DaimlerChrysler, Volkswagen increase worldwide sales
Sttutgart/Wolfsburg, Germany: Volkswagen AG and DaimlerChrysler AG, the world's fourth- and fifth-largest carmakers, have reported increases in worldwide car sales for 2005 with the introduction of new models such as the Mercedes-Benz R-Class and a revamped Volkswagen Passat.

DaimlerChrysler reported a 3.8 per cent rise in sales to 4.05 million units, as Chrysler reported a 4.7 per cent rise to 2.83 million vehicles. Mercedes Car Group sales increased 1.7 per cent to 1.22 million units, while Volkswagen sold 5.34 million units, marking a 3.2 per cent increase.

Both the carmakers have benefited from increased sales to regions such as the U.S. and Asia, as well as Europe. Mercedes-Benz's December sales climbed 10 percent to 116,100 vehicles. Full-year sales for the German brand rose 1.6 percent to 1.08 million cars and light trucks.

DaimlerChrysler's Mercedes-Benz brand is introducing new models in an effort to regain the No. 1 ranking in luxury car sales that it lost to Bayerische Motoren Werke AG in March. Chrysler, in direct contrast to larger U.S. rivals General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co., has been winning back U.S. market share for the past two years. Chrysler's international sales, which grew 9 per cent last year, rose faster than domestic sales, with the company having sold 180,088 vehicles outside North America last year, especially in Italy, China and Germany.
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Ford unveils new crossover SUV Edge
Detroit, USA: Ford's new SUV, Edge, has been unveiled at the 2006 Detroit Auto Show. Unlike the Escape and the Freestyle, Ford's other crossover offerings, the Edge has decided not to pretend having an off-road look.

"Edge is not an off-road adventure vehicle, and it doesn't look like one," said Peter Horbury, Ford's director of design for its North American brands, "The inspiration for the Edge is contemporary design and an adventurous state of mind."

The Edge presents a front-to-back glass roof and also has a center console designed to hold a laptop computer. The Edge is based on the Ford Fusion sedan. The Edge even shares the Fusion's three-bar grill, a design feature Ford has said it will be using on more future vehicles. The Edge has an "intelligent" all-wheel-drive system that, according to Ford, delivers power to the four wheels as needed when sensors predict that the tires may be about to lose traction.
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