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Nissan recalls over 220k Altima sedans over hoods that could fly open

Nissan will be recalling 220,000 Altima sedans, according to a new recall bulletin from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Apparently, model year 2013 Altimas built between March 6, 2012 and February 28, 2013 are at risk of their hoods flying open at speed.
According to NHTSA, debris, corrosion and interference between the hood's inner panel and the secondary latch lever could bind the mechanism in the unlatched position. While this in itself won't cause the hood to fly open - there's still a primary latch that needs released from within the cabin - it presents a potentially dangerous situation should the primary latch be accidentally released.
Nissan will begin notifying owners of the affected vehicles, who will need to report to their local dealer for free repairs. Scroll down for the full bulletin from the government safety watchdog.

Refreshed 2015 Subaru Impreza priced from $18,195*

It was just a few weeks ago that Subaru unveiled its refreshed 2015 Impreza with refinements like a tweaked front fascia, upgraded infotainment system, standard rearview camera, slightly better fuel economy and other goodies. The Japanese automaker has finally decided to tell us what all of this new kit costs, and it actually hasn't increased too much over last year.
A base model 2015 Impreza 2.0i sets back buyers $18,195 for the four-door sedan or $18,695 for the five-door hatch (*not including $795 destination and delivery on all models). All of those prices are $300 more than the 2014 model year.
Moving up to the Premium trim requires $20,995 for the sedan or $21,495 for the five-door and adds 16-inch wheels, heated seats, heated mirrors and a windshield wiper de-icer. The Sport Premium pack, offered exclusively on the hatch, goes further with features like body-color side sills, 17-inch wheels, foglights, and more for $20,995 with the five-speed manual or $21,995 with the CVT.

Court extends Saab reorganization bid until end of November

Saab parent company National Electric Vehicle Sweden refuses to go down without a fight. After a recent trip to court, the company is emerging with an extension on its reorganization until November 29. According to Europe Online Magazine, there's also an appointed committee of creditors and union representatives to monitor NEVS' restructuring process.
NEVS still isn't giving up hope of saving itself, and the company claims there are has two potential strategies for getting back on its feet. The main plan is to "finalize the negotiations with the two Asian automotive manufacturers," according to a press release. Those firms still aren't identified, but Mahindra may be involved. According to Europe Online Magazine, one of the businesses is looking to take partial ownership of NEVS, and the other is considering some sort of cooperation with it.
If that plan fails, the second option is to take advantage of the factory and become a contract manufacturer.

Porsche planning Cayman GT4 racer

To say that Porsche is big in racing is like saying that Warren Buffett dabbles in mergers and acquisitions. But while it fields the 919 Hybrid at Le Mans and in the FIA World Endurance Championship, the bulk of its racing activities are undertaken by private teams that buy customer racecars from the factory. Those in turn are largely based on the 911, but the latest intel from the motor racing world indicates that Zuffenhausen is planning a more accessible customer race car.
The new, more affordable competition car is to be based on the Cayman and built to GT4 specifications, slotting in below the 911-based GT3 Cup, GT3 R and RSR. Autosport reports that Porsche has already developed a prototype and will shortly commence testing. Details are scarce at the moment, but the Cayman GT4 would seem to compete against the likes of the Aston Martin Vantage N24, Nissan 370Z Nismo GT4 and Maserati GranTurismo MC. It will also likely help Porsche foster enthusiasm for a potential road version that's already been spotted undergoing testing. Previous GT4 racing conversions of the Cayman, like the one pictured above, were carried out by third-party racing constructors not recognized by the factory.
Porsche may not be the only one showing interest in the category, however. BMW is said to similarly be considering a GT4-spec version of its M235i Racing model to compete in the same class, taking the place of the defunct M3 GT4 as the Bavarian marque's entry-level customer racing car.

