Forshaw is to open a new Honda dealership at Stockton's Preston Farm industrial estate, employing 30 staff. 23-Sep-1999 Crofts is to add a commercial vehicle centre at its Toyota base in Billingham, with the creation of eight jobs. 23-Sep-1999 Manganese Bronze is planning to increase export sales by launching a left-hand drive version of its London taxi, with sales to Spain and Germany starting this year. 21-Sep-1999 BMW is recruiting an additional 100 contract workers for its Land Rover plant in Solihull, due to rising demand. 18-Sep-1999 Ford is looking to relocate its Cosworth Racing motorsport business from its Northampton base to larger premises on the outskirts of the town. 18-Sep-1999 The Motor Sports Association has announced that the Network Q rally will be based in Cardiff for at least the next three years. 18-Sep-1999 Cendant is said to have shortlisted Direct Line and Legal & General Ventures to acquire the Green Flag vehicle recovery business. 18-Sep-1999 Tewkesbury Borough Council has approved plans from Hirata of Japan to build a car parts factory in Ashchurch, which will create up to 175 jobs and supply body parts to Honda in Swindon. 16-Sep-1999 Jaguar is offering full-time jobs to half of the 700 contract workers brought in to its Castle Bromwich factory at the start of the year, due to strong demand for the S-type. 15-Sep-1999 Henlys is to raise £111m in a rights issue in order to fund the recently-announced acquisition of US bus maker Blue Bird Corporation. 15-Sep-1999 Pirelli Tyres is to cut 50 administrative jobs at its Burton factory, and a small number of jobs will also be lost at its Carlisle factory. 14-Sep-1999 Ricardo is planning to make acquisitions in continental Europe and south-east Asia in order to expand its automotive consultancy business. 14-Sep-1999 Ford has acquired a 49% stake in the Pendragon Ford dealership for £20m, and the two companies aim to cut costs in areas such as parts ordering, inventory management and warranty claims. 14-Sep-1999 Honda is to reorganise its European car sales and distribution operations by consolidating 20 national divisions into three regional hubs based around London, Paris and Frankfurt. 13-Sep-1999 Paccar is to transfer Foden truck production from Sandbach to its Leyland plant in Lancashire, which will involve the relocation of up to 265 workers. 13-Sep-1999 BCH Vehicle Management of Bristol is seeking a further ten sales executives in order to expand its vehicle fleet from 18,000 to more than 30,000 by the end of next year. 11-Sep-1999 Avis Europe is in negotiations to acquire Autoglass from its South African parent company Plate Glass & Shatterprufe Industries. 11-Sep-1999 Invensys is in negotiations to sell parts of its automotive division to Trelleborg of Sweden. 11-Sep-1999 BMW is to scrap the Rover Group name, probably in favour of BMW Britain, and has also announced plans to introduce contracts in euros for UK component suppliers. 11-Sep-1999 Michelin is planning to reduce its European workforce by 7,500 over the next three years, which could impact some of the 2,900 workers at its tyre factory in Stoke-on-Trent. 10-Sep-1999 British Car Auctions is planning to open new sites in Germany, Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands. 10-Sep-1999 Frogeye, the Isle of Wight-based sports car company, has gone into liquidation. 07-Sep-1999 Multipart has acquired Sheffield-based commercial vehicle parts distributor Kellett and has also announced an exclusive contract to provide aftermarket support for van manufacturer LDV until 2011. 07-Sep-1999 AEA Technology is seeking partners to manufacture its new diesel exhaust filter technology, which is designed to help vehicle makers meet European emissions standards coming into force in 2005. 07-Sep-1999 Ford has announced plans to produce alternative fuel vehicles in Europe, starting with bi-fuel engines for the Transit vans manufactured in Southampton. 06-Sep-1999 TRW is to create 65 jobs at its airbag plant in Peterlee, having won orders from Nissan, Toyota, Jaguar and Porsche. 03-Sep-1999 Reg Vardy has sold the Fiat and Alfa Romeo franchises in Aberdeen to Arnold Clark for undisclosed terms. 03-Sep-1999 Ford is preparing to switch production at its Halewood plant from the Escort to the new Jaguar model, which will involve short-time working as the employees are trained in Jaguar's working practices. 03-Sep-1999 TLS has opened an enlarged vehicle hire depot targeted at the construction industry in Weybridge, and may expand the service nationwide if successful. 02-Sep-1999 Antonov is to raise a further £1m in a share issue in order to fund the development of its automatic gearbox. 28-Aug-1999 Vauxhall is to set up a network of alternative fuel refilling stations, including pumps at specialist fleet dealers, in an attempt to encourage growth in the "green" vehicle market. 27-Aug-1999 The Welsh Development Agency is supporting a £3m project by Mitsui Kinzoku to set up a European headquarters to manufacture car door latches in Carmarthenshire, and up to 220 jobs will be created. 27-Aug-1999 Ford has relocated its European headquarters from Dagenham to Cologne, prompting speculation about the company's commitment to the UK. 23-Aug-1999 EasyJet is planning to launch an online car rental business next year, and is in talks with a number of potential suppliers. 21-Aug-1999 Arriva has sold its Ford dealership in Stockport to the Quartic Motor Group for undisclosed terms. 19-Aug-1999 Continental is to close its Newbridge tyre factory near Edinburgh with the loss of 774 jobs, due to a fall in demand for exports. 19-Aug-1999 Jaguar is looking to increase its luxury car sales in Germany and Japan by overhauling its dealer networks and developing its after-market activities. 