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Automakers suspend some business in Russia following invasion

These Russian GAZ Tigr infantry mobility vehicles were destroyed by Ukrainian fighters in Kharkiv on Monday. (Getty Images)   Global auto and truck makers, including Sweden's Volvo Cars and Germany's Daimler Truck, on Monday suspended some business in Russia following that country's invasion of Ukraine. Russian forces invaded Ukraine last week, marking the biggest attack by one state against another in Europe since World War II. Many firms have idled operations in Russia following Western sanctions against Russia. Energy giant BP Plc, Russia's biggest foreign investor, abruptly announced over the weekend it was abandoning its 20% stake in state-controlled Rosneft at a cost of up to $25 billion. On Monday, Swedish automaker Volvo Cars said it would suspend car shipments to the Russian market until further notice, becoming the first international automaker to do so as sanctions over the invasion continue to bite. In a statement, the company said it had made the decision because of "potential risks associated with trading material with Russia, including the sanctions imposed by the EU and US." "Volvo Cars will not deliver any cars to the Russian market until further notice," it said. A Volvo spokesman said the carmaker exports vehicles to Russia from plants in Sweden, China and the United States. This came as Russia warned Sweden and Finland not to join NATO or risk facing “serious military-political consequences." Volvo sold around 9,000 cars in Russia in 2021, based on industry data. Earlier on Monday, RIA news agency reported Volkswagen had temporarily suspended deliveries of cars already in Russia to local dealerships, citing a company statement. VW had no immediate comment when contacted by Reuters. VW previously said it would halt production for a few days this week at two German factories after a delay in getting parts made in Ukraine. Daimler Truck said on Monday it would freeze its business activities in Russia with immediate effect, including its cooperation with Russian truck maker Kamaz. Mercedes-Benz Group is also looking into legal options to divest its 15% stake in Kamaz as quickly as possible, the Handelsblatt newspaper reported. A Mercedes spokesperson told Reuters business activities would have to be re-evaluated in light of the current events. Mercedes-Benz Group, formerly Daimler AG, was the parent company of Daimler Truck before the truck maker was spun off.

Kimi Raikkonen fastest in first Belgian Grand Prix practice

SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, Belgium — Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen lapped fastest in first practice for the Belgian Grand Prix on Friday but Mercedes, and title contender Lewis Hamilton, still looked every bit the team to beat. A four-time winner at Spa, and with a contract extension for 2018 announced earlier in the week, Raikkonen lapped the longest track on the calendar with a best time of 1 minute 45.502 seconds. The 37-year-old Finn's time was set on the quickest ultra-soft tires, however, while Hamilton — preparing for his 200th race start — was second-fastest and only 0.053 slower on the soft compound. Hamilton was 0.092 faster than Ferrari's world championship leader Sebastian Vettel, with the German third on the timesheets and also setting his time on the quickest but least durable tire. Vettel leads Hamilton by 14 points with nine races remaining. Red Bull's Dutch teenager Max Verstappen, Belgian-born and attracting a huge traveling support of orange-capped fans, was fourth fastest with Australian team mate Daniel Ricciardo fifth. Hamilton's teammate Valtteri Bottas, who bumped into the tire barrier after going off across the gravel and damaged his front wing, was sixth fastest. The session was halted after 15 minutes when Brazilian Felipe Massa, who missed the previous race in Hungary after feeling dizzy in practice, crashed heavily into the tire barrier at turn seven out of Les Combes. He was taken to the medical center for checks, before returning to the pitlane, with his team facing a long job rebuilding the car. The session resumed after a 10 minute stoppage. Williams said the chassis would have to be changed and the team still hoped to get the car back out on track for some of the day's second session, even if that looked like being optimistic. Fernando Alonso suffered a lack of power in his McLaren, but still ended up 13th fastest. Belgian team mate Stoffel Vandoorne, who will start his home race last on Sunday thanks to a 35 place penalty due to a power unit change, was 10th. Reporting by Alan BaldwinRelated Video: Image Credit: Reuters Motorsports Ferrari McLaren Mercedes-Benz F1 Lewis Hamilton Sebastian Vettel Kimi Raikkonen Max Verstappen Valtteri Bottas belgian grand prix

2017 Infiniti QX30 First Drive

If you've heard anything before about this car, the 2017 Infiniti QX30, it probably has to do with its corporate parents, an odd couple if there ever was one. Renault-Nissan, Infiniti's corporate overlords, inked a deal with Mercedes-Benz to share some mechanical components and platforms. That deal put a new, very modern 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four under the hood of the Q50 and was the genesis of what you're looking at here. What are you looking at here? We drove this car in 2015, when it was called a Q30 – originally it was going to be the lower-riding counterpart to the slightly jacked-up QX30. Then Infiniti decided it'd make more sense to sell all variants of this vehicle as CUVs in the US, so we have three slightly different flavors of the QX30 instead. There's the normal version; the Sport, which is 0.6 inches lower; and the AWD, which is 1.2 inches higher. Infiniti brought us to Seattle to sample the Sport and AWD flavors on a semi-circumnavigation of the Puget Sound. It didn't rain a drop, thanks for asking, and instead was sunny and mild the whole time. It's easy to make the QX30 sound more confusing than it actually is. This is essentially a Mercedes-Benz GLA250 with full exterior styling and partial interior design by Infiniti, built in the UK alongside several other Nissans. The powertrain and chassis, including the optional AWD system, were all "co-developed" with partner Daimler, with final calibration and tuning by Infiniti engineers. Here's another way of explaining it: Infiniti needs an entry-level car to appeal to new premium car shoppers, and the QX30 is the prescription. It's a hatchback that's been given the mildest of CUV treatments and a lot of marketing descriptors. That's because hatchbacks are sales death in America. In Europe, they'll see right through the CUV posturing and realize it's just a hatchback offered in three different suspension heights. Whatever you call it to make it palatable to Americans, it's a useful little vehicle. This car is mechanically identical to the Q30, so there are some things we can gloss over. Both are powered by a transverse-mounted 2.0-liter Mercedes inline-four. It's a turbocharged, direct-injection gasoline engine, and it sure feels like one. It sounds like a rock tumbler full of nickels and runs out of breath at about 5,000 rpm. All versions make 208 hp at 5,500 rpm and 258 lb-ft of torque between 1,200 and 4,400 rpm – more than adequate but less than thrilling.