Tops in our weekly recap of the most popular news stories on AMN, we learn that the Cardone family and TPG Capital have ended negotiations for the sale of CARDONE Industries’ North American business. Going forward, the Cardone family will retain ownership of the company and will continue to remain actively involved in its operations. CARDONE recently divested its European operations in a separate transaction. The company says it will now focus its efforts on its profitable North American operations, the optimization of its remanufacturing site in Mexico and the completion of its new Dallas logistics hub.

Also this week, TRW announced the launch of its new North American Aftermarket Group. Designed to serve the needs of distributors and repair technicians with an extensive range of safety products, this new North American Aftermarket Group will draw on the company’s position in the original equipment market to service the needs of the independent aftermarket in North America. The company says the formation of this new business unit is the first step in TRW serving the aftermarket with a range of braking, steering and suspension parts.

Meanwhile, in other news from the manufacturing sector, Bosch has announced plans to acquire the Service Solutions business of SPX Corp., headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., for approximately $1.15 billion. SPX Service Solutions develops, manufactures and sells diagnostic and service tools, workshop equipment and software for the global automotive aftermarket. For 2011, the business, which is based in Warren, Mich., is expected to generate sales of approximately $920 million. According to Bosch, this deal is the largest planned acquisition in the history of the company’s automotive aftermarket division.

There was more acquisition news this week as well – this time in the heavy-duty distribution segment. Canada’s Fleet Brake has entered into a binding letter of intent to acquire the assets of Page Brake Warehouse and its related entities. Page Brake is a distributor of heavy-duty truck parts, serving the commercial vehicle aftermarket in the Rocky Mountain region since 1946. Fleet Brake Parts & Service, founded in 1978, is one of Canada’s premier fleet specialists, with 14 locations across Canada. Fleet Brake plans to reopen the Page Brake locations as branches of Fleet Brake USA LLC.

Last in our recap of the week’s top news, we spend "Five Minutes With" Tom Frey of the Network. Frey, director of Information and Technology for the Automotive Distribution Network, began his career in the aftermarket while still in school, working as a driver/counter person, and quickly rose up the ranks to become the GM of a WD while still in his early 20s. His career continued to gain momentum and through a series of incremental moves he eventually joined the Automotive Distribution Network in 2006. Click here to find out what Tom does when he’s off the clock.