Hasta La Gadget!

Call it factory LoJack: OnStar has unveiled OnStar Ignition Block, a feature that lets law enforcement disable a car’s ignition once it has been stolen. The idea is to avoid dangerous car chases that could put the public, the police, or the thief at risk.

In addition, OnStar claims it already works with law enforcement to attempt recovery of about 600 stolen vehicles per month using the service’s embedded GPS chip. OnStar also helps slow down cars that are involved in chases–against the will of the thief.

The new Ignition Block capability is available on selected 2009 and 2010 GM vehicles equipped with OnStar, and will build on the company’s Stolen Vehicle Assistance services already in effect.

Citroën has confirmed it will build six examples of a $2.1 million GT supercar based on the automaker’s design for the PS3 game Gran Turismo 5, according to the New York Times.

The two-seater GT will feature gull-wing doors and a carbon fiber body. Chances are it won’t include a real version of the virtual powertrain in the PS3 car: a 646 horsepower hydrogen fuel cell with an overboost function that generated 138 extra horsepower on demand. “That ultra high-tech powertrain will remain video-game fantasy,” according to the report, although few details are available at this point.

Citroën will debut the GT at the Frankfurt auto show later this year.

Can you drive 1,000 miles in your car and spend less than $60 on fuel? That’s the beauty of the Volkswagen Sportwagen TDI diesel, which averaged 43 mpg. It runs forever on a gallon of fuel, entertains you while under way, cruises comfortably at speed, and holds tons of gear. The wagon, which I tested, and the Jetta TDI sedan, belong on your new-car shopping list if you do a lot of highway driving. They’ll hold their own against hybrids that do best in city driving.

Now that Cheap Geek has gone upscale and become TechSaver, I’ve been ordered to remove all the geeky things from the office. Great, now what am I supposed to do with this box of light sabers?

1. You’ve got TV in your house and there’ll be TV where you’re going, but if only there was some way you could have video in the car, as well. Now there is. Geeks.com is selling a two-pack of 7-inch LCD car headrest color monitors for $137.99, and you’ll get free shipping if you use the code FREESTUFF at checkout. These are easy to set up and even come with a pair of remotes, perhaps for especially large backseats. They support PAL and NTSC systems, so I guess the idea is that you use them with a portable DVD player.

2. Speaking of car deals, look what you can get at 1saleaday.com. Until midnight tonight, it’s selling a refurbished TomTom One 3rd Edition for $49.99. That’s a terrific price on a dependable navigator. This GPS has a 3.5-inch screen and both U.S. and Canadian maps. Click the Specs button to confirm that this is a refurbished model, which isn’t immediately obvious. TomTom itself sells refurbs of this navigator for $99.95, so it’s still a great deal.

3. Why spend a small fortune on earbuds when you can spend $3? That’s the price for Techsunny iPod Earphones, which look exactly like Apple’s own earbuds. They’re going for $3 each with free shipping. Buy a couple to have on hand, just in case the headphones you have break.

What to do when your navigation product costs almost as much as a cheap portable navigation device but requires a laptop for use in the car? Bring out a version with a simpler, USB key GPS module. That’s Microsoft Streets & Trips 2009 with GPS Locater. It’s just over $50 street price, vs. $65-$90 for the same software with a GPS module on a long USB cable.

The software works just the same as on other versions of Streets & Trips 2009 that we’ve reviewed earlier in the year. It’s a great convenience on a laptop and has some benefits over online trip planning software. It also has some quirks that have crept into recent versions of S&T. For instance, zooming is much less precise than in versions from the middle of the decade: Now, you press + or – keys to zoom, rather than grab the area with your mouse and zoom to the precise size of the bounding box.