What you missed on 10.9.14

Which $10,000 '80s coupe would you choose?
In the end, there can be only one. And, while we've got another six days left in the balloting, one of these two vehicles is leading in the early running by about two to one. You can probably guess which it is. And that means, if you've got an opinion, feel free to cast a vote in favor of the 1980 Oldsmobile 442 or 1989 BMW 635CSi and help us crown a winner in our second-ever This or That vehicular showdown.
Mid-engine Porsche models at Laguna Seca

This Fiat 500 covered in human hair is a world record holder

Are you the type of person picks up little pieces of lint or hair in your car to keep things clean? If so, then this Fiat 500 in Italy might just drive you insane. An Italian women and her classic Fiat 500 have received two Guinness World Records for creating the world's hairiest car.
Maria Lucia Mugno grabbed her first record in 2010 after she covered her Fiat in 220 pounds (100 kilograms) of human hair, according to Guinness. But apparently that wasn't enough, because she recently set a new milestone by increasing the car's tresses to 265 pounds (120kg). It reportedly took 150 hours to create her follicle Fiat art car.
Covering your vintage Fiat in human hair would certainly be odd enough, but the story takes an even weirder turn. According to World Car Fans, Mugno reportedly imports the locks from India because the hair there is supposedly stronger than what's available from Europeans. We just hope that the stuff is getting washed somewhere in the process.

Mahindra to buy 51% stake in Peugeot Scooter business

PSA Peugeot-Citroën already lost a lot of control of its automotive business earlier this year when Dongfeng and the French government each bought 14 percent shares of the struggling firm to keep it alive. The company's scooter division, one of the oldest in the world, is now facing a similar situation as Indian motoring giant Mahindra has offered to buy a 51-percent share of it for better access to the two-wheel market.
Mahindra is willing to pay a total of 28 million euros ($35.5 million) - 15 million euros ($19 million) up front and another 13 million euros ($16.5 million) later - to acquire a majority stake in the company founded in 1898. According to The Financial Express, the deal isn't officially complete yet because it still has to go through the usual regulatory hoops, but Mahindra thinks all that could be complete in the next three months. The first rumblings of the possible purchase came just a few weeks ago.
According to The Financial Express, Peugeot's two-wheel division is Europe's second-largest scooter maker behind Italy's Piaggio, but the company isn't a moneymaker. "In a European market that has been in steep decline for several years, the partnership with M&M would enable Peugeot Scooters to diversify its business base and speed its international expansion," said the French corporation in a statement. The firm operates factories in France, China and Taiwan.

China may surpass US as Porsche's largest market this year thanks to Cayenne

China has already surpassed the United States as the world's largest automotive market, so it's no surprise that one day soon it will be the world's largest Porsche market.
In fact, that day may already be here, as the PRC's Porschephiles outbought their American counterparts in September. Porsche's Chinese dealers sold 4,344 cars last month to America's 3,607. Through all of 2014 so far, though, the US is still the larger market for the German brand.
"The U.S. performed very well this year, after a great year in 2013, but China is growing fast, thanks to the Cayenne which is our best seller there," Porsche's sales and marketing boss, Bernhard Maier, told Automotive News Europe.

AMG GT won't be one-generation and done like SLS, says Mercedes

The 2016 Mercedes-AMG GT is one of the company's biggest performance car product launches in a long time, as a less expensive but still sleek coupe to replace the fabulous SLS AMG. The 503-horsepower GT S doesn't hit the road in the US until the spring of 2015 and the 456-hp GT follows a year later. Despite still being months away from hitting showrooms, Merc is already talking about the future of its new baby.
AMG boss Tobias Moers recently spoke to Motoring in Australia and took a long look into his crystal ball about the future of the GT. He said that the coupe was planned for a seven- to eight-year production run and would be replaced by a new generation after that.
Moers also confirmed that the GT and GT S wouldn't remain the only models in the lineup for long. "There is more to come in the portfolio of the GT," he said to Motoring. "You have to take care of the lifecycle, you have different variants that you add to the lifecycle at certain points." He didn't go into precise detail, but Moers recently confirmed that an even higher performance Black Series version would join the range eventually. A convertible has been rumored, as well.

Watch this to get excited about seeing Honda back in F1

Honda engines were the dominant force in Formula One through portions of the '80s and '90s, powering championship-winning teams at Williams and McLaren. It tried to recapture some of that magic in the 2000s but wasn't nearly as successful. For the 2015 F1 season, the Japanese brand is returning to the paddock yet again as a partner with McLaren, and in a new video it's acknowledging all of those past victories while looking forward to the uncertain future.
The video offers yet another chance to hear Honda's mill, and this time it's doing a simulated lap of Suzuka. Unfortunately, it's not entirely a joy to listen to. Like most of the current F1 field, it's a bit droning and just lacks the piercing scream of yesteryear.
With so many years out of the F1 game and completely different engine rules to overcome, the brand is essentially coming back to the sport blind. But any new competitors are a welcome addition to a series that can sometimes get rather staid. Maybe Honda and McLaren can rekindle their old flame to win another championship.

Kia GT five-door approved, will tackle A7, Panamera

Kia might finally be entering the four-door coupe market in the near future with a production version of its GT Concept from the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show. According to Edmunds, Kia execs at that Paris Motor Show confirmed that the swoopy model finally has been given the green light to go on sale, and that would likely be sometime in 2016 in the US.
Kia would reportedly focus the GT on the US market, but a European version with a diesel is also a possibility. As with the K900 premium sedan, the brand is taking on some established competition with the new model, including the likes of the Audi A7 and Porsche Panamera. Judging from the rest of the Korean company's range, an attractive feature for many buyers would likely be a price several grand lower than the challengers in the segment.
"Four-door coupes aren't necessarily sales champs, but right now they are popular, just as the retro theme was the "in thing" 15 years ago," said auto industry analyst Dave Sullivan from AutoPacific to Autoblog. Something like the GT would also help with Kia's increasing focus on improving its design design because it can "make a statement about what your brand stands for."

Mercedes-Benz rewarded by EPA for implementing start-stop

The last Mercedes-Benz AMG model I drove was the CLS63 AMG. It had a 5.5-liter, twin-turbocharged V8, 550 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque. Oh, and it also had a standard stop-start system and an Eco mode, two features that are kind of silly on a sedan that will hit 60 miles per hour in under four seconds.
Yet, the CLS63 AMG is far from the only AMG model (and in turn, the Mercedes-Benz model) to feature a stop-start system, and it's that dogged obsession with the fuel-saving technology that's earned Mercedes a credit on the EPA's fuel-economy standards. These so-called "off cycle" credits are awarded when manufacturers might come up with an efficiency improvement that doesn't necessarily show up in the EPA's testing cycle.
The credits are a big deal for Mercedes-Benz which, according to Automotive News, shelled out $349 million for missing government fuel economy standards last year. While the German manufacturer was awarded credits for its use of stop-start, the total credits were lower than requested, AN reports. That's because the EPA was unsure of how often the system would be used in the real world, a long-standing problem.

This Or That: 1980 Oldsmobile 442 vs. 1989 BMW 635CSi [w/poll]

The last time I roped a coworker into an automotive debate, I lost. Resoundingly, I might add. Still, 2,385 voters chose to cast their lots for the Fiat 500 Abarth, as opposed to 5,273 choosing the Ford Fiesta ST, and so I can rest easy in the knowledge that at least 30 percent of you, dear readers, see things my way. I still like to think we have more fun, too.
My loss in the first round of our This or That series, in which two Autoblog editors pick sides on any given topic and then attempt to explain why the other is completely wrong, didn't stop me from picking another good-natured fight, this time with Senior Editor Seyth Miersma. Last time, our chosen sides were eerily similar in design, albeit quite different in actual execution. This time, our vehicular peculiarities couldn't seemingly fall any further from one another: A 1980 Oldsmobile 442 wouldn't seem to match up in comparison to a 1989 BMW 635CSi.
How did we come up with such disparate contenders? Simple, really. Seyth and I mutually agreed to choose a car that's currently for sale online. It had to be built and sold in the 1980s, and it had to be a coupe. The price cap was set at $10,000. The fruits of our searching labors will henceforth be disputed, with Seyth on the side of the Germans, and myself arguing in favor of the Rocket Olds. Am I setting myself up for another lopsided loss?

