South America

No one, not even former Renault CEO Louis Schweitzer whose idea it was to buy Dacia in 1999, had any idea the low-cost Eastern European sub-brand would succeed this well. The Romanian automaker with three wheels in the ground at the time of its takeover was purchased the same year that Renault ...

When it comes to specialty applications of the Smart Fortwo, "off-road motorsports" may seem about as likely as "amphibious assault vehicle." Yet a team has come up with just that (the former, not the latter), creating a rally-ready runabout dubbed the Smart Dakar. The team used a Fortwo to ...

It's a tale as old as time. Boy meet girl... boy cheats on girl... girl goes to town on boy's car with a hammer. Wait, what? Okay, maybe not the most orthodox of love stories, but according to the poster of this video, it's exactly what happened in Sao Paulo, Brazil last week. The description ...

If you ever thought your car was as cool as one sold by Hot Wheels, then a parking lot at Shopping Center Norte in São Paulo, Brazil had your name all over it. Mattel's ad agency there, AGE Isobar, placed a giant rendition of Hot Wheels packaging at the front of the lot for one day last ...

Four years ago, Renault confirmed that it would partner with India's Bajaj Auto to develop a rival to the Tata Nano. At the time, as everyone waited for the Tata Nano to arrive, you could have used a Richter scale to measure the tremors the executive suites of any automaker with an interest in ...

The track between the lakes, the Circuit d'Interlagos in Sao Paulo, Brazil, yet again served up a fitting finale to the Formula One season. There were all kinds of ways for the two Driver's Championship contenders – Sebastian Vettel in the Red Bull and Fernando Alonso in the Ferrari – ...

Mini is gearing up to head back to Dakar. The company campaigned five ALL4 racecars last year, and took the overall victory with driver Stéphane Peterhansel and co-driver Jean-Paul Cottret. Second place also fell to Mini, and the remaining three cars soaked up spots in the top ten for an ...

Big, expensive cars and trucks equal big profits. Small, inexpensive cars equal small profits. The mathematics in today's marketplace simply can't be argued, and the result, as buyers increasingly switch from trucks, truck-based 'utes and big family cars into smaller sedans and hatchbacks, is ...

Brazil is now the world's fourth-largest national automotive market. If your image of Brazil has anything to do with "The Girl from Ipanema" played by 1,001 Strings, you may be a little out of date. The country that will host the 2016 Summer Olympics has come a long way since the dawn of the ...

Until Ford bought it in 2007, Troller was an independent Brazilian brand that made the T4 and the Pantanal pickup. The T4, still in production, looks like a Jeep Wrangler hooked up with an old Ssangyong Korando and a snorkel. With Ford blood coursing through its design offices, the TR-X concept ...