Wheelies - The Lightweight Heavy Duty Edition - NYTimes.com ■ A confidential source told Automotive News that Ford had asked Alcoa to provide military-grade aluminum for Ford's F-150 display at the Detroit auto show next month, where the all-new truck will be revealed. By making the connection with military vehicles - Alcoa makes aluminum blast shields for the military - Ford is betting that it can convince customers used to buying the currently steel-framed F-150 that a new aluminum design will meet their needs. ■ Fiat has restarted talks in a bid to buy shares of the Chrysler Group from the United Auto Workers union health care trust, which owns 41.5 percent of the company. Sergio Marchionne, Fiat's chief executive, is trying to avoid an initial public offering on the Chrysler stake, which would increase the price Fiat would have to pay to for the shares. ■ Buying a car in Cuba, where postwar American and Soviet models are common, is about to change. The government last week did away with a restriction on new car buying, which will bring thousands of new cars into the country after decades of stagnation. ■ Although Russia's automotive market once seemed on its way to becoming the largest in Europe, sales have declined over the last year, leading analysts to ask if the glory days are over. The Association of European Businesses, a trade lobbying group that represents auto manufacturers, among other businesses, reported that sales had fallen by 6 percent this year. ■ Denso, Continental and Bosch - major suppliers of automotive parts like radiators, windshield wipers, seatbelts and power window motors - have been fined about a total of $108 million by the South Korean government for price fixing. The crackdown comes after action by American and Japanese antitrust regulators. ■ Martin Gaudian, a World War II veteran from Oak Creek, Wis., said he was pressured into buying a $2,800 extended auto warranty he didn't need, canceling it after 10 days. Told he would get a refund, he didn't receive the money after 10 months. When he called the local television station with the story, he said the company, Auto Processing Center, paid in full a short time later. Fox 6 Milwaukee ■ The 1956 Chevrolet Corvette SR prototype known as the Real McCoy will be auctioned next month. The car was one of the first V8-powered Corvettes and finished the 1956 12 Hours of Sebring.