There's a terrible secret that the car-makers don't really want you to know about, or at least properly appreciate.

UK motor dealers have predicted that the industry faces a long road to economic recovery.

New-car sales in Spain and France rose sharply in October, helped by government subsidies for car buyers.

Spain will extend subsidies for car buyers this year and next, its industry minister said on Saturday, trying to sustain a bump in sales in September for one of the crisis-hit economy's key sectors.

Leading UK motor traders have predicted that the industry faces a long road to economic recovery.

Germany's car market will fall sharply next year after a boost from the government's car scrappage scheme ends, Detlef Wittig, Volkswagen AG's, sales chief, said on Tuesday.

Europe new-car registrations rose 6.3 percent to 1,388,136 in September thanks largely to incentives-driven double-digit sales increases in four of the five major European markets.

Scrappage scheme sales have sparked a European recovery in new car sales by 7.5% in September.

Ireland's auto industry faces significant consolidation in coming years and could be four years away from full recovery.

A quiet mood of optimism seems to be returning to the German luxury car business. BMW reported a 0.7 per cent increase in September sales compared with the same month last year. And while sales at Mercedes-Benz and Audi were lower during the period, the decline was far less pronounced than it has been over recent months.