Germans break rank and tell Mosley to quit as FIA chief

The ADAC (Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club) is the first of the world's motoring organisations to comment on the scandal that has seen Mosley hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons.

A lurid News of the World article on Mosley's private life threatens to make his position untenable yet the 67-year-old has so far stated his intent on carrying on.

An extraordinary general meeting of the FIA has been called during which "the widespread publicity folllowing an apparently illegal invasion of the FIA president's privacy will be discussed".

It initially appeared as if Mosley had bought himself some time as the meeting is unlikely to take place for a number of weeks for logistical reasons.

The assembly comprises 222 national motoring organisations in 130 countries, of which ADAC is naturally a member.

The fact they have chosen to speak out against Mosley before such a meeting, expected to be in Paris, only serves to further undermine Mosley's increasingly tenuous position.

A statement from the ADAC read: "In a letter to FIA president Max Mosley, the ADAC has distanced itself from events surrounding his person.

"According to the ADAC, the role of an FIA president who represents more than 100 million motorists worldwide should not be burdened by such an affair.

"Therefore, we ask the president to very carefully reconsider his role within the organisation.

"According to the ADAC, the appropriate FIA process has to take care of the matter.

"It is in the interests of this world organisation to carry on with its duties without the burden of this affair."

The ADAC's position follows on strongly from the comments made in statements yesterday by four of the world's leading manufacturers in BMW, Mercedes, Honda and Toyota.

Three-times Formula One world champion Sir Jackie Stewart has also called on Mosley to quit, insisting his position is "untenable".

Stewart's comments are unsurprising given the animosity that lingers between himself and Mosley, who at one point last year described the Scot as "a certified half-wit".

But in lending his weight to the furore raging around Mosley, Stewart said: "For a head of a global federation it is simply not possible to keep his position.

"It is not only bad for motorsport in general, but also bad for the whole motorsport industry.

"We have a world of different cultures and you cannot accept such things to happen.

"I don't think a head of a federation can survive such a thing and simply just keep his position.

"It is now up to the FIA and to Mosley himself. He has to do the right thing for the sport now.

"If he would be in a commercial company he would already be gone."

Britain's own motoring organisation, the MSA (Motor Sports Association) are so far refusing to be drawn into the debate.

Alan Gow, who is chairman of the MSA, is the man who would attend the assembly hearing, potentially with chief executive Colin Hilton.

However, an MSA spokesperson said: "We are simply maintaining a watching brief at this stage to see how things develop."