The mid-engine Porsche backstory

As an automaker's identity evolves over years, its signature becomes defined by any number of factors - heritage (Mercedes-Benz), image (Lamborghini), or market share (Toyota). In the case of Porsche, it was an engineering quirk that forged the German company's most enduring character trait.
Porsche would not have survived - let alone, thrived - in today's saturated landscape had it not been for the 911, and that slope-tailed sports car wouldn't have sprung to life without its predecessor, the 356. While phenomenal success of those rear-engine icons built the company, forays into the mid-engine configuration have played a significant part in establishing the brand's identity.
The Mid-Engine Prototype Of Ferry Porsche's Dreams

Bugatti Veyron gets shafted

There are no shortage of phallus jokes one can make about a car and its owners, but no amount of jesting makes spray painting an actual penis on a car okay. That's triply true when the car in question is the Bugatti Veyron.
This poor Veyron was spotted on the streets of Seattle, and while our outrage was initially piqued, it later emerged via Instagram that the owner of this spray-painted Bugatti actually allowed this to happen.
We aren't fully sure what possessed the owner of the multi-million hypercar to allow this sort of thing, but we're guessing he or she can afford it. Scroll down for a different angle of this poor Veyron's new paint job.

100th Anniversary Maserati Ghibli stars in the 2014 Neiman Marcus catalog

Each year, retailer Neiman Marcus releases a Christmas catalog detailing some truly absurd gifts. Chief among them is a Neiman Marcus edition car. Usually from a luxury or exotic manufacturer, the Neiman Marcus models are a limited edition and generally sell out very quickly. Past participants have included the Aston Martin Vanquish Volante, McLaren MP4-12C Spider, Ferrari FF and, the most plebian car in recent memory, the Chevrolet Camaro Convertible. For this year's catalog, the Maserati Ghibli is up for purchase.
Not only will it make a great Christmas gift for the ultra wealthy, but this $95,000 Maser also pays tribute to the Italian automaker's 100th anniversary. Based on the top-of-the-line S Q4 model, this Ghibli adds a few unique features, including bespoke 20-inch wheels with centennial center caps and a black border for the grille.
The cabin features premium leather in Cuoiu, which is basically tan. Black contrast stitching can be found throughout the cabin and on the Tridents stitched into the headrests, while bespoke piano black trim rounds out the interior. Finally, the center console bears a badge denoting the Ghibli's unique edition number.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles gets officially official this Sunday

Want a chunk of the new Fiat Chrysler Automobiles? Shares of the newly joined (technically) Dutch automaker will begin trading on Monday on the New York Stock Exchange. The company itself will become a single entity on Sunday.
According to The Detroit Free Press, the new FCA will be the world's seventh largest company after Fiat shareholders' chance to oppose the merger expired on October 4. To prevent the merger, shareholders would have needed to exchange at least 500 million euros in shares for cash.
On Monday, current shareholders of both Fiat and Chrysler stock will see their shares converted into an equal number of FCA shares, the Freep reports.

Bugatti evaluating a trio of Veyron successors

Bugatti is nearing the very end of its Veyron production run with only around 15 of the supercars reportedly left to be sold of the 450-car total. With so few remaining, the supremely posh automaker is already deep into development discussions of a successor, but it doesn't seem that the company has a final design in mind quite yet.
According to two unnamed insiders speaking to Bloomberg, Bugatti is evaluating at least three concepts for the Veyron's successor. They claim that the new model will be lighter than the current one with an engine capable of producing about 1,500 horsepower. Also, at least one of these prototypes is using an electric motor for additional boost.
These latest leaks lend further substantiation to the circulating rumors about Bugatti's future. One earlier report claimed that the hypercar would use a modified version of the current 8.0-liter quad-turbo W16, possibly with direct injection, electrically powered turbos and an additional electric motor to boost the top speed to around 286 miles per hour. Also, two prototypes (pictured above) were spotted testing at the Nürburgring earlier this year, and one of them wore an odd contraption on its back. Other speculation indicated the new model would reportedly be called the Chiron, a reference to a famous Bugatti racing driver and the name for one of the company's concepts that previewed the Veyron's shape.

Next-gen Audi Q7 to debut in Detroit

Audi's public relations team must really be getting fed up with research and design boss Ulrich Hackenberg. Aside from basically confirming that the next Audi R8 will share its bones with the Lamborghini Huracán and noting that it may take advantage of the Asterion Concept's hybrid powertrain technology, he's now let slip that the second-generation Q7 will arrive in January at the 2015 Detroit Auto Show.
"If you make a trip to Detroit, you'll see it," Hackenberg reportedly told Indian Autos Blog during Paris Motor Show festivities.
That's a bombshell, particularly as we've heard plenty about its potential powertrain technologies, including spy shots of diesel-powered models, plug-in-hybrids, sporty SQ7s and electric turbochargers, but there's been absolutely nothing concrete about when and where the car would debut.

