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The pre-race and first in-race report from Le Mans

The 2013, 90th anniversary edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans has begun, tragedy marking the opening laps with the death of Allan Simonsen. We're at the track now as a guest of Audi and plan to stay through the evening, and even we haven't been able to find out what caused the accident - the only video is from just after the incident, and beyond the statement from ACO there's been no more news. The Aston Martin in the LM GTE Am class and its all-Danish drivers had taken pole in its class and was one of the favorites to win.
The pre-race report will come first, and even thought we can't spoil the race because we're only five hours into it at the time of writing, we'll put all of the news at the end in case you don't even want the updates.
Or you can go straight to the high-res galleries above.

Sergio Marchionne confirms Ferrari LaFerrari Spider

Sergio Marchionne has been the CEO of Ferrari for about five minutes, and there's already big product news coming from Maranello. The LaFerrari hypercar will be sold as a convertible (or Spider, if you prefer). Marchionne confirmed the Spider during an interview with Automobile Magazine, which looks like it happened before today's CEO announcement. After being asked about the so-called LaFerrarina – which Automobile calls "a less extreme version of LaFerrari" – Marchionne said "the only future product connected to LaFerrari is the Spider," which was "no secret since potential customers have already been approached." While the company is hard at work on the LaFerrari Spider, Marchionne was less forthcoming on the long-rumored, V6-powered Dino. "Where should that Dino be positioned? How much should it cost? How would it relate to the next 488? What is the right balance between too many and not enough units?" Marchionne peppered. "We haven't found answers to these questions yet." Marchionne didn't go as far as saying when Ferrari would sell the LaFerrari Spider, but if the company is already reaching out to its exclusive clientele, a debut can't be far off. Perhaps 2017? That year is, after all, the 70th anniversary of the first Ferrari-badged car, 1947's 125 S. Related Video:

Marchionne wants Maserati to be FCA's new Ferrari

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is gearing up to spin Ferrari, its most profitable brand, off into another company, and float its stock on the open market. That means it's going to need another profit-driver to generate income for the rest of the group. And according to its chief executive Sergio Marchionne, that mantle will soon be picked up by Maserati. FCA is betting big on Maserati, which has long stood as a niche marque with a limited array of models and low sales numbers. In addition to the recently introduced Ghibli and Quattroporte sedans – now crucially offered with diesels and all-wheel drive – Maserati is preparing to roll out the Levante crossover that promises to do for the Modenese marque what the Cayenne did for Porsche. Due in part to the success of its first crossover, Porsche turned itself from a niche sports car manufacturer into an immensely profitable automaker that was (nearly) capable of buying out the entire Volkswagen Group. Maserati's resurgence is part of a two-pronged assault FCA is plotting against its German rivals. Maserati will be charged with taking on the higher end of the Mercedes, BMW, and Audi ranges (from the E-Class, 5 Series and A6 upwards). Meanwhile, Alfa Romeo will go after the lower end of the luxury spectrum with the new Giulia (aimed at the C-Class, 3 Series and A4) and other models to follow. FCA aims to turn Maserati and Alfa Romeo (along with Jeep) into global brands, broadening the narrow geographical appeal they have held until now. In order to generate enough profit to support the rest of the group as Ferrari has, Maserati will need to find a way to increase its profit margins. Bloomberg reports that Ferraris command a 13-percent profit margin, and while the ten percent that Maseratis list for is still triple that of the FCA average, slow sales are forcing some dealers to offer deep incentives that cut significantly into that margin. Related Video: