The Guinness World Record for the tightest parallel parking was broken recently in China leaving just a 15-centimeter gap. That's less than 6-inches.  Any challengers? Of course getting out of the space might be an even more impressive feat.

Don't miss the flying car & new Viper in the New York auto show gallery from day one.

Check out the Highway Loss Data Institute's stolen vehicles statistics in this mega infographic.

Toyota is recalling 437,000 Prius and other hybrid vehicles worldwide to fix brake problems.

Continental Automotive plans to add 338 jobs in Henderson County, giving an economic boost to a western region of North Carolina.

State commerce officials this morning approved incentives worth as much as $2.16 million to attract the project to Fletcher, N.C. Continental already has 288 employees there, where the subsidiary of a German conglomerate makes brake parts.

The new jobs will pay average annual salaries of $36,179.

Gov. Beverly Perdue plans to announce the jobs at a press conference in Fletcher, south of Asheville, this morning.

Continental Automotive plans to add 338 jobs in Henderson County, giving an economic boost to a western region of North Carolina.

State commerce officials this morning approved incentives worth as much as $2.16 million to attract the project to Fletcher, N.C. Continental already has 288 employees there, where the subsidiary of a German conglomerate makes brake parts.

The new jobs will pay average annual salaries of $36,179.

Gov. Beverly Perdue plans to announce the jobs at a press conference in Fletcher, south of Asheville, this morning.

Finally, some good news amid the recessionary gloom for North Carolina drivers.

About one million auto insurance policyholders in North Carolina are due more than $50 million in refunds next year under the settlement of a rate dispute between the Insurance Commissioner and auto insurers.

The settlement announced this morning eliminates a 9.4 percent rate hike sought last year by the N.C. Rate Bureau, which represents 144 auto insurers, and instead reduces rates by one-half percent.

The agreement also cancels an additional 1.4 percent rate increase insurers sought earlier this year and prevents them from seeking a rate hike until 2011.

“This settlement is a great deal and is terrific news for North Carolina consumers,” said Commissioner Wayne Goodwin, who noted that the settlement makes premiums slightly lower than they were in 2006.

The new premiums go into effect Nov. 1 but are retroactive to Jan. 1.

Read our full report here.

Add Michael Jordan Lincoln Mercury in Durhamto the growing list of Triangle auto dealers closing for business.

The dealership at 3621 Chapel Hill Blvd. will close at the end of the month, said sales manager Mark Sidney.

Sidney declined to say why the dealership is closing, though it’s no secret that sales for all automakers have been slumping. General Motors and Chrysler are closing hundreds of dealers across the country to cut costs and reduce supply.

While Ford has not followed GM and Chrysler into bankruptcy, sales for the Detroit automaker were down 24.2 percent in May, compared to the same month a year earlier. On the plus side, May’s results were the highest monthly sales figures since July for Ford.

Sidney said the dealership’s eight sales and service employees will mostly transfer to the company’s nearby Nissan dealership. The body shop will remain open as it serviced Nissans in addition to Lincoln and Mercury vehicles.

“It’s a shame, for sure,” he said.