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Aston Martin ditches Cygnet city car

CITY SLICKERS will no longer be able to cut a dash in a diminutive Aston Martin, following the company's decision to axe the controversial Cygnet from its range. The tiny Cygnet, which takes its name from a young swan, was an adaptation of the Toyota iQ, refitted with the finest luxury materials and priced at over £30,000. Its low CO2 output is rumoured to have been the main reason for the model’s presence in the range, since Aston Martin could in that way lower the company’s average CO2 output across the range in line with European emissions rules.

One Lap of the Web: Remembering the dearly departed

-- With news that Toyota is leaving the great state of California for the greater (by landmass, anyway; your own opinion may vary) state of Texas, it's worth reminding ourselves that Toyota in America started as one lonely building on 6000 Hollywood Blvd., having taken over a former Rambler dealership. (The site is still a successful Toyota dealership.) That first year of sales in 1958 saw 287 Toyopet Crowns and one Land Cruiser sold -- more as curiosities than as practical transportation, we'd wager. -- At any rate, Toyota's move from California to Texas is moving from "one of the most eco-friendly states in the union," according to Ward's Auto, "to the U.S.’s equivalent of China." -- Ten years ago today, the last Oldsmobile rolled off the line at Lansing Car Assembly.

Buick duplicates toughest roads in the world for virtual testing

Buick is cloning real-world roads so they can be used to virtual test cars. Engineers use cameras and a laser to scan the road surface and to create a three-dimensional virtual copy. Buick has used this system to replicate the road leading to the Cerro del Cubilete shrine in Mexico.