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Massive barn find auction with classic Lamborghinis, Porsches, Jaguars happening in France

If it's the right make and model, a single classic car found in a barn can make headlines. This discovery was much bigger. Eighty cars bigger, and now they're going up for auction in France. Brought to our attention by Road & Track, this diverse collection of 81 classic cars from the 1950s, '60s, '70s, and '80s was originally found months ago. The cars were strewn about in the weeds, as seen in the weirdly calming and nicely filmed video seen below. It's not as shockingly impressive as the French barn find from a few years back, but the variety in the lot of rare vehicles is remarkable, nonetheless. Some of the most notable cars included in the auction are a highly coveted Lamborghini Miura P400, a Porsche 356 coupe, a Series 1 Jaguar E-Type coupe, and a Citroen 2CV. Other interesting vehicles include a Chrysler Imperial C14, an Autobianchi Bianchina 110FB, a C3 Corvette T-Top, a Ford Anglia, a Rolland Pilain B22, and a Stutz Speedway Six. The collection is nearly a dictionary of different auto makes: Renault, Alfa Romeo, Cadillac, Lancia, Simca, a Delage, Panhard, Lincoln, Packard, Oldmobile, a Hotchkiss, Graham Paige, Vauxhall, Opel, Peugeot, Trabant, Volkswagen, Audi, Buick, Fiat, Talbot, Mercedes-Benz, and a random Ferrari GTO body kit. There are also some random pieces and parts of cars, including some loose engines. Some of the cars can be secretly bid on right now, but the main auction will occur Sunday, January 20. Full pictures and details can be found here. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. News Source: intrencheres, Road and Track Chrysler Jaguar Lamborghini Porsche Auctions Automotive History Classics barn find

Fiat Chrysler profit up as it closes in on retiring its debt

MILAN — Fiat Chrysler Automobiles reduced its debt by more than expected in the first quarter, putting the carmaker well on course to become cash positive later this year. Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne expects to cancel all debt during 2018 — possibly by the end of June — and generate around 4 billion euros ($5 billion) in net cash by the end of the year. Marchionne has said that forecast does not include any one-off measures, nor the impact of the planned spinoff of parts maker Magneti Marelli, which he hopes to execute by early 2019. The world's seventh-largest carmaker said on Thursday net debt had fallen to 1.3 billion euros ($1.6 billion) by the end of March, well below a consensus forecast of 2.6 billion euros in a Thomson Reuters poll of analysts. FCA said capital spending fell 900 million euros in the quarter due to "program timing," which analysts said implied higher investments for the rest of the year. The Italian-American group said first-quarter operating profit rose 5 percent to 1.61 billion euros, below a consensus forecast of 1.74 billion, as a weaker performance from its North American profit center weighed. Shipments there were higher due to the new Jeep Wrangler and Compass models. But currency moves hit revenues and earnings, and costs related to new product launches added to the pressure. FCA's shift to sell more trucks and SUVs boosted margins yet again in North America to 7.4 percent from 7.3 percent in the same quarter a year ago, although they were down from the 8 percent recorded in the preceding three months. Marchionne, preparing to hand over to an internal successor next year, is close to his goal of ending a margin gap with larger U.S. rivals General Motors and Ford. The 65-year-old has said becoming debt free and being able to compete on a par with U.S. peers would mean FCA no longer needed a partner to survive and could well succeed on its own. The CEO has previously said tying up with another carmaker would help to meet the huge costs in an industry investing in electric vehicles and automated driving. FCA shares fell immediately after the results, but recovered to trade up 3 percent at 19.71 euros by 1150 GMT, outperforming a 0.4 percent rise in Europe's blue-chip stock index. ($1 = 0.8214 euros) Reporting by Agnieszka FlakRelated Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

New Fiat Chrysler CEO picks management team to tackle industry in flux

MILAN/DETROIT — Fiat Chrysler's new boss unveiled his management team on Monday, seeking to revive the automaker in Europe, forge ahead in North America and keep the group in contention in the industry's race to develop self-driving and electric cars. Mike Manley took over in July after long-time chief Sergio Marchionne fell ill and later died after succumbing to complications from surgery. British-born Manley has since pledged to carry through a strategy Marchionne outlined in June to keep FCA "strong and independent." "The next five years will continue to be extremely challenging for our industry, with tougher regulations, intense competition and probably slower industry growth around the world," Manley said in a letter to employees on Monday. "Nevertheless, with a laser focus on execution and a continued flexibility that allows us to adjust as circumstances change ... we have a clear line of sight to achieving our five-year ambitions." Manley appointed Pietro Gorlier, thus far chief operating officer of FCA's components business, as FCA's next European chief to tackle a region where profitability is below that of peers, many workers are stuck in furloughs and various plants run at below capacity. The carmaker's previous European chief Alfredo Altavilla left after FCA appointed Manley as Marchionne's successor. As head of the components unit, Gorlier has also led Magneti Marelli, the parts unit that FCA may either spin off or sell. He will be succeeded at Magneti Marelli by the parts maker's lighting division head Ermanno Ferrari. Japan's Calsonic Kansei has been in talks with FCA about buying the unit, sources familiar with the matter have said, but no binding agreement has been reached and the deal could still fall apart. Choosing an Italian as head of Europe might soothe some fears in Italy that FCA could weaken its link to Fiat's roots. In his last strategy unveiled in June, Marchionne vowed to convert Italian plants to churn out Alfa Romeos, Jeeps and Maseratis instead of less profitable mass market vehicles to preserve jobs and boost margins. Europe will also become a big part of the company's electrification drive. FCA will copy in Europe what worked in the United States, where it retooled plants to build pricier SUVs and trucks in a move since emulated by bigger rivals Ford and GM. Manley also named new managers to succeed him at Jeep and RAM, the two brands which have been driving profits in recent years and remain at the core of growth plans.