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Evo grabs Ford's Fiesta R5 rally car by the scruff

Evo and host Henry Catchpole were thinking of excuses reasons to borrow the bonkers Ford Fiesta R5 rally car for a day or two, when it struck them: the car is street legal. With access to the R5, some of the world's most beautiful driving roads in the English Lake Country nearby, and a handy video crewing hanging around, the plan seemed to write itself.
Based on the resulting video, it was a good plan. Without spoiling the video for you - something we can't really do in text as the best part is listening to the rally car run - Catchpole finds the Fiesta to be sublimely quick and massively satisfying. Even taking the car for a spin on a pseudo rally stage, after leaving the English countryside, does nothing but add to his assessment of the beastly little Ford. Scroll on below to see for yourself, and enjoy the ride.

Weekly Recap: GM posts solid profits, not looking for partners

General Motors is not looking for partners. It's big enough already. So says CEO Mary Barra, who shot down overtures from outspoken Fiat-Chrysler chief Sergio Marchionne this week. Barra said GM will look to find scale within its operations, rather than through outside partners. "We think there's tremendous opportunity for us within the business as we look at efficiency measures, as we look at truly achieving the scale that we should have, because we're already in that top tier of the auto industry among the largest OEMs," she said. Barra added: "We have a very well-articulated plan. We're in the middle of executing that, and we're not going to entertain anything that might distract us from accomplishing that." Her remarks came in the wake of Marchionne's provocative comments in March. He expects a wave of industry consolidation and said he's open to teaming with Ford or GM, calling it "technically feasible." Because of its smaller size, FCA would likely stand to gain more from a partnership than GM or Ford. The Blue Oval isn't interested in teaming with Fiat-Chrysler, either. "We have no other plan or interest then to continue to accelerate our One Ford plan, deliver product excellence and drive innovation in every part of our business," a spokesperson said. GM, the largest US automaker, announced a $945-million first-quarter profit on Thursday and posted its best earnings performance in North America since 2009. Earlier in the week, GM confirmed it had sold 2.4 million vehicles around the world in the quarter, ranking behind Toyota (2.52 million) and Volkswagen (2.49 million). Other News & Notes SUVs, EVs shine at Shanghai Motor Show SUVs and electric vehicles grabbed the spotlight at the Shanghai Motor Show this week as companies vied for attention in the world's largest car market. Notably, Honda's Concept D previewed the company's future flagship SUV that's being developed for China, Mercedes rolled out a BMW X4-fighting GLC Coupe concept and Chinese company Qoros debuted its 2 plug-in SUV concept. Nissan, Volvo and several others also showcased utility vehicles in Shanghai. Automakers are rushing to take advantage of the crossover craze in China. The market for locally-produced SUVs grew 50 percent in the first quarter, according to IHS Automotive research, which called the show a "launch pad" for new utility vehicles. Even though SUVs are popular, IHS predicts their growth rate will slow, and sedans account for more sales volume in China.

Which car companies are creating new jobs in America?

Since January, automakers have announced investments totaling $9.5 billion in U.S. plants, creating or retaining more than 12,000 jobs. Some of those companies have yet to announce just how many jobs will be created given their investments, with the location of many of those jobs still to be determined. Specifically, the 4,000-job Toyota-Mazda joint venture plant still hasn't announced its location, with numerous states jockeying for it. Hyundai has plans to invest $1 billion but has not announced a jobs number yet. And likewise Ford is investing $1.2 billion in Michigan without specifying a number of jobs. Volvo this week announced plans to add a second line to its factory under construction in South Carolina, spending another $500 million and adding 2,500 jobs to the 2,000 it was already trying to fill. Then Thursday, Daimler announced a $1 billion expansion to its facility in Tuscaloosa, Ala., to produce EV batteries and electric SUVs, a move that will add 600 jobs to its hiring this year. Above, we've created a handy pie chart showing you which companies have announced new jobs and how many there will be. Reporting by Paul Lienert in Detroit News Source: Reuters Plants/Manufacturing BMW Chrysler Ford GM Honda Hyundai Mazda Mercedes-Benz Toyota Volvo jobs