2006 Nissan Xterra S Sport Utility 4-door 4.0l on 2040-cars

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Alpine unveils N36 LMP2 car that will race in 24 Hours of Le Mans

This is the Alpine LMP2 competitor you'll see contesting European endurance races this year, including The 24 Hours of Le Mans in June. Parent company Renault showed off the N36 racer at its atelier in Paris, the blue and orange a switch from the yellow, black and white livery Alpine wore last time it was seen in Le Mans way back in 1978 when it won the race.
The team will be run by Signatech-Nissan and the chassis will be powered by a Nissan engine. Nelson Panciatici and Pierre Ragues will contest World Endurance Championship rounds throughout the year, they'll be joined by endurance and IndyCar veteran Tristan Gommendy for Le Mans and Paul-Loup Chatin as the team's reserve driver.
The Alpine N36 will get into its first test this week at Paul Ricard, then experience its first racing miles at the European Le Mans Series round at Silverstone on April 13. The press release below has the full scoop, the photos above have the past and present in high-res glory.

Five automakers now being investigated by NHTSA for airbag woes

It appears that Toyota's renotification to owners of recalled vehicles from last year is just the tip of the iceberg for what could potentially be a much larger industry-wide recall. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is opening a preliminary evaluation investigation into roughly 1.1 million vehicles from Chrysler, Honda, Mazda, Nissan, Toyota and parts supplier Takata regarding faulty airbag inflators in several models.
NHTSA has received six reports - three directly, two from Takata and one from Toyota - of vehicles with ruptured airbag inflators from 2002-2006, which resulted in three injuries. So far, all six incidents have occurred in high humidity areas like Florida and Puerto Rico. According to Toyota's latest recall announcement, the inflators may have an improper propellant that could cause it to rupture in a crash and the bag to deploy abnormally.
This new investigation follows a previous recall from April 2013 of about 3.4 million vehicles worldwide for the airbag inflators from Takata. As Autoblog reported, Toyota jumpstarted the new situation when it found that the original list of serial numbers for the faulty part was incomplete and discovered more cars in need of replacement. Honda and Nissan told us that they were investigating whether further models would need called in again as well. Mazda told Autoblog: "Regarding the current Takata situation, we're working closely with NHTSA and investigating the situation, but nothing else to report at this time." Chrysler Group responded to us with the statement: "Chrysler Group engineers are conducting the appropriate analysis. The Company will cooperate fully with the National Highway Traffic Administration."

Carlos Ghosn in Twitter debut vows to 'tell the truth about what's happening'

TOKYO — Ousted Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn's sudden appearance on Twitter on Wednesday was a surprise move by the businessman that perplexed people and sent journalists scrambling, and not for the first time. The first tweet from the @carlosghosn account on the social network read, "I'm getting ready to tell the truth about what's happening. Press conference on Thursday, April 11." It did not specify a time or place. Featuring a photo of a smiling, grey-haired Ghosn standing in front of a tree with seasonal cherry blossoms, the account initially lacked the blue tick mark to show it had been verified by the social network. That left journalists unsure of its authenticity — particularly as the conditions of Ghosn's $9 million bail preclude him from using the internet. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Forty minutes later, when the blue tick appeared, the tweet swept across social media and the account's followers swelled to almost 20,000, from just a handful earlier. Some of the replies appeared sympathetic to Ghosn, with others carrying photos of his now-famous exit from a Tokyo detention center last month. "Stood right alongside you with #GiveGhosnBail. Looking forward to hearing your side," wrote one Twitter user with the name @highmileage. Ghosn had also caught media off guard when he disguised himself in a workman's uniform, cap and face mask to try and give waiting reporters the slip on leaving the detention center after his release on bail. The architect of the Nissan and Renault SA global alliance was then pursued by media as he rode away in a small work van, a Suzuki, topped with a ladder. Ghosn's dramatic fall from grace began with his arrest in November after getting off a private plane at Tokyo's Haneda Airport. He has since been charged with financial misconduct and aggravated breach of trust. On Wednesday, the Yomiuri newspaper said Tokyo prosecutors will soon decide whether to prosecute Ghosn on further charges. A further arrest could jeopardize the planned news conference. It remains unclear if Ghosn sent the tweet or it was sent on his behalf. His bail conditions allow him to access a computer at his lawyer's office but forbid him to use the internet. Government/Legal Mitsubishi Nissan Renault renault-nissan