16-Aug-1999 TI has bought the remaining 51% of French-based Marwal from Magneti Marelli of Italy for £45m, and hopes the deal will result in closer collaboration with Magneti's parent Fiat. 13-Aug-1999 Toad, the car audio and alarms company, is to extend its alliance with Autoglass into France, by setting up a one-stop shop for French insurance companies dealing with car crime. 12-Aug-1999 Sanderson Bramall Motor is looking to spend up to £26m on acquisitions to expand its vehicle leasing and retail business. 11-Aug-1999 Inchcape is planning to launch online car dealerships in continental Europe and Asia in partnership with Autobytel of the US. 10-Aug-1999 Dixon Motors has acquired Thompson of Hull, and will set up an enlarged car dealership on a 13-acre complex at Priory Park by June 2000. 05-Aug-1999 GKN is restructuring its motor vehicle components business by moving production to low-cost countries such as Poland and Slovenia. 05-Aug-1999 The AA has put its Fanum House office building in Bristol up for sale, and staff will be relocated to other sites in September. 03-Aug-1999 Hamer Group has acquired Appleyards' Toyota dealership in Hockley, and plans to create 100 jobs by setting up new dealerships at the Star City complex and in south Birmingham. 02-Aug-1999 Cendant has shortlisted seven bidders in the auction of the Green Flag vehicle recovery business, and the final price is expected to be about £200m. 31-Jul-1999 Ian Anthony Group is to open a £1m BMW-approved body shop in Bolton in September, with the creation of 25 jobs. 29-Jul-1999 DaimlerChrysler is planning to launch its two-seater Smart car in the UK by 2001, which is expected to lead to an expansion in its dealer network. 26-Jul-1999 Mercedes-Benz is to build the SLR sports car at McLaren Cars' factory in Woking following a £135m investment, and the first sales are expected from 2003. 24-Jul-1999 Piolax is to relocate its car components factory from Burnley to the Altham Business Park near Accrington later this year, with the creation of 60 jobs. 23-Jul-1999 Forward Trust is to cut 90 jobs in its Swan National vehicle contract hire business, and is closing offices in Bristol, Crawley, Langley, Manchester and Woking. 23-Jul-1999 The Retail Motor Industry Federation has welcomed plans from a group of Far East investors to set up a £750m chain of shopping malls for new cars, including potential sites in Burton-on-Trent, Newbury, Leeds and four in continental Europe. 19-Jul-1999 Finelist is selling its Maccess car parts retailing business to Barclays Private Equity for £68m, in order to reduce debt. 17-Jul-1999 Greenhous, the Stoke-based Vauxhall dealer, has bought Randles Vauxhall in Newcastle-under-Lyme for undisclosed terms. 16-Jul-1999 Ford is to extend short-time working at its Dagenham plant until September, due to slow European demand for the Fiesta. 16-Jul-1999 Williams Grand Prix is to close its touring car business in Didcot with the loss of 55 jobs, as partner Renault has decided to pull out of the British Touring Car Championship. 15-Jul-1999 Rover has announced plans to spend £400m setting up an assembly line and body shop at Longbridge to manufacture the new Mini. 15-Jul-1999 Ixion Motor has confirmed plans to set up a new Toyota and Mazda dealership at the Oxford Motor Park, while its existing Blenheim Toyota dealership will be sold off. 13-Jul-1999 Brands Hatch Leisure is to launch a £43m bid for the British Racing Drivers Club, in order to gain control of the Silverstone circuit. 13-Jul-1999 Norton is planning to resume motorbike production at its plant near Lichfield next year, following a £10m investment by a group of North American investors. 13-Jul-1999 Sanderson Bramall Motor has sold BMG Rental to Thrifty Car Rental for undisclosed terms, which includes outlets in six towns. 09-Jul-1999 Honda is to relocate the 120 staff at its European headquarters in Reading to a new office at Langley near Slough. 09-Jul-1999 Honda has started construction work on a new £450m car plant in Swindon, in order to expand its European output to 250,000 cars a year by 2003. 07-Jul-1999 Centrica has agreed to buy the AA vehicle breakdown organisation for £1.1bn, and jobs are expected to be lost when the two companies start sharing support services such as call centres. 06-Jul-1999 Bosal UK, the manufacturer of steel car parts, is to cut 75 of the 500 jobs at its Preston factory following a fall in sales. 02-Jul-1999 Reg Vardy is in discussions with two unnamed vehicle manufacturers interested in buying UK garage sites that could then be operated by Vardy. 02-Jul-1999 Obara Corporation has opened a £3m factory in Reading to make welding equipment for the motor industry, and is expected to recruit up to 100 additional workers in the future. 01-Jul-1999 The North West Development Agency has announced that Nichirin of Japan is to set up a £2.7m car parts headquarters in Manchester with the creation of 70 jobs, and it will make brakes, air conditioning and power steering systems. 28-Jun-1999 Leyland Trucks is creating 30 new jobs at its factory near Preston having won a contract to fit braking systems on Ministry of Defence vehicles. 25-Jun-1999 Merlin Land Rover has set up a new £2.5m car showroom in Cardiff, with the creation of 10 jobs. 24-Jun-1999 Centrica is in negotiations to acquire the AA's vehicle recovery business. 24-Jun-1999 BMW has confirmed plans to spend £3.3bn on its Rover subsidiary by rebuilding the Longbridge plant and securing about 9,000 jobs, and the government is providing a £152m aid package. 