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Coronavirus: Carmakers answer pleas to make medical supplies NewsColony Image copyright Alamy Carmakers are answering calls from governments to help make more ventilators and masks to help out during the coronavirus pandemic. On Monday Fiat began converting one of its car plants in China to start making surgical masks. The carmaker wants to start production in the coming weeks, wrote its chief executive Mike Manley in an email. Other major automakers are looking at ways they can shift manufacturing towards ventilators. General Motors, Ford and Tesla in the US have all pledged their support to offer resources to make more ventilators, along with Japanese carmaker Nissan and Formula 1 teams in the UK. Major car plants in the US, Europe and Asia have halted production to try to help prevent the spread of coronavirus. But they are still pledging to help make ventilators and other vital medical equipment. US President Donald Trump tweeted on Sunday: “Ford, General Motors and Tesla...