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Zender Abarth 500 Corsa Stradale Concept has our attention at last

While this writer knows Zender as the maker of (mostly) fine body kits for German marques such as Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, the company has also been known to make kits for Italian autos. Its latest product, for example, has been applied to the Fiat 500 Abarth, resulting in what it calls the Abarth 500 Corsa Stradale Concept. We're not quite sure how we managed to miss it at the Frankfurt Motor Show, with its bulging fender flares, new front and rear fascias and side skirts, exhaust pipes poking from the bumper/diffuser, 18-inch alloy wheels and huge rear spoiler - but better late than never.
Not only does the kit lend the little Fiat a more aggressive stance, the body pieces also are made of lightweight carbon fiber, which is fitting for a car wearing the Corsa Stradale name (which roughly translates to "Road Race"). Also fitting is the 76-horsepower bump to 236 hp from the 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine. That substantial power increase comes courtesy of a larger turbocharger, modified pistons and camshafts, revised fuel injection with a bigger fuel pressure regulator, upgraded engine management and a stainless-steel exhaust system. So equipped, Zender claims the Corsa Stradale Concept does 0-62 miles per hour in 6.5 seconds, a 0.7-second improvement over the stock Abarth, and 0-124 mph in 24.7 seconds. It continues past the stock Abarth's 130-mph top speed and is claimed to top out at 144 mph.
A reworked height-adjustable coilover suspension helps keep body motions in check, and Zender has also upgraded the interior slightly, with custom sport seats in two-tone leather and stainless-steel pedals and door-sill garnishes.

Reid Bigland appointed CEO of Alfa Romeo, Maserati

There's been a big shakeup in Fiat Chrysler's leadership team, as head of US sales and FCA Canada CEO Reid Bigland will replace Harald Wester as the chief exec for Alfa Romeo and Maserati. Wester will retain his position as chief technical officer of FCA. Both men will hang onto their positions on FCA's Group Executive Council. The move is an interesting one considering the widely publicized issues at both Alfa and Maserati. Alfa Romeo's problems are almost too many to list. The brand has promised a full-scale return to the US market for more than a decade, but faced repeated delays. Its latest volume model, the Giulia, is being savaged by reviewers over quality issues, and the company has frequently pushed its upcoming CUV back. If that were the only problem, it'd be annoying, but according to Automotive News, Alfa's relaunch is also considerably over budget. Maserati is an entirely different can of worms. Alongside Alfa, it's been stung by a slow Chinese market. Profits are down, according to Automotive News, and it's been widely rumored that the company will delay its next sports car, the Alfieri, until 2018 – it was previously promised for this year. Meanwhile, two of its three other models, the Quattroporte and GranTurismo, are dangerously long in the tooth, and the Levante is still months away from US sales. Can Bigland sort these issues out? Maybe. As Sergio Marchionne said in his official statement, "[Bigland] has an extraordinary record of growing sales and market share in the US and Canada over the last 7 years at FCA, including leading the growth and positioning of the Ram and Dodge brands for part of that time."

FCA close to paying off debt, outperforming Ford in earnings

FCA boosting output of SUVs, trucks in U.S. Marchionne says the company no longer needs a merger partner FCA expects to pay off all debt this year "There's a very strong likelihood that we will outperform Ford" MILAN/DETROIT — Fiat Chrysler's shift to sell more trucks and SUVs boosted margins yet again in its North American profit center, making Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne confident he can hit most of the final targets of his five-year turnaround plan. FCA has been retooling some U.S. factories to boost output of lucrative sport-utility vehicles and trucks while ending production of some unprofitable sedans. This put the world's seventh-largest carmaker on track to become debt-free by the end of the year, and allowed Marchionne to make good on his promise to close the gap on larger U.S. rivals General Motors (GM) and Ford. "There's a very strong likelihood that we will outperform Ford in terms of operating earnings in 2018," Marchionne told analysts on an earnings call Thursday. "That's something that if I told any of us in the room here that would've been doable five years ago, nobody would have believed it." As the 65-year-old executive prepares to hand over the reins to an internal successor next year, he said the improvements mean the company no longer needed a partner to survive. The carmaker has often been the subject of merger speculation, especially after its unsuccessful 2015 attempt to tie up with GM. "The necessity to find a partner, to try and guarantee our survival, going forward, is put to bed. I mean we're done," Marchionne told analysts on a post-results conference call. North America accounted for 71 percent of earnings last quarter, and profit margins in the region rose to 8 percent from 7.1 percent a year earlier, even as shipments fell 3 percent. Meanwhile Ford's automotive margin for North America slipped to 6.8 percent, down from 8.5 percent a year earlier.FCA trimmed its expectations for 2018 revenues and forecast adjusted operating profit of at least 8.7 billion euros, at the lower end of a previously given range. Analysts said FCA's margin improvement was impressive, and it could be on the cusp of a big boost from its new Jeep Wrangler and Jeep Cherokee models and its Ram 1500 truck. FCA ready to pay off its debt But the Italian-American carmaker expects to cancel all debt during 2018 — possibly by the end of June — and generate around 4 billion euros in net cash by the end of the year.