Old cars never die. They go to junkyards and donate parts to keep their brethren on the road in perpetuity. They rust out in back yards and collect dust and hay in barns. Or their tooling goes somewhere else. Scores of older cars live on in lesser developed countries, most famously the VW Beetle in Mexico until 2003. But also Iran Khodro’s Peugeot 405 and South Africa’s VW Golf Mk1 (out of production in Germany since 1983). Similarly, one of the best selling cars in British history—British Leyland’s Austin/MG Maestro—didn’t go out of production when it was canned in the UK in 1994. The car, notorious for exemplifying BL’s miserable failings, lives on in China to this day. A writer for AROnline ventured to Chengdu, where the Maestro soldiers on, to investigate what happened to this disaster of a car. In addition to other bodystyles, the basic platform underpins a knock off of an MG concept from a decade ago as well as a Subaru Forester knock-off. The article is well worth a look. And it makes you wonder which early 2000s GM vehicles will be “brand new” in another corner of the world in 2030.

The issue: the optional HID headlights of the circa-2006 Prius are prone to turning off at random times, usually not at the same time. When this happens, they must be turned off, then on again. To fix the problem, Toyota dealers sometimes recommend replacing the entire HID system, at a cost of $1,700. Owners are launching a class action suit to force Toyota to cover these failures out of warranty. “Prius headlamp troubles could dim Toyota brand’s reputation,” writes Jean Halliday in yesterday’s Advertising Age and Automotive News. I’ve suggested that manufacturers pick up the cost of common problems out of warranty. That said, this story seems driven more by a media agenda rather than by the facts.

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As of today, it will be more difficult for California cities to lower speed limits to create lucrative radar speed traps. The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) has issued a new policy directive that alters the method used to set speed limits, as codified in the state’s Manual on Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD). California’s speed trap law prohibits the use of radar or laser to issue speeding tickets on any road not in compliance with these new rules. The MUTCD explains . . .

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China isn’t giving up its quest for distressed and desperate Western auto assets.

On the Opel front, Magna reportedly has hit a rough patch. Reuters says that RHJ International, a former bidder for Opel, is back in the running and may be close to a deal. Financial Times says that BAIC will also hand in a formal bid. The news wire cautions that the sudden bidding activity may be just “a ploy to pressure Magna to reach a final agreement by a mid-July deadline on terms acceptable to GM.”

At the same time “China’s Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Corp (BAIC), rival Geely, and at least one Western industrial group remain interested in Ford Motor Co’s Volvo car unit,” says Reuters, citing the industry’s prime source, the “person close to the situation.”

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TTAC commentator Patrickj writes:

I have a 2006 Ford Freestyle with about 75,000 miles. I like it well enough, including the CVT, and it has been very reliable, but I can’t say I love it. Biggest current issue with the car is wear on the interior, especially carpets. The high depreciation is a sunk cost, and I’m not going to decide anything on that basis. Problem is, there’s nothing else I’m particularly eager to drive that has the cargo room, comfort for a big driver (6 feet, 230 pounds), and any better gas mileage for my long commute.

Several Piston Slap posters basically said that the CVT was something to run away from, and that I’ve already pushed it well beyond its expected lifetime. I had the fluid changed by the dealer at 55K miles.

Am I committing the car ownership equivalent of driving on the wrong side of the interstate? Is the expense of CVT repair that high and that imminent? At 3 years old, shouldn’t I be able to get a transmission from a low mileage wreck if it does fail?

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