Automotive giant, GM, is set to invest up to $445 million in Thailand to update it's current plant, to produce the next generation Colorado pick-up truck, and a brand new facility to manufacture a new range of diesel engines locally.

The engines will be for use in the new Colorado, and will also be exported. The plant is due to begin production in 2010, and with 340 workers is said will have an annual manufacturing capacity of over 100,000 units a year.

Updated : New images added.

The 2009 Honda City is one of the most talked about cars in Asia right now. With high global oil prices, the appeal of small cars is obvious.

The Honda City looks set to capture a large chunk of the small sedan market in this part of the world, and with just a couple of weeks left before the launch, there is still some mystery about the details of the car.

Let's have a look at what is known, or can be assumed about the new car, and try to fill in the blanks with some educated guesses. Hopefully we'll get close to reality.

Details on the 2009 Honda City are still hard to come by with just weeks left before the official unveil. Honda sales people are being very secretive, but gradually the pieces are starting to fall together. More credible images are starting to appear, and now the specification is starting to look sensible too.

Now is a great time to buy a new Toyota Vigo, assuming you are in the market for one of course. The reason is that Toyota Thailand are soon to update the Toyota Vigo with a "minor-change" version.

The update will, most likely, just involve a few cosmetic changes, and for those looking for a pick-up truck fashion usually isn't a top concern.

Mazda Sales Thailand Co. Ltd has reported satisfactory sales during the first half of 2008. Despite the market conditions, the high diesel price and the political uncertainty, Mazda seem to be holding their own in a difficult market where pickup truck sales in particular are suffering.

Updated (17-8-08) : Image added
According to Yuatyan automotive newspaper, we could be seeing the new 2009 Honda City as early as the end of August. Honda is hoping that it will boost up their sales in the last quarter of 2008.

Thailand is due to see the 2009 Honda City by the middle of next month! Honda will unveil the 2009 City as early as mid-September. The car will be based on the new Jazz platform, in the same way the current City shares the previous generation Jazz platform.

Alfa Romeo plans to import its Mi.To (say "me toe"), becoming the first to offer a serious challenge to the BMW produced Mini.

The Mini started a fashion trend towards small cars among the wealthy when it arrived in Thailand a few years back. Priced around the THB 2 million mark, there is no logical reason to buy one.

Hyundai joins Mercedes and Chevrolet by offering a CNG model in Thailand. Hyundai is now offering the Sonata 2.0 EL and 2.0 SP in bi-fuel variants, capable of running on CNG and Gasohol.

The factory fitted system comes with a shortened 3 year or 100,000 km warranty, down from the 5 year warranty offered on standard models.

In Thailand, Mitsubishi showrooms are not the most interesting places to visit these days. The Thai Lancer is so long in the tooth that even the billionth facelift, and dealer price promotion efforts fail to make it attractive against rivals.

According to a recent posting on antara.co.id, Indonesia might have reason to worry about the impending flood of "eco-car" models coming out of Thailand.

Bambang Trisulo, Chairman of Indonesia`s Motor Vehicle Industries Association, believes that given the high production volumes required by the program, many of the cars will be exported and this could seriously threaten the Indonesian industry.

Subaru are set to launch 3 new models in Thailand. The first being the all-new Exiga. This is billed as a 7-seater MPV and is expected to cost around THB 2 million for the base model when it arrives in Subaru showrooms.

Subaru will also be launching the sedan (4-door) version of the Impreza, although the appeal of the 5 door version is starting to catch on as the hatchback model gains fans. Subaru's decision to turn the Impreza into a hatchback was met with an initial wave of criticism, which seems to have mostly died out after people got a chance to get behind the wheel.

The 2nd generation Honda Jazz has been selling very well in Thailand since its launch earlier this year. Perhaps too well, and although the Honda Thailand website still shows the same pricing on the Jazz since the launch, dealer price lists tell a different story. The price of the Jazz has crept up by THB 10,000 across the board.

Ford Thailand is planning to bring a diesel version of its Focus with an automatic transmission to Thailand by the end of this year. Although the Focus is already available in Thailand with a diesel engine, it is only available with a 6-speed manual transmission.

Apparently, the 2009 Honda City has been scooped testing in India. If these images are representative of the new fifth generation City, then it is a big departure from the current model.

The scooped images give us a pretty decent idea of what we can expect when the 2009 City reaches Thailand later this year.

The fourth generation City - currently on sale in Thailand - is based on the 1st gen Jazz platform, and shares many parts of the Jazz, including doors, door mirrors, interior trim.