Yahoo Autos Ford Won't Use GM's Nine-Speed Auto
Welcome to The Grid, R&T's quick roundup of the auto industry and motorsports news you should know this morning.
No Nine Speed for You
A few years ago, Ford and GM made a trade. Ford would develop a 10-speed auto for trucks and rear drive applications that GM could use, while GM would develop a nine-speed auto for crossovers and front-wheel drive sedans.
The 10-speed has proliferated across both lineups, most notably in the Mustang and Camaro. But the nine-speed has only appeared in GM products. And it seems it'll stay that way for a while. Ford has decided against using the gearbox in its cars. The reason? Ford didn't see the economy and efficiency increase it hoped for from the nine-speed. Instead Ford will use two eight-speeds, one a development of an older six-speed co-developed with GM and another just GM's nine-speed with a gear left off.
IndyCar Recap
Rain forced IndyCar to postpone its race at Barber Motorsports Park from Sunday to Monday afternoon. The Monday race seemed like a snooze for the majority, with Josef Newgarden running away and all the cars strung out. But then it started to rain, and rain hard. Strategy went in to play, with Newgarden pitting early for wets. For a little while, it seemed like Sebastien Bourdais might steal a win on slicks, but the track just got too wet for the tires and he had to pit.
Newgarden ended up cycling back to the lead, followed by Ryan Hunter-Reay, James Hinchcliffe, and Robert Wickens. Bourdais held on to finish fifth, barely beating Scott Dixon in a drag race to the line.
Infiniti's Platform
Infiniti's Q-Inspiration concept has, ahem, inspired the company to put a similar car into production within five-years. Infiniti says that the all-electric car will be built in China at a TBD location. It will be one of five cars that Infiniti will build in China.
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