Fisker Automotive is looking to hire 120 workers at its newly refurbished Delaware plant as the company gears up for its second electric vehicle,  a sedan code-named Project Nina.

Although the Fisker Karma plug-in hybrid has still not gone on sale, Fisker is looking to hire assembly line workers as well as engineering staff and electro-mechanical technicians. A further 80 workers will be hired in 2012. Fisker acquired the Wilmington, Delaware plant from General Motors.

“This is an exciting time for Fisker. As we bring the Fisker Karma sedan to market and start delivering to customers, we are simultaneously starting to employ a world-class American workforce to build world-class American electric vehicles with extended range (EVer) in a re-commissioned American plant,” said Fisker COO Bernard Koehler.

Whether intentional or not, Subaru seems to be labeled as a “progressive” brand, and while their website contains the usual corporate gibberish about supporting and embracing “…the communities in which we live and work,” the company tends to put its money where its mouth is, openly supporting the LGBT community as well as motorsports and outdoors enthusiasts.

Now a group of women’s rights activists is challenging Subaru to stay consistent, by petitioning them to withdrawn from the Saudi Arabian market. The Middle Eastern nation is currently facing protests regarding their ban on female drivers, and the activists are admonishing Subaru for selling cars in the Saudi market, especially when a significant portion of Subaru drivers are female and their vehicles tend to be marketed towards women.

To its credit, Subaru has a history of making morally courageous but unpopular choices. One long forgotten instance was in the 1960s, when Arab nations threatened Japanese companies with a boycott if they chose to do business with Israel. Subaru ignored the ban, and the company has built up immense goodwill among Israeli motorists, with vehicles like the Impreza and Legacy have been wildly popular in Israel for decades. We wouldn’t hold our breath for Subaru to pull out of Saudia Arabia, but given the company’s history, we could be wrong.

Check out the petition here

KidsAndCars.org, an auto safety group, says it wants General Motors to recall specific vehicles from the 2000 and 2001 model years, following a spate of child deaths caused by suffocation.

A particular case is cited, where two young boys died in the trunk of a Chevy Malibu parked in a driveway in New Carlisle, Indiana. A similar case occurred five years ago when a five year old boy and his sister also died in the trunk of a Malibu, this time in Arkansas.

Federal law has required automakers to install internal trunk releases in all cars and trucks sold in the US from the 2002 model year, incorporating an illuminated handle so those trapped inside can easily see the release.

However, KidsandCars, which interestingly enough put pressure on regulators to make that law mandatory, now wants older cars to be retro-fitted. The group has also pushed for the use of mandatory back up cameras, citing their installation as as a useful tool in preventing children from being run over in driveways as cars are reversing.

In regards to the New Carlisle trunk death case, local police are still currently investigating the root cause, while GM is also taking an active role. The automaker says it will release a statement on the matter sometime in the next few days.

[Source: Wall Street Journal]

Some people are willing to get really passionate about fonts. So with news that Ford is using bold fonts for their next Edge and Explorer, expect a snooty design blog to conduct a thorough editorial analysis on increased font weights.

Ford is starting with the Edge and Explorer, to increase legibility on interior functions. This is targeted at an aging population, one that can’t necessarily see as well.

“If you choose wisely, the legibility of even relatively small text can be a comfortable reading experience,” said Shannon O’Day, a research engineer. “That is especially helpful for drivers on the move.” She headed the study that determined maximum legibility, attractiveness, and clarity based on font sizes, weights, and distances. The age groups studied ranged from 45 to over 60.

Rumors that Ford will print its owners manuals in Comic Sans are still unsubstantiated.

Forty-four years to be precise. According to statistics released from the National Insurance Crime Bureau, the number of cars stolen in the United States last year fell by some 7.2 percent, resulting in the lowest overall total since 1967.

The major reason for the drop in thefts, according to the NICB, is the proliferation of anti-theft devices, that quite simply, make newer cars harder to steal.

And the trend is being driven by insurance companies too, some like Allstate and State Farm, actually provide discounts to motorists who use anti-theft devices, such as tracking systems and engine immobilizers.

During an interview, NICB spokesman Frank Scafidi, said, ”technology both on the manufacturing end and what comes out of the automakers is a lot better than it was. Even on a baseline (entry-level) vehicle today, it’s hard to steal than it was in 2000.”

Another technique attributed to the fall in car crime are so called ‘Bait Programs,’ whereby police departments leave cars unlocked with the keys in the ignition, in the hope of attracting would-be thieves. In the Dallas area, car thefts declined by some 14.5 percent in 2010 as a result of such programs.

