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These cars are headed to the Great Crusher In The Sky

It happens every year. We bid adieu to some cars and trucks that will be missed, and say good riddance to others wondering how they stayed around so long. Whether they're being killed off for slow sales or due to a new product coming along to replace them, the list of vehicles being discontinued after 2012 is surprisingly long and diverse.
CNN Money has compiled a list of departing vehicles, to which we've added a few more of our own. In the slow sales column, cars like the Lexus HS 250h, Mercedes-Benz R-Class and the full Maybach lineup appear, while the Ford Escape Hybrid, Mazda CX-7 and Hyundai Veracruz are all having their gaps filled with more modern and more fuel-efficient alternatives. Obvious exceptions to the rule include models that still sell in decent numbers like the Jeep Liberty and the Chrysler Town & Country (which will eventually be replaced by a crossover-like vehicle).
Check out our gallery of discontinued cars above, then scroll down for more information.

"Turbo" Chevrolet Camaro is a 700-HP fantasy car come to life [w/video]

For a concept car built to promote an animated movie about a snail that wants to go racing, this thing ain't half bad. The outsized monster you see before you started life as a Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, and then went through a big-time Hollywood makeover before being positioned on the Chevrolet stand here in Chicago.
This 2013 "Turbo" Camaro Coupe is getting the promotion machine ratcheted up for a new DreamWorks tale by the name of, you guessed it, Turbo. Coming this summer, the movie will follow one snail's quest to become a race driver worthy of making the cut at the Indy 500. Like many DreamWorks vehicles before it, we're guessing that the petrolhead snail will star in a movie that adults (especially racing fans) with have no trouble watching with their kids. Check out the trailer below to see if you agree.
As for the car, we're told that it is "instrumental" in transforming Turbo from snail into racer. Helping the beastly pony car in this mighty task, is an ankle-cracking front splitter matched by a ungodly huge rear wing out back, a COPO hood and a supercharged (yes, supercharged) V8 engine making more than 700 horsepower. 24-inch wheels all the way around - 10-inches wide in front and 15-inches wide in back - should allow the "Turbo" Camaro to hook up with ease, as well.

Chevrolet donates 300 vehicles damaged by Sandy to help train first responders

Super Storm Sandy took out a lot of automobiles in its path of destruction through the Northeast last October. The number surpassed 250,000 at last count, and a few of those were owned by Chevrolet - cars either sitting on dealership lots or waiting at port to be shipped off. Rendered unsellable by the water damage inflicted by Sandy, these vehicles were facing the crusher. But Chevy didn't send them there.
Instead, Chevy had a better idea: It will be donating 300 of these vehicles damaged by Sandy to help train first responders at Guardian Centers in Perry, GA. Chevy is the official automotive partner of Guardian Centers, which is an 830-acre facility that trains first responders in disaster preparedness. Junked cars are practically a consumable commodity there, where a full-size cityscape simulator gives trainees an entire urban center in which to train for all sorts of rescue operations and disaster scenarios.
Chevy says its particular vehicles will be used "in conjunction with role players for wide area searches, traffic congestion in emergency situations, counter terrorism, public order and mass casualty exercises." While grim scenarios all, we're certainly glad there are people out there preparing for the unexpected. While a zombie apocalypse isn't officially on the list of potential disasters to prepare for, when the virus hits, we'll be hot-footing it to Perry, GA to hang with these guys and gals.