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Watch the sad, final moments of a crusher-bound heap

Automotive wrecking yards are good places to reflect on the real-world values of heavily depreciated vehicles versus global current scrap-metal prices, and to see which cars have suddenly had the fix-it-versus-total-it line moved by insurance companies (the early-21st-century Subaru Legacy Outback, for example, appeared in large numbers in high-turnover wrecking yards just during the last year, as fairly minor collision damage on these cars is no longer worth fixing). You'll see the things that a car's last owner does in a desperate attempt to sell (or at least live with) an increasingly decrepit heap (as we learned in "Repo Man," you really will find a Little Tree in every car). During a recent trip to a San Jose, Calif., yard, I encountered this sad yet strangely compelling scene.

Mercedes F125 concept (2011) at Frankfurt motor show

Mercedes today unveiled the F125 concept car - a car bearing the three-pointed star's F name to demark it as a tech testbed, and the 125 to mark Merc's 125th anniversary in this four-wheeled business. It's a hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle, and Merc claims a punchy 1000km (620-mile) range. But the scientists here are proud of the cutting edge lithium sulphur batteries, used to store energy created by the fuel-cell.

Peugeot Exalt to be reinvented for Paris show

Peugeot design director Gilles Vidal has confirmed to Car Design News that the Exalt concept, which debuted at the Beijing auto show earlier this year will be shown at October's Paris motor show. However, while the car shown in China featured color and trim materials specific to the region, the Exalt that will grace the show stand in France will be different. "The car was presented at the Beijing auto show, and all the materials used in this car are sourced in China or Asia," says Vidal.