What you missed on 10.8.14

2016 Audi TTS driven
After driving the all-new 2016 Audi TT, Jonathon Ramsey also had a chance to put the hotter TTS through its paces on both road and track. The S-badged coupe has more power and a more athletic setup, but is it worth the added cost over the standard, stylish TT? Read our Quick Spin, here, to find out.
Porsche 911 gets new GTS models

2015 Chevrolet Camaro SS Special Edition needs you to name it before SEMA

Have you ever wanted to choose the name for a new car? Chevrolet is giving its fans that chance with the Camaro SS Special Edition in new Emerald Green Metallic paint that's debuting at the SEMA Show in November. The limited model then goes on sale in the first quarter of 2015 wearing the winning moniker.
When sales do begin, the special edition will be offered as a coupe or convertible in 2SS trim and a choice of either a six-speed manual with a 6.2-liter V8 rated at 426 horsepower and 420 pound-feet of torque or a six-speed automatic with 400 hp and 410 pound-feet of twist.
To set the edition off as something a little different in addition to its Emerald Green paint, it'll get a ground effects package, the rear spoiler from the ZL1, 21-inch Chrome Dusk wheels and Cyber Gray rally stripes down the hood and trunk. The RS Appearance Package with high-intensity discharge headlights will also be standard equipment. For the interior, customers will be nestled in black upholstery and Graphite Silver trim with a black top for convertibles.

BMW hires Ferrari chief engineer Fedeli

There's going to be a little bit more Prancing Horse in some future BMWs because the Bavarian brand is hiring Ferrari chief engineer Roberto Fedeli to join the company in November. Fedeli's new position is still somewhat of a mystery though, and he reportedly might be lending his talents to the high performance M division or possibly even Rolls-Royce. When asked by Automotive News Europe, BMW said that it "currently can't say what his role will be."
Regardless of his new job, Fedeli was a big get for BMW because of his strong résumé. He has been with Ferrari since 1988 and led the engineering for the famous Italian automaker's vehicles since 2007. Fedeli tendered his resignation in September at around the same time that chairman Luca di Montezemolo announced his decision to leave the company. However, Ferrari told ANE that there was no connection between the two events.

Next Honda Ridgeline to eschew weird visuals, go mainstream?

Last year, Honda gave us the first furtive glance at the next-generation Ridgeline with a shadowy photo of it in profile (above), and it promised that the pickup would "come to market in less than two years." That would have put the truck on track for a 2015 debut, but the automaker hasn't said anything more officially about the new model since then.
A new report from USA Today might shed some new light on the mysterious model. It claims that the next Ridgeline has more conventional pickup styling than the original model in a bid to conquest some buyers. You can get that feeling from the sketch, which appears to showing something far more traditional than the unorthodox original Ridgeline, whose odd tapering bedsides terminated in a double-hinged tailgate.
USA Today goes on to claim that the new Ridgeline will go on sale around late 2015 or early 2016. That's a bit later than expected, but fits with an earlier rumor.

MI man bonds with late father by buying his old Corvette

A few years back, I was catching up with my childhood friend Adam, who told me he had stumbled upon his late father's tow truck in the used-car listings. When I asked him if he'd buy it, he shrugged, "What for?" Maybe if it was a Corvette instead of a tow truck, he'd have felt differently.
One Scott Bachman of southern Michigan did. Cherishing childhood memories of his late father's orange '73 Stingray convertible, Scott began searching for the car recently, and when he found it, he bought it. Memories came rushing back: "It wasn't until I got into the seat and put my hand on the steering wheel," Bachman told Fox 2 News, "that I felt like I really connected with him again."
Watch the local news report on the automotive family reunion and let us know what you think in the Comments.

Formula Roadshow returns to Jerusalem after summer conflict [w/video]

Until recently, motor racing wasn't even legal in Israel.
There are many things that may come to mind when you think about Israel and its capital, Jerusalem. History, religion, security, conflict, peace... you might even think of the country's burgeoning high-tech sector or its aerospace industry. But racing? Hardly. Until recently, motor racing wasn't even legal in Israel. But Jerusalem's mayor Nir Barkat - a man who enjoys racing for more than just political office - set out to change that last year when he brought F1 cars to Israel for the first time in the country's long history.

