HERE ARE the most interesting and talked-about stories over the past five days, collated and summarised by us.

Monday, July 16

SEAT has released pictures of its all-new Leon. It’ll debut at the Paris Motor Show sporting five petrol options and four diesels, but prices will be announced later this year.

SKODA has set themselves a target of selling 6,000 Rapids a year in the UK when the compact saloon is launched here in November – and they say families are the intended audience. Read more

LONG-established Cheshire car dealership, Mangoletsi, is teaming up with Subaru following a £1m investment to create a state-of-the-art showroom. Read more

VOLKSWAGEN Group has stated its has handed over 4.45m vehicles between January to June. The figure represents an 8.9 per cent rise in the same period last year.

Tuesday, July 17

GERMAN firm Audi has turned to the virtual world to present its new dealership in central London. The new retail space in the capital relies not on car models on display, but large digital screens. Read more

RENAULT has appointed Béatrice Foucher as vice president of the electric vehicle programme, effective from September 1, 2012.

DEALER group Inchcape has raised more than £26k for BEN after completing the UK Three Peaks in 24 hours Challenge. Read more

GREAT WALL dealers can now take a deposit of just £1 on a brand-new Steed pick-up. The plan is available for business users only, through all 45 dealerships in the Great Wall dealer network, and continues until September 30, 2012. Read more

Wednesday, July 18

THE results are finally in! Find out the winners of this year’s Car Dealer Power survey, in association with G3 Glasscoat. Read more

NISSAN has extended its fixed priced servicing offer to include cut-prices on common repair items. The servicing offer is available on models which have passed their third birthday. Read more

HONDA has revealed its brand-new British built CR-V – which arrives in UK showrooms in October – will be available in both two-wheel drive and four-wheel drive.

AS OFFICIAL patron of The Open Championship, Mercedes-Benz has created a motion-activated golf game for the iPhone 4, which includes Facebook activation.

Thursday, July 19

AUDI has announced it has managed to acquire a further 250 build slots of the RS3 Sportback. The 250 units will be priced at £39,930 – the same price as last year’s initial 500 allocation. Read more

UK CAR manufacturing rose 14.1 per cent in the first half of the year, and was stable in June, dipping just 0.7 per cent, the latest figures from the SMMT reveal.

HYUNDAI is tapping into the summer mood with a range of new finance deals. Headlining the news is the Veloster – it’s available £199 per month with a £4,645 deposit on a three-year finance offer.

DEALERS’ profitability results this year continue to outperform 2011 as they adapt to tough trading conditions, says ASE. Read more

Friday, July 20

STEVE Zanlunghi has been appointed managing director of Fiat Group Automobiles UK and will take up his new role on Wednesday, August 1. Read more

MG has announced it’s supplied a fleet of cars to the Jamaican and USA Track and Field Training Camps, ahead of the Olympics which begin in seven days time.

KIA Motors UK has announced an ‘industry first’ deal with the UK’s largest digital media owner Amscreen. Read more

AUTOMOTIVE services company, Manheim, has appointed Andy Coulthurst to the role of operations director – dealer services. Read more