24-Jun-1999 Honda is to relocate its UK sales headquarters from Chiswick to new premises at Langley near Heathrow early next year, where it will employ about 400 staff. 23-Jun-1999 Mayflower is forming a joint venture company with DaimlerChrysler called Thomas Dennis, in order to manufacture and distribute buses in North America. 23-Jun-1999 JCB is seeking permission from Staffordshire Moorlands Council to build a vehicle test track next to two of its factories. 22-Jun-1999 Boalloy, the Congleton-based truck builder, is cutting 65 jobs in response to a 20% fall in sales caused by recent rises in fuel prices. 21-Jun-1999 Inchcape has opened a new Rover car dealership in Southampton, under the Mann Egerton name. 21-Jun-1999 Accidentcare, the provider of vehicle recovery and car hire services, is planning to raise £1.2m in a flotation on Ofex, in order to improve IT systems and marketing. 21-Jun-1999 Lookers is to set up a £4.5m car dealership in Stretford with the creation of 40 jobs, and it will include franchises for Suzuki, Seat and Mazda. 18-Jun-1999 Mayflower is looking to sell its Dennis Eagle refuse truck business and two airport equipment businesses, in order to raise up to £40m. 18-Jun-1999 ERF has confirmed plans to relocate its truck building operation from Sandbach to a single site at Middlewich, and work on the £25m manufacturing facility is due to start this summer. 17-Jun-1999 Trafficmaster is forming an alliance with Motorola to launch a new device that enables motorists to receive traffic information over a mobile phone network. 16-Jun-1999 Hill Hire is investing £20m in the expansion of its truck and trailer rental business, including the expansion of a number of depots throughout the country. 10-Jun-1999 Michelin is to cut production at its tyre factory in Stoke due to a fall in demand, prompting speculation that jobs will be lost. 09-Jun-1999 Honda has bought 34 acres of land at the Cabot Park distribution park near Avonmouth docks for £10m, in order to double the size of its car distribution centre, and 125 jobs will be created. 09-Jun-1999 Avis Europe has agreed a licensing deal with Japaren that will enable it to hire out Avis-branded cars in Japan. 09-Jun-1999 Sanderson Bramall is planning to build a new Toyota, Fiat and Alfa Romeo car showroom at Langage in Plymouth, creating 25 jobs. 08-Jun-1999 Pavilion Motors is to revamp its Peugeot dealership in Derby, including improvements to the showroom, technical facilities and offices. 08-Jun-1999 Minorplanet Systems is forming an alliance with Aon Risk Services that will enable Aon to sell its vehicle tracking systems to motor insurance customers. 08-Jun-1999 Scuffs, the vehicle refurbishment company, is planning to establish a chain of 200 outlets nationwide, to build on the success of its first store in Bristol. 07-Jun-1999 Toyoda Gosei of Japan is planning to build a plant to make car window seals in Rotherham, creating up to 120 jobs. 04-Jun-1999 Meritor is to close its car sun-roof factory in Birmingham later this year with the loss of 180 jobs, and production will be transferred to Germany. 04-Jun-1999 Dixon Motors has awarded a £5.2m contract to PDR Construction for a new headquarters and distribution centre at Thorne near Doncaster. 03-Jun-1999 Blake Group is setting up a Vauxhall dealership in Matlock with the creation of 15 jobs. 01-Jun-1999 Sunderland Council has announced that Esmar of Spain is to set up a new car components factory at the Sunrise Enterprise Park, with the creation of 50 jobs. 28-May-1999 Rover has been refused planning permission to set up a storage park for 12,000 new vehicles at its Hams Hall site, and is now seeking an alternative location. 28-May-1999 Ford is said to be asking for government funding to secure the future of its engine plant in Bridgend, South Wales. 28-May-1999 Rover is creating 800 new jobs at its Oxford plant in order to build up production of the new R75 saloon car. 27-May-1999 Finelist is close to selling its Maccess car parts retailing business, and discussions are said to be taking place with Barclays Private Equity. 27-May-1999 Ford has confirmed plans for a £468m project to prepare its Dagenham plant for a new generation of cars, and it will link up with local authorities and other companies to provide training and leisure facilities and a 90-acre supplier park. 26-May-1999 CLF International has opened a new £3m factory in Tibshelf, Derbyshire, to manufacture performance exhausts. 25-May-1999 Cendant of the US is selling its PHH fleet management business to Avis Rent A Car for $1.8bn, and is now looking to sell the Green Flag vehicle recovery service in the UK. 25-May-1999 Toyota Motor of Japan is to list on the London and New York stock markets later this year, in order to reflect the increasing globalisation in the industry. 24-May-1999 Torotrak has selected KoyoSeiko of Japan to manufacture bearing parts when its automatic car transmission system goes into volume production. 22-May-1999 Rover is planning to integrate its tooling operations with parent company BMW, raising the prospect of job losses at its Swindon plant. 21-May-1999 Rover is planning a £5m extension at its Land Rover panel pressing plant in Solihull, and Tilbury Douglas is expected to win the construction contract. 20-May-1999 Toyota is shedding up to 100 workers on short-term contracts at its factory in Burnaston, as part of its ongoing cost-reduction programme. 19-May-1999 Boarhunt Garage of Fareham has acquired Central Garage of Portsmouth in order to create the largest specialist vehicle recovery firm on the South Coast. 18-May-1999 Colt Car is cutting 70 jobs at the head office of its Mitsubishi distribution business in Cirencester, blaming competition from European manufacturers and a decline in the company car market. 