Arias Pistons 12.5:1 Compression 82mm Bore Honda B-series on 2040-parts.com

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.

Selling in the Motor City: RM Auctions hawks muscle cars, classic sheetmetal--and even a boat at Detroit event

The steering wheel in a 1960 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz convertible is surprisingly thin. It's oversized and humongously circular--but still startlingly narrow considering it directs a very barge-like Caddy. Oh, and the seats are fairly comfortable.

New Kia Picanto 3-door (2011) arrives

The new sport Kia Picanto 3-Door The Kia Picanto of old was a dreary little thing, best thought of as disposable motoring flotsam; so cheap you could throw it away when you’d finished with it. But the new Kia Picanto – revealed at Geneva this year - is a different kettle of fish altogether, and now we’re to get treated to a ‘Sporty’ version too – the 3-door Kia Picanto. Already in a different league in the looks department, the 3-door Picanto raises the bar again and is starting to look almost as good as stuff like the Fiat 500 – but from only £7,795.