However, although overall statistics maybe down, some regions of the country are still leading the way when it comes to vehicle thefts. California, in particular, boasts some of the highest rates of car crime, particularly the Fresno, Central Valley area, which boasts 7,559 thefts, or 812 per 100,000 people.

Tackling it also remains a problem because, as Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer says, ”individuals we arrest for the crime of auto theft are being booked into jail and released, generally the same day. “It is not uncommon for us to arrest the same person for auto theft multiple times in one week.”

Nevertheless, even though overall car thefts are down, motorists still need to take precautions to ensure their vehicle doesn’t end up stolen.

The simplest, the easiest and the most cost-effective is really just to lock the thing,” Scafidi said. “I know that sounds kind of elementary, but there are lots of vehicles that are stolen every year because people make it easy on the thief.”

[Source: Bloomberg]

Satellite radio operator Sirius XM Radio Inc. has decided to offer purchasers of pre-owned vehicles a free three month subscription at more than 1,000 participating GM dealerships across the U.S regardless of the vehicle manufacturer.

“For the first time ever, participating GM dealers are able to give their pre-owned vehicle customers a three-month subscription to Sirius XM regardless of vehicle brand,” said Joe Verbrugge, a senior vice president at Sirius XM.

Pre-owned Cadillac, Chevrolet, Buick and GMC vehicles will also contineu to have a the free three-month subscription until the end of 2011.

Sirius XM reported 20.6 million total subscribers as of March 31, making a nine percent increase from the same period a year before. The company also added 373,064 new users, during the first quarter, making a one-hundred and eighteen percent increase over the same quarter a year earlier.

[Source: Automotive News]

Aston Martin is preparing two V12 Zagato Concept vehicles for the 24-hour Nurburgring race this weekend.

The Zegato Concept was designed by Italian coachbuilder Zagato to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the DB4GT Zagato. The Zagato concept made it’s first appearance at the Concorso D’Eleganza at Villa D’Este in May and won the Design for Concepts and Prototypes.

The number 3 race car will be driven in the 24 hour race by Aston Martin CEO, Dr. Ulrich Bez, the company’s Nürburgring Test Centre Director, Wolfgang Schuhbauer and automotive journalists Horst von Saurma and Matthew Marsh.

The number 5 race car will be driven by One-77 Chief Engineer Chris Porritt, sports car driver Oliver Mathai, automotive journalist Richard Meaden and amateur racer Peter Cate.

Unfortunately, the V12 Zagato will have a very limited production run with the next year, so very few people will get to climb behind the wheel. However, viewers can catch the the Zagato V12 in action this weekend!

Gallery: Aston Martin Zagato V12

Toyota and Honda plan to hire as many as 5,000 temporary workers in Japan for the first time in more than a year as the automotive industry recovers from the March 11 earthquake.

Toyota will be hiring between 3,000 and 4,000 temporary workers from mid-July as the company plans to increase production in October.

This is great news considering Japanese carmakers’ domestic production dropeed 60 percent in April as Toyota’s output in the country plunged 78 percent.

Honda will be hiring 1,000 temporary workers as the company plans to resume normal production numbers as well.

Toyota’s plants suffered a 50-percent production decline in April and May but are running at 90 percent capacity this month. The plan is to reach 100 percent of planned production levels by July.

“Hiring temporary workers shows that the problem with parts supply is being resolved and that the industry is on a solid recovery path,” explained Takeshi Miyao an analyst at the consulting company Carnorama in Tokyo. “There are a lot of back orders and without these additional workers, they won’t be able to catch up fast enough.”

Nissan has also begun hiring around 200 temporary workers to help restore normal production levels.

[Source: Automotive News]

One of the newest safety features in the 2012 Ford Explorer are its rear seatbelts, which inflate during an accident. Now, spurred by the Explorer’s success and advanced safety ratings, Ford is making these available on the Flex and a number of Lincoln vehicles.

The seatbelts expand to protect the head, neck, and chest for rear-seat passengers—most of whom are children or the elderly, as 40% of Explorers have been purchased by parents. They are compatible with child seats and are slim enough to work like normal seatbelts.

And as a result, the Explorer is one of many Ford vehicles with a Top Safety Pick from the Insurance Institute For Highway Safety. The Flex is another; expect its safety street cred to rise once its belts are upgraded. It’s not known which Lincoln vehicles will features these, but the MKX and MKT are probably a good guess.