18-May-1999 LucasVarity's US parent company TRW is planning to raise $1.5bn from the sale of car parts businesses that employ 8,000 people in the UK, including Lucas Diesel Systems, Lucas Wiring and TRW Engine Components. 18-May-1999 Avon Rubber is looking to sell its textiles business and some of its smaller automotive operations in order to focus on its core automotive and technical products. 14-May-1999 Nissan is said to be considering plans to use its Sunderland plant to manufacture cars that result from its alliance with Renault, and production is likely to start after 2003. 14-May-1999 Ixion Motor is to relocate its Autofrancais Citroen dealership from Oxford's Cumnor Hill to a new site in the city, in order to make space for the construction of a new TWR Jaguar dealership. 12-May-1999 The government is planning to gradually lift restrictions on cheap "grey" imports from the Far East from next March, in order to increase competition in the UK car market. 12-May-1999 Inchcape is to close its Peugeot dealership in Reading with the loss of 50 jobs, as the franchise is being transferred to the Whichford group. 11-May-1999 Irish Road Motors is opening a £1.1m car repair centre at Campsie in Londonderry, with the creation of 40 jobs. 10-May-1999 Honda is widening the search for 1,000 workers for its new car plant in Swindon to the Midlands and the West Country, due to local labour shortages. 10-May-1999 Manganese Bronze, the manufacturer of London cabs, has dropped plans for a management buy-out having failed to win backing from institutional investors. 08-May-1999 LucasVarity is to shed 50 jobs by closing its Fen End car components design centre in Warwickshire, and about 130 staff will be transferred to expanded facilities at the Shirley Technical Centre. 07-May-1999 Inchcape has won a 10-year contract from Fuji Heavy Industries to import and distribute Subaru vehicles in Australia. 07-May-1999 Jensen Motors has applied for government aid towards a new purpose-built factory in Birmingham, which would create at least 60 jobs. 06-May-1999 Triumph Motorcycles has awarded a contract to Try Construction for the £4.8m expansion of its production facilities at Hinckley in Leicestershire. 06-May-1999 Ford has announced plans to spend £500m revamping its Dagenham plant over the next three years, including a new assembly line and a supplier park to house component manufacturers. 06-May-1999 Jacobs Holdings' Arcade Automotive vehicle shipping division has won a five-year contract with Rolls-Royce Motor Cars to deliver all new Rolls-Royce and Bentley cars around the world. 05-May-1999 Jensen Motors has reached agreement with ten car dealers to sell the new Jensen marque when it comes off the production lines at the end of the year. 03-May-1999 Manganese Bronze, the manufacturer of London cabs, is planning to go private in a management buy-out, as it believes its share price does not reflect the true value of the company. 01-May-1999 ICA, the Bristol-based car auctions company, has changed its name to Manheim Auctions, and will rebrand its nationwide network of 18 centres. 30-Apr-1999 Kwik-Fit is planning to expand its network of car repair centres in Ireland from 19 to more than 40. 29-Apr-1999 Ford and English Partnerships are planning a £220m project to redevelop land around the Ford plant in Dagenham, including an educational campus and visitor centre. 29-Apr-1999 Prestwick Circuits has had its shares suspended due to cash flow problems, prompting fears that up to 600 jobs could be at risk in its automotive electronics factories in Ayr and Irvine. 28-Apr-1999 Lotus is forming an alliance with the Rocky Mountain Institute of the US to develop low-emission cars for mass production, and RMI has set up a company called Hypercar that is aiming to raise $35m from venture capitalists and car makers. 28-Apr-1999 Mobile Windscreens is investing £1.3m in a new headquarters and operations centre on the Kingsland Trading Estate in Bristol. 26-Apr-1999 The British Racing Drivers Club has approved a restructuring plan that will give it the freedom to develop its commercial activities, but the move could prompt Brands Hatch Leisure to try to gain control of the Silverstone circuit. 26-Apr-1999 The Automobile Association is to close its call centre in Leeds in September with the loss of 195 jobs, but hopes that some of the staff will join its growing teleworking team. 24-Apr-1999 Inchcape is to lose a contract to import and distribute Chrysler and Jeep vehicles from the end of the year, as DaimlerChrysler says it now has the infrastructure to do it in-house. 24-Apr-1999 Ring Tread UK, the supplier of retreading equipment for the tyre industry, is moving out of its Middleport factory into a new 10,000-sq-ft warehouse and offices on the Lymedale Business Park in Newcastle under Lyme. 23-Apr-1999 The Office of Fair Trading is to investigate the car servicing and repair market in response to complaints about malpractice, and its report is expected early next year. 23-Apr-1999 UEF Automotive is to invest £5m at its factory in Bromsgrove, in order to expand its auto component forging and finishing facilities. 22-Apr-1999 Ford has announced plans to increase the capacity at its Dagenham plant by two-thirds in order to manufacture a new small car, following an agreement with unions to transform work practices. 22-Apr-1999 Siemens Automotive Systems has opened a new £1m European R&D centre in Telford. 20-Apr-1999 Strathcarron Sports Cars is planning to raise £3m in a share offer, and expects to sell 660 cars next year. 20-Apr-1999 BMW has announced plans to set up a £40m rail link between its Land Rover plant in Solihull and the main rail network, in order to export 100,000 vehicles a year via the Channel Tunnel and Southampton docks. 