United Auto Workers union bargaining officials are arriving in Detroit this week to begin discussing wage and benefit concessions they must make so General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC can keep their federal loans.

Even as automakers slash production targets and cut workers, Nissan showed off a 15 million yen ($161,300) souped up version of its GT-R sportscar Thursday that it said was a bargain compared to European rivals.

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. will slash more than 2,000 temporary jobs in Japan by the end of March as the country's fourth largest automaker struggles in the face of a severe slump in sales worldwide, media reports said Thursday.

Organizers of Detroit's annual auto show have carved out space in the convention center basement for a 700-foot (213.36-meter)-long oval driving track to showcase zero emissions vehicles.

Organizers of Detroit's annual auto show have carved out space in the convention center basement for a 700-foot-long oval driving track to showcase zero emissions vehicles.

Several auto industry analysts say Chrysler LLC's poor sales performance for 2008 shows that it won't generate enough cash to survive the year, and it likely will be sold in pieces or be acquired by another automaker. Details of Chrysler's sales year:

Even by the standards of battered automakers, Chrysler is in dire shape. Its sales in December were down a stunning 53 percent, far worse than Ford or General Motors, and analysts say it probably won't survive the year as an independent company — despite $4 billion in government loans and the possibility of more.

Nissan Motor Co. is recalling more than 240,000 trucks in 20 cold weather states to fix a problem that could prevent front air bags from deploying in a crash.

Orders to American factories are expected to have fallen again in November as manufacturers struggle with a global recession that has cut demand both in the U.S. and overseas.

China is at risk from a wave a protests and riots in 2009 as rising unemployment stokes discontent while Asian automakers reel from the worst U.S. sales decline in more than 25 years.

Hyundai Motor has rolled out the first incentive program for U.S. consumers that would allow them to return vehicles if they lose their jobs.

Nissan North America Inc., the U.S. unit of Japanese automaker Nissan Motor Co., said Monday its December sales fell more than 30 percent, on lower consumer demand during a nationwide recession.

After a year in which U.S. auto sales tumbled 18 percent and GM had its worst year in nearly a half-century amid slack demand fueled by a terrible economic outlook and growing job worries, automakers are reluctant to predict when a recovery might occur.

Subaru said Monday its U.S. sales crept higher in 2008 on strong demand for Forester and Impreza models, making it the only automaker to post a year-over-year sales increase.

Japan auto executives gathered for an annual New Year's party Monday expressed hopes for a U.S. turnaround and a strengthening dollar to fix the faltering global market.