Ken Block hoons his Ford F-150 RaptorTrax on the slopes

Ken Block drives Fords. Hoons the heck out of 'em, actually. Mostly Fiestas, but also the occasional Focus or Mustang. But earlier this year, the Gymkhana guru revealed his baddest Ford yet: an F-150 SVT Raptor on tracks. And true to form, here he is putting it to the test in the latest video from Monster Energy and Hoonigan Racing.
Filmed at Baldface Lodge in Nelson, BC, the video pairs Block up with snowboarders Zak Hale and Ethan Deiss for some deep-powder action. You'll want to watch the video for yourself, but the bottom line is that the RaptorTrax beats the heck out of waiting on line for the ski lift. It's enough to make us start to look forward to winter... almost.

2016 Audi TTS

We recently drove the Audi TT, and although we wish it were radically entertaining instead of merely very fun, it's nevertheless a sharp coupe that vaults ahead of its predecessor with an inspired interior and eager handling. That car will be precursor to this TTS when it gets here a year from now, with the TTS adding adjectives like "more" and "better" to just about everything found on the base coupe. With the standard car having already put on such a fine edge, we wheeled the TTS on Spanish roads and at the Ascari race track to find out how much better and higher-performing the S will be.
Driving Notes
As of this writing, today's TTS commands an $8,350 premium over the TT. Assuming a commensurate gap is carried over into this next generation model, that supplemental dosh will get you 310 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque instead of 230 hp and 273 lb-ft in the standard TT. That would mean more for your money, too, since the gap between the current TT and TTS is 54 hp and zero lb-ft of torque. To achieve the new numbers, the 2.0 TSFI engine from the TTS benefits from upgrades like sturdier valves, revised aluminum pistons and stronger connecting rods with new bearings, a reinforced crankshaft and a high-performance intercooler. The amplified brawn rips 0.7 seconds off the 0-60 mile-per-hour time, getting you there in 4.6 seconds.

Marchionne to take his sweater and go home after 2018

The end is in sight for Fiat Chrysler boss Sergio Marchionne, who confirmed in an interview with Bloomberg that once FCA's sweeping five-year plan is completed, he'd be stepping down from his post to "undoubtedly" do something else that didn't involve turning around global corporations. That would mean he should finish up after 2018 if all goes according to plan.
"It's as important to walk away from the table as it is to sit down," Marchionne told Bloomberg.
Marchionne has been at Fiat since June of 2004 and is one of the chief architects behind the Italian company's acquisition of Chrysler. Despite his successes, he does sound quite ready to move beyond the auto industry, rhetorically asking his Bloomberg interviewers if there "are other things I like to do apart from this?"

Next Audi R8 to share hybrid tech with Lamborghini Asterion

The second-generation Audi R8 isn't far away, but when it arrives, it could serve to seriously shake up the supercar market according to Audi research and development boss Ulrich Hackenberg.
Speaking to Car in the UK, Hackenberg confirmed quite unequivocally that a plug-in-hybrid model and a pure electric were coming. And as with the current R8, the next-gen model will borrow from Audi's Italian cousins at Lamborghini.
"We are able to make the R8 a plug-in hybrid," Hackenberg told Car. "The Lamborghini Asterion shows this is possible - that car uses the platform of the R8. We will see an increase in the efficiency of high-performance cars - they have to meet CO2 regulations of the future in order to survive."

Toledo gets proactive in fight to keep Jeep Wrangler

Let's make this very plain - the city of Toledo, OH loves its Jeeps. It loves them so fervently that the very rumor of the Jeep Wrangler moving out of its traditional home prompted the city's mayor, D. Michael Collins, and Ohio Gov. John Kasich to hold a weekend conference call with Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne.
"The purpose of this call was for the mayor and governor to gain clarity on Mr. Marchionne's comments last week regarding the possibility of the next generation of Jeep Wrangler being built at a location other than the Toledo North Assembly Plant," a spokesman for the mayor's office told The Toledo Blade.
While no further commitments were made by any party, Collins and Kasich's statement was quite unequivocal about keeping Toledo's unwillingness to let the Wrangler go, saying "the city and its partners will again rise to the occasion to ensure that the new Wrangler is made in Toledo." According to the newspaper, the next step is for face-to-face meetings between officials from Ohio and FCA.