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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.

Ford and GM tie-in with Apple

Having established a relationship with Nike for recycling materials as demonstrated on the Ford Reflex concept, Ford has now joined GM in collaborating with Apple to ensure their cars are iPod compatible. Rather than the retrofitted wire many drivers have had to resort to, cars will offer a bespoke area in the glove compartment that also acts as a charging point, the iPod instead controlled through the car?s GUI. By the end of the year, 70% of all new models sold in America are expected to be iPod compatible, an arrangement that furthers Apple?s continuing domination of the MP3-player market and one that will introduce Apple to the car-computer market, anticipated to be worth $6billion by 2010.

Ford cuts 2010 prices by up to 15%

Ford has cut prices of its big cars by up to 15% By Tim Pollard Motor Industry 26 March 2010 12:00 Ford today announced sweeping price cuts across its large car range – lopping up to 15% off the price of models such as the Mondeo, S-Max and Galaxy. The news comes after Ford raised price four times in the past year.The Blue Oval has drawn criticism in the past for artificially high list prices, which have penalised business buyers. In the UK, company car tax is calculated by the P11D price which is based on the list price, not the transaction price, and 70% of large Fords are bought by fleets.Private buyers have historically scored large discounts on big Fords, as did corporate buyers – making many question the need for higher list prices.