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.

2014 BMW 4-series coupe pricing to start at $41,425; base six-cylinder costs $46,925

Tantalized by the 2014 BMW 4-series, but hesitant to put money down on the 3-series coupe replacement until you've had the chance to pore over a complete list of options packages? Once you've worked your way through the pricing guide below, you'll have no excuse not to head to your local BMW dealer. The online configurator went live a few months ago, but this is perhaps the most straightforward and easily digestible pricing breakdown so far.

Call for ban on in-car hands-free phones

Road safety charity Brake is calling for a blanket ban on in-car hands-free phone systems. Using a hand-held phone while driving is already illegal in the UK, so a proposal to prohibit even hands-free kits would completely eradicate calling from behind the wheel. On Bing: see pictures of people using mobile phones while driving 1 in 3 use mobile phone behind the wheel A decade on from when the mobile phone ban was introduced, Brake is asking the government to assess its policy on all forms of telephone communication while driving.