European shares rebound led by auto, commodities stocks

* FTSEurofirst 300 and Euro STOXX 50 rise over 3 pct

* But FTSEurofirst still over 1 pct down so far this week

* DAX climbs but still some 20 pct below April (LSE: 0N69.L - news) record high

* VW and BMW (Swiss: BMW.SW - news) rally, Zodiac Aerospace (Paris: FR0000125684 - news) slumps

By Sudip Kar-Gupta and Danilo Masoni

LONDON,MILAN Sept 25 (Reuters) - European shares rebounded on Friday after approaching 2015 lows in the previous session, with firmer auto and commodities stocks leading the way, yet they remained set to record a loss for the week.

The region's stock markets have been hit this week by an emissions test scandal at Volkswagen (Other OTC: VLKAF - news) and new signs of a slowdown in China, while the prospect of an imminent U.S (Other OTC: UBGXF - news) . interest rate rise has also weighed on equities.

The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index, which ended down 2.1 percent on Thursday, was up 3.35 percent, while the euro zone's blue-chip Euro STOXX 50 index climbed 3.6 percent. However the FTSEurofirst remained down by more than 1 percent from the end of last week.

Germany's DAX, which has suffered this week due to the problems at Volkswagen, rose 3.2 percent but remains some 20 percent below a record high of 12,390.75 points in April. Some traders said they would look to play it safe by selling out on market rallies in case the market were to resume a downwards trajectory later.

"I think the best strategy for now is to sell into strength on the DAX," said Logic Investments' Ryan Mitchell.

European auto shares were the leading gainers with a bounce of 3.8 percent, while basic resources stocks and energy plays were lifted by higher commodity prices.

Volkswagen, which has admitted cheating on exhaust emissions tests, rose 2 percent, although its shares are still down some 30 percent on the week.

Traders said signs that VW would name Matthias Mueller, head of its Porsche sports car brand, as chief executive showed VW's determination to tackle the crisis.

Rival carmaker BMW also rose 4.6 percent after German car magazine Auto Bild clarified an earlier report to say it had no evidence of emissions data manipulation at the company.

Zodiac Aerospace slid 6.1 percent after media reports and an industry blog said the French company - which makes airplane seats and other equipment - had lost a contract with American Airlines (Xetra: A1G.DE - news) , one of its main clients.

However, France's benchmark CAC equity index rose 2.6 percent, partly boosted by data showing a French consumer confidence index at its highest level since October 2007.

Some investors said they were positive on the longer-term outlook for European shares, despite the weak data coming out of China and a possible rise in U.S. interest rates.

They pointed to signs of an economic improvement in Europe, and stimulus measures from the European Central Bank as helping to support the region's stock markets.

Today's European research round-up