Weak month for auto sales (Fort Wayne Journal Gazette) A

Weak month for auto sales (Fort Wayne Journal Gazette)
A lackluster December was expected to cap a dismal year for U.S. automakers, who saw Asian competitors eat away at their market share throughout 2005. Analysts are forecasting a weaker month than December 2004, as the effect of traditional year-end deals was muted by deep discounts over the summer.

A young thief's lonely death Boy's family wants answers from detention center (Seattle Post - Intelligencer Traffic)
Johnny Lim loved cars. So he stole them. Not an easy hobby for a 14-year-old to pursue, but Johnny's older brother, an accomplished auto thief at 16, helped him along. And neither boy had to worry much about supervision.

IIHS's Top 10 Safety Picks
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety picks the ten safest cars of the 2006 model year.
Perry Stern

Still the One (Los Angeles Times)
You begin with an audit that shows that the Rams bid adios to Los Angeles. The Raiders departed and so did the Chargers. Three Los Angeles pro teams, members of off-Broadway leagues, entered into rest.

Think twice about driving drunk (The Des Moines Register)
David Bishop figures he had drunk about a six-pack watching football that Sunday in October when he decided to head to the auto parts store in northeast Des Moines. Driving back, he grabbed for his seat belt after he saw a police car, and in retrospect, he says, that's probably what gave him away.

Owens Corning Files New Bankruptcy Plan to Pay Asbestos Claims (Bloomberg.com)
Jan. 1 (Bloomberg) -- Owens Corning, the largest U.S. insulation maker, filed a new bankruptcy reorganization plan aimed at wiping out the company's estimated $10.2 billion in asbestos liabilities.