Bangkok - Thailand's auto parts industry is at risk of shedding 40,000 permanent jobs this year as domestic and global demand for vehicles shrinks, media reports said Wednesday.

Discussions Tuesday between the Industry Ministry and 1,600 auto parts manufacturers concluded that 20 per cent of 200,000 permanent employees in the sector were in danger of losing this jobs this year, the Bangkok Post reported.

Arjeplog, Sweden - They do things differently in Arjeplog. In most parts of northwest Sweden, the landscape is shrouded in an eerie silence from late autumn onwards, but when the days are very short and the nights bitterly cold, this remote settlement near the Arctic Circle suddenly comes to life.

Detroit - The long-awaited cleaner, greener version of the Mercedes M-Class off-roader is due to go on sale this autumn, the German carmaker revealed at the Detroit car show which lasts until January 25.

The M-Class hybrid mates the familiar 3.2-litre, low-emission Blue Tec diesel engine to a 4x4 transmission incorporating twin electric motors. Mercedes says the combination will cut fuel consumption by 30 per cent compared to the standard model. Carbon dioxide emissions are set to be under 200 gm/km.

Detroit  - US carmaker Fisker plans to offer a four-seat drophead version of the ground-breaking Karma hybrid, the company announced at the Detroit car show which lasts until January 25.

The Karma Sunset cabriolet on the firm's show stand shares the petrol-electric drivetrain with the closed model, but is slightly shorter. It features an electrically-powered roof which retracts into a compartment behind the seats. The car is due to go into production in 2011, Danish-born former BMW and Aston Martin designer Henrik Fisker told journalists.

Cologne/Detroit  - While other US car companies are busy slashing the gas-guzzlers from their model lines, Ford is showing the next generation of its Ford Mustang - a sports coupe famous for anything but frugality.

The redesigned Shelby Mustang GT500 graces the Ford stand at the Detroit car show which lasts until January 25 and is set to reach the showrooms by early spring. Power is provided by a supercharged version of the hardy V8 engine with stump-pulling 540 horsepower.

Crewe, England  - Bentley has given the Continental GTC a minor facelift and added a high-performance Speed model to bring the drophead into line with the rest of the GT range. It is the most powerful convertible ever made by the Crewe-based company.

The upgrade to the V12 engine boosts power output to 600 horsepower compared with the 552 bhp of its forerunner and with the roof down, the cabriolet can dash from zero to 100 kilometres (62 miles per hour) in 4.5 seconds, just 0.3 seconds behind the closed GTC version.