Proton

Dany Bahar has been fired from Lotus. No one is saying exactly why, at least not in public. But it all comes down to two things: money and ambition.

Malaysia imposes extraordinary levels of tax on cars manufactured outside ASEAN. But due to special temporary arrangements for hybrid cars it's cheaper to buy a dual-fuel Honda than the standard version

Malaysian taxi drivers open their door to hand over tolls - apparently because they fear the electric windows motor will burn out. Proton have never needed to recall for that - but a tiny spring needs to be replaced so Satria Neo and Gen2 cars need to visit the dealer.

VW says - again - that it's courtship with Proton is off.

The announcement that General Motors wanted to buy Chrysler raised a few eyebrows. First, why would the venture capital company that only recently bought it from Daimler-Benz want out so soon; would competition authorities agree; but most of all, where would the money come from?