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Petrolicious finds the cutest Zagato racecar ever

The 1949 Fiat Topolino 750 MM by Zagato must be the cutest racecar ever made. The rounded body makes the little coupe look like it still has some baby fat to lose, and it's hard to imagine this pudgy vehicle blasting through the Mille Miglia – but that's exactly what it did. Today, this is the last surviving 750 MM, and Petrolicious' new video takes along for a ride in this very rare, and very small, piece of history. Owner Scott Gauthier has an impressive collection of vehicles, but Zagatos especially appeal to him because their hand-formed aluminum bodies make each example unique. When he got the 750 MM, all the pieces came in boxes. Gauthier's challenging task was putting it back together, which his in-house crew did beautifully. If a classic car's mechanical sounds intoxicate you, then turn up the speakers when this thing hits the road. The 750 MM's interior is the perfect stage to show off the powertrain's wonderful range of sounds. It's great to see such a rare racecar still getting some use on the road, especially one as cute as this Zagato.

Germany threatens to ban FCA vehicles over diesel emissions dispute

Germany is threatening to ban sales of FCA products over diesel emissions. According to the newspaper Bild Am Sonntag, Germany's Federal Motor Transport Authority found evidence of a so-called defeat device that shuts down certain emissions controls after running for 22 minutes. A standard diesel emissions test in the European Union reportedly takes 20 minutes to complete. FCA denies the allegations. "We believe all our vehicles respect EU emissions standards and we believe Italian regulators are the competent authority to evaluate this," the company said in a statement. The latter part of that statement drew ire from German authorities, especially after FCA declined to meet with German transport minister Alexander Dobrindt to discuss the issue. Graziano Delrio, the Italian Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, vowed to work with German authorities on behalf of FCA. According to EU law, FCA is required to homologate its vehicles in Italy because that's where its regional operations are based. When will the diesel-scented soap opera end? We wish we knew, but our Magic 8 Ball is covered in soot. Related Video: News Source: Financial TimesImage Credit: Giuseppe Aresu/Bloomberg via Getty Government/Legal Green Chrysler Dodge Fiat Jeep RAM Emissions Diesel Vehicles FCA

Ram and Fiat Professional announce plans for new trucks, vans starting in 2015

Ram Trucks CEO and President Reid Bigland got his turn among the executives elucidating the near-term futures for brands in the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles umbrella, laying out the plans for both Ram trucks and Fiat Professional. After Bigland said that the company "will continue to invest heavily in commercial vehicles" for the Italian arm, he didn't give many specifics as to where that investment would go. What we do know for now is that a new Fiat Doblo will come next year - that's the truck we've been catching spy shots of and that will be the basis for the Ram ProMaster City.
In 2016 will come the next-generation Fiorino, a small cargo van sold in markets outside the US as a Fiat, as the Citroën Nemo and Peugeot Bipper. The European and South American markets will also get a new midsize pickup that same year.
Bigland's goal for Ram Trucks and Ram commercial is just a touch more ambitious: "Build the best pickup trucks and commercial vehicles in the industry" and increase NAFTA-market sales from 463,000 in 2013 to 620,000 in 2018. The waypoints along that road include a refresh for the Ram 1500 in 2015 and then a brand new 1500 to come two years later in 2017. Bracketing that, a refresh for the Heavy Duty lineup happens in 2016, and two years later it will also get an all-new generation.