20-Apr-1999 The Automobile Association is considering plans to move away from its mutual structure, which could involve an acquisition by a company such as Ford, or joint ventures and partnerships. 20-Apr-1999 Krupp Hoesch Woodhead, the manufacturer of springs and suspension parts for the motor industry, is considering plans to close its Newton Aycliffe plant with the loss of up to 130 jobs. 14-Apr-1999 Ford is to acquire Kwik-Fit, the tyres and exhausts repair company, for £1bn, as part of a strategy to become a global leader in the automotive services sector. 13-Apr-1999 Airbags International is looking to expand its car safety products factory in Congleton by producing curtain and foot airbags. 09-Apr-1999 Unipart has agreed to buy back the 19% stake currently held by Rover in a £24m deal. 09-Apr-1999 Matra Datavision is planning to create an extra 20 jobs in Coventry over the next two years, and hopes to benefit from a £50m contract won by its French parent to supply technology engineering services to Renault. 08-Apr-1999 Ryland Group has acquired the Brooklyn Ford dealership in Rugby for undisclosed terms. 08-Apr-1999 Schmitz Cargobull is to cut about 50 jobs at its refrigerated trailers factory in Stanley, due to a fall in orders. 07-Apr-1999 Salvador Caetano of Portugal is seeking to recruit an additional 80 workers for its coach and bus factory in Waterlooville. 07-Apr-1999 Motorworld is to build a Volkswagen showroom and service centre at Oxford's new auto village in Kidlington. 06-Apr-1999 County Durham Development Company has announced that Senstronics is to set up a factory in Newton Aycliffe to make pressure sensors for cars and other industries, with the creation of 200 jobs. 02-Apr-1999 Ford is seeking a further 680 voluntary redundancies, which will affect plants in Dagenham, Halewood, Southampton and Swansea. 02-Apr-1999 International Rectifier of the US is about to start recruiting up to 500 workers for its new £25m electronic car components factory in Swansea. 01-Apr-1999 Hyundai Car is to develop a 30-acre car importing facility at the Port of Tilbury, creating at least 20 new jobs. 01-Apr-1999 BMW has agreed a deal with the government that will secure the future of Rover's Longbridge car plant, and it is thought to involve about £150m of government aid for a £1.7bn investment at the plant. 01-Apr-1999 HR Adcock is to expand its car parts factory in Shepshed, having won a major contract to supply seat adjustment components to Ford in the US. 30-Mar-1999 Visteon Automotive Systems has won a £22m contract to supply chassis parts to Jaguar, securing 330 jobs at its Swansea factory. 30-Mar-1999 LucasVarity is planning to sell its electric wiring systems business for about £120m, as part of a strategy to focus on braking and diesel engine management. 30-Mar-1999 Zevco is to raise £1m in a share offer in order to fund the commercialisation of its fuel cell system for zero-emission vehicles. 29-Mar-1999 RAC Motoring Services has received more than 20 bids in the first round of the auction for the breakdown recovery business, including offers from Ford, Lex Service and British Gas. 27-Mar-1999 Peugeot has announced that its Ryton site will become the only car factory in Europe to work a seven-day week from April, and production will double this year to 155,000 cars. 26-Mar-1999 Ilkeston Co-op Motor Group is to invest £3m opening three new car dealerships in Nottingham, Mansfield and Derby, creating 80 jobs. 25-Mar-1999 Lucas Body Systems is to cut 120 of the 1,000 jobs at its Burnley factory due to falling demand from the motor industry. 24-Mar-1999 Ford has won a £110m contract to supply vans from its Eastleigh plant to British Telecom. 24-Mar-1999 Jungheinrich of Germany has warned that it may cut investment at its lift trucks factory in Leighton Buzzard unless productivity reaches the level of its other plants in France and Germany. 24-Mar-1999 Direct Car Finance is planning to set up a new car financing office at the Sunrise Enterprise Park in Sunderland, with the creation of 35 jobs. 23-Mar-1999 Pilkington Automotive has won a multi-million pound contract to supply hi-tech glass for Jaguar's new S-Type saloon. 23-Mar-1999 The Welsh Development Agency is starting work on a large-scale industrial development at Brocastle that could lead to the creation of 3,000 jobs, and Mexican automotive component company Nemak is interested in building a foundry at the site. 22-Mar-1999 Henlys is planning to spend up to £100m on acquisitions this year in order to expand its bus building activities in the US, and discussions are taking place with a number of companies. 20-Mar-1999 Ford has announced the formation of the Premier Automotive Group, which will enable Jaguar, Aston Martin, Lincoln, and Volvo to pool ideas in the luxury car market. 19-Mar-1999 LucasVarity is to cut 90 jobs at the Stonehouse Industrial Park in Gloucestershire, following the loss of a contract from Caterpillar for the supply of diesel fuel injection equipment. 19-Mar-1999 LDV has announced that it will spend £400m to support the increase in van production at its Washwood Heath plant, and UK vehicle component suppliers are expected to get a large part of this. 19-Mar-1999 Coventry City Council is in discussions with the Quingqi Group of China about plans to set up a scooters factory in Coventry, which would create about 100 jobs. 19-Mar-1999 Kwik-Fit has announced a long-term plan to set up a range of services to take cars "from the showroom to the scrap yard", and could move into car parts retailing, bodyshops, windscreen services and radio replacement. 19-Mar-1999 Dixon Motors is opening a new Renault business centre in Hull. 18-Mar-1999 TLS is to set up a commercial vehicle hire and service depot in Leicester's Putney Road. 18-Mar-1999 Ryland Group is in discussions with an unnamed company to sell a majority stake in its vehicle leasing subsidiary Ryland Multifleet. 18-Mar-1999 BG Automotive, the automotive division of the British Gaskets Group, is setting up a new facility in Swindon for the distribution of gaskets and oil seals. 18-Mar-1999 The new car market is to undergo an inquiry by the Monopolies & Mergers Commission, following allegations that manufacturers and dealers have been distorting competition. 18-Mar-1999 Unipart, the car parts and logistics company, is planning to buy back the 19% stake held by Rover. 17-Mar-1999 Tesco is to start selling scooters in some of its larger stores, prompting speculation that it may be considering a move into the car market. 16-Mar-1999 Auto Windscreens is to set up a national distribution centre for its vehicle glazing business in Birmingham, with the creation of 25 jobs. 15-Mar-1999 Acoat Bodyshop Services has acquired two additional outlets in Yeovil and Swindon, taking the total to 107, as part of a strategy to create a network of 135. 11-Mar-1999 Arriva has bought the Vauxhall dealership in Haverhill from Keith Brown for undisclosed terms. 11-Mar-1999 Sanderson Bramall is to create up to 30 new jobs at its new BMG Rover dealership in Chelmsford. 11-Mar-1999 Peugeot has been awarded £2m of government aid for the £13m expansion of its Ryton car plant, which is creating 900 jobs. 11-Mar-1999 Lotus has announced plans to return to motorsport with a racing car based on the Elise, and 50 jobs will created at its Norfolk base. 10-Mar-1999 Rover is offering to transfer up to 44 workers to Cowley from the Bargoed car components factory in South Wales when it closes next month. 10-Mar-1999 Partco has announced plans to expand its automotive parts distribution business in continental Europe by acquiring small family-held companies. 10-Mar-1999 Rover has announced a series of measures designed to improve its performance, and there will be a greater focus on new products, marketing, productivity, public relations, and quality. 10-Mar-1999 Torbay Engineering Company is cutting about 20 jobs in Paignton due to a fall in demand from the car industry. 08-Mar-1999 Trafficmaster is forming an alliance with Mannesmann of Germany to develop an integrated traffic information system for Europe. 08-Mar-1999 Creative Manufacturing is planning to produce up to 300 Jensen sports cars a year, and will set up a factory near Birmingham that will employ 60 people. 08-Mar-1999 The British Racing Drivers Club is planning to meet in April to decide the future of the Silverstone motor racing circuit, and the options include a flotation and a trade sale. 06-Mar-1999 BMW has applied for about £200m of UK government aid, raising hopes that it is planning to rescue the Rover car plant at Longbridge. 06-Mar-1999 Minorplanet Systems has agreed a £1m deal with Integrated Transport for the development of a new retail product designed to instantly locate stolen cars. 05-Mar-1999 New car registrations were down 53% year-on-year at 84,040 in February due to buyers waiting for the new registration plate in March, according to the SMMT. 05-Mar-1999 Lex Commercials is creating 30 jobs by keeping its vehicle servicing garage in Stoke-on-Trent open for 24 hours a day. 04-Mar-1999 SEAT is looking to add a further 36 car dealerships over the next 18 months, as it prepares to increase company car sales with the launch next month of the new Toledo. 04-Mar-1999 David Brown Radicon of Huddersfield is cutting 30 jobs in its gearbox manufacturing business, but 170 workers will return to full-time working after three months on short-time due to lack of orders. 03-Mar-1999 Mayflower is linking up with DaimlerChrysler to build a US factory to manufacture 1,000 buses a year. 03-Mar-1999 Finelist is preparing plans to expand its car parts business into continental Europe in order to benefit from consolidation among component suppliers. 02-Mar-1999 Pendragon, the car dealership, is planning to sell £30m of businesses this year in order to reduce gearing. 02-Mar-1999 Proton of Malaysia is planning to sell cars direct to the public in the south Midlands, covering towns where it has no dealers such as Rugby, Warwick and Leicester. 01-Mar-1999 Lex Service is seeking to diversify further away from the car retailing market by acquiring business services companies in areas such as stock and fleet management. 26-Feb-1999 BMW is said to be planning to go ahead with a $2.7bn project to replace the Rover 200 and 400 models, although it may decide to locate manufacturing in Hungary or another country in preference to Longbridge. 26-Feb-1999 Cosworth Technology is to receive a £50m investment from its parent company Volkswagen Audi to expand its factories in Wellingborough, Northampton and Worcester and create 700 new jobs. 26-Feb-1999 Maxcar is to open a used car supermarket in Croydon this spring, which will be its second in London. 25-Feb-1999 Avis Europe is to open its first car rental business in India and is also looking for partnership opportunities in China and Japan. 25-Feb-1999 Morrison Construction is expected to win the contract to build the £50m Rockingham Motor Speedway racing circuit near Corby, which will include an oval track, racing school, restaurants and a rail link. 25-Feb-1999 Robert Wright & Son is investing £4.5m in the expansion of its bus building factory in Ballymena which will enable it to produce 700 vehicles a year, and 118 jobs are being created. 24-Feb-1999 Parker Hannifin is to set up a call centre in Derby to control its nationwide network of vans that repair construction and agricultural vehicles, and 10 jobs will be created. 24-Feb-1999 Vauxhall is to set up a £5m engineering centre at Millbrook in Bedfordshire to serve light commercial and recreational vehicle operations, creating 75 new jobs. 23-Feb-1999 Vauxhall and Renault are close to finalising plans to jointly produce a medium-sized van, and about 600 jobs will be created at Vauxhall's Luton plant. 23-Feb-1999 Centrica is said to be interested in bidding for the RAC's motoring services division, as part of a strategy to become a leading provider of household services. 22-Feb-1999 CD Bramall is planning to set up a £1m Rover dealership in Stoke-on-Trent with the creation of 40 jobs. 19-Feb-1999 London Taxis International is planning to set up a £15m factory on the former Keresley Colliery site in Coventry. 17-Feb-1999 Motorail has announced plans to transport 20,000 cars a year to Scotland by rail, for distribution by dealers in the Highlands, and a call centre will be set up in the Inverness area with the creation of 40 jobs. 17-Feb-1999 Holdcroft is to open a new car sales complex in Stoke this summer, and is also seeking planning permission for a new site near Stafford. 17-Feb-1999 Johnson Controls of the US is planning to set up a car seats factory in Solihull to supply Land Rover, with the creation of 350 jobs. 16-Feb-1999 Maserati has announced the near completion of its car dealer network with the opening of 16 outlets. 11-Feb-1999 Mercedes-Benz UK is to buy the Evans Halshaw dealership near its Milton Keynes head office and sell Woking Motors, the Walton-on-Thames dealership. 11-Feb-1999 LucasVarity, the car components maker, is set to be acquired by TRW of the US for £4bn, as Federal-Mogul has now withdrawn its interest. 11-Feb-1999 Rover is to sell off stocks of selected 200 and 400 car models at about 9% below normal prices, in preparation for the introduction of T-registration models in March. 11-Feb-1999 Sales of new commercial vehicles fell by 12% year on year to 20,682 in January, according to the SMMT. 10-Feb-1999 British Steel has joined an international consortium of 26 steel-producing companies to develop a steel-based car for the next century. 09-Feb-1999 Avtovaz of Russia is planning to re-introduce the Lada car into the UK this year, through a network of dealerships across the country. 09-Feb-1999 GKN is planning an alliance with Toyota Machine Works in order to give its car components division greater access to the Japanese market, and they are said to be planning to build a new factory at a cost of £50m. 08-Feb-1999 Rover's Longbridge plant is facing an uncertain future again, following a boardroom reorganisation at parent company BMW that is said to have been prompted by the slow progress being made at Rover. 06-Feb-1999 New car sales were down 21.6% in January compared to last year, and this has been attributed to the introduction of the twice-yearly number plate change and the fact that last year was a record. 06-Feb-1999 Trafficmaster has agreed a five-year contract to supply live traffic information to the Automobile Association from its national network of roadside sensors. 05-Feb-1999 The RAC's attempt to sell its motoring services division to Cendant has been blocked by the government due to the effects it would have had on competition. 05-Feb-1999 Direct Line, the insurance company, has scaled back plans to set up its own network of car body repair centres, and will now stick with the six it operates in Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham, Glasgow, Croydon and Hayes. 04-Feb-1999 Goodyear of the US has formed an alliance with Sumitomo of Japan that could result in changes at their tyre factories in Wolverhampton and Birmingham. 04-Feb-1999 Lookers Motor Group has opened a £7m Mitsubishi dealership in Stockport. 04-Feb-1999 Ballast Wiltshier has won a £2.5m contract to build a car showroom for Lancaster in Eastleigh, Hampshire. 04-Feb-1999 Nissan is seeking to recruit 800 workers to build a new car at its factory in Washington, Tyne & Wear, as part of a £215m investment project. 03-Feb-1999 The EU is dropping proposals to outlaw the use of leaded steel in cars, which would have threatened hundreds of jobs at British Steel in Rotherham. 03-Feb-1999 LucasVarity is to shed more than 700 jobs at its car wiring harnesses plant in Ystradgynlais near Swansea, and the plant will be transformed into a customer support centre employing 100 staff. 30-Jan-1999 Lotus is to set up an automotive engineering division in Coventry with the creation of 50 jobs. 29-Jan-1999 Town & County is to set up a £1.5m Lexus car dealership in Aberdeen, having been awarded the franchise rights for Grampian and the north of Scotland. 28-Jan-1999 Hillfoot Steel Group is to open a £1m Mitsubishi dealership in Sheffield later this year. 28-Jan-1999 Ryland is said to be in discussions to acquire Wyndham Motor, the operator of car dealerships in the Cardiff and Newport areas. 27-Jan-1999 Rover is to suspend production of two Land Rover models due to a fall in demand, but expects to make up for this in the second half of the year. 27-Jan-1999 Ford has announced a three-week shutdown at its Dagenham plant and an extension of short-time working due to a fall in exports. 26-Jan-1999 Michelin has announced a £12m investment at its Ballymena plant in Northern Ireland in order to expand the production of truck tyres for export to North America, and 115 new jobs have already been created. 26-Jan-1999 Hill Hire has raised £1.8m in a cash placing in order to fund the development of a truck and trailer rental depot in Milton Keynes. 26-Jan-1999 Trafficmaster is forming an alliance with the RAC motoring organisation to take operational control of RAC Trafficmaster Telematics. 26-Jan-1999 Jennings is to recruit up to 80 staff for its new £4m Ford dealership in Middlesbrough, while Tristar Nesham is scaling down its operations with the loss of 50 jobs having lost the Ford franchise. 22-Jan-1999 Commercial vehicle sales were up 7.4% in 1998 at 294,510 with small vans up 1.3%, medium vans up 9.8% and heavy trucks up 16.1%, according to the SMMT. 22-Jan-1999 Rover is planning to close its car parts plant in Bargoed, south Wales, with the loss of 45 jobs. 22-Jan-1999 Smith Parkinson is to invest £1m in a new site for its Ford dealership in Brigg, Lincolnshire. 21-Jan-1999 ERF Trucks is seeking to relocate its Sandbach production operation to nearby Middlewich, which would involve moving up to 400 workers. 21-Jan-1999 Lookers is to develop a new £1m Audi dealership site in Thornaby, Teesside. 21-Jan-1999 Barpro is seeking to shed an unspecified number of jobs at its car components factory in Bromsgrove. 21-Jan-1999 Hartwell is planning to develop a new concept £10m Motor Park in Kidlington, which will include seven dealerships and two body shops. 19-Jan-1999 Inchcape Motors Retail has opened a new Hunters Land Rover car dealership in Derby's Pride Park, and TC Harrison Ford and Ilkeston Co-op are also planning to set up dealerships there. 18-Jan-1999 Unipart has won a ten-year extension to its contract to provide a full car parts distribution service for Jaguar. 15-Jan-1999 Swindon Automobiles has opened a £1.5m Jaguar car dealership in Swindon, which will operate under the Sudburys name. 15-Jan-1999 Case UK is to cut 44 jobs at its tractor plant in Doncaster as part of a worldwide restructuring that will result in 3,400 job losses worldwide. 15-Jan-1999 Calsonic is said to be planning to cut up to 100 jobs at its car parts factory in Llanelli. 15-Jan-1999 Broadspeed of Colchester is linking up with Stena to import cars from the Netherlands, which will enable the public to buy cars at up to 40% below UK prices. 15-Jan-1999 The AA is to set up three motoring breakdown supercentres in Cheadle, Halesowen and Thatcham with the creation of 150 jobs, but 390 jobs will be lost at existing sites in Stanmore, Maidstone, Bristol and Belfast. 15-Jan-1999 Schmitz Cargobull is to cut 30 jobs at its refrigerated trailers plant at Stanley, County Durham, following a fall in orders. 14-Jan-1999 Quicks Group has bought the Bristol Street Motors dealership in Stourbridge in a £1.1m deal, and an additional 38 jobs will be created. 14-Jan-1999 Jaguar Cars is acquiring a 60% stake in Jaguar Japan, its Japanese marketing business, from Seibu Department Stores. 14-Jan-1999 Sales of motorcycles and scooters rose 30% to 120,416 in 1998 according to the Motorcycle Industry Association. 14-Jan-1999 Rover is linking up with Caterpillar Logistics to set up a major new car parts warehouse at Desford near Hinckley, which will create 250 jobs. 13-Jan-1999 TRW Automotive Systems has confirmed plans to invest £8.8m in the expansion of its hydraulic steering systems plant in Houghton-le-Spring, which will create 107 jobs. 13-Jan-1999 Sanderson Truck is relocating its truck dealership in Hull to a new site at a cost of £1m. 13-Jan-1999 JCB has announced plans to improve its manufacturing efficiency by transferring mini-excavators from Rugeley to Cheadle and the 2CX backhoe loader from Cheadle to Rocester. 13-Jan-1999 Benfield Motors has opened a new £1.5m Addison Audi Centre in Newcastle. 12-Jan-1999 Leyland Trucks is cutting 64 temporary jobs at its Leyland factory, although it is expecting to create more jobs later this year when production of DAF trucks is transferred from Eindhoven. 12-Jan-1999 Ford is to extend production cuts at its Dagenham plant until March, due to a fall in demand for Fiesta cars and vans in export markets. 12-Jan-1999 Rover has told its suppliers that production will be cut by 10% to 450,000 cars this year, and a new joint sourcing department will be formed with its parent company BMW in Munich. 09-Jan-1999 The Ministry of Defence is planning to award £400m worth of contracts to the private sector this year for the operation and maintenance of non-military vehicles. 08-Jan-1999 New car sales reached 2.25m in 1998, but the SMMT forecasts that sales will fall 8.8% in 1999 due to uncertainty caused by the introduction of the euro and the twice-yearly number plate. 08-Jan-1999 Reg Vardy is planning to increase its dealerships from 64 to 70 by the end of the year and to 100 within two years. 08-Jan-1999 LucasVarity is in discussions with a number of companies that could lead to the expansion of its automotive components business through a series of acquisitions and joint ventures. 07-Jan-1999 Holmes Hall Tanners is to cut about 100 jobs at its car upholstery and leather soles plant in Hull. 06-Jan-1999 MAN Truck & Bus is setting up a new truck dealership at Wentloog near Cardiff. 06-Jan-1999 BMW has confirmed plans to apply for up £200m of government subsidy to develop a new Rover medium-range car at Longbridge. 06-Jan-1999 Vauxhall is said to be planning to announce an investment of up to £40m at Ellesmere Port, in order to supply engines for the new L-Series model and to export V6 engines to Saab. 04-Jan-1999 Peugeot UK is preparing to integrate more closely with its French parent Peugeot/Citroen, prompting speculation that Citroen models could be built at its Ryton plant at some time in the future. 04-Jan-1999 The information below comes from the UK Activity Report. 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