I just discovered something that should have been obvious: Chicago Public Radio dropped Car Talk too early.

Starting yesterday, WBEZ moved its Saturday schedule around, dropping Car Talk from the 9am slot, bringing Wait Wait! Don't tell me and This American Life forward, and putting new show Snap Judgment in TAL's noon slot. Last week I listened to what I believed at the time to be the last Car Talk episode ever, and found it...oddly routine.

Well, duh. Tom and Ray will continue recording until later this month.

WBEZ: Why, oh why, did you switch the schedule four weeks early? At least there are podcasts.

But wait: it's possible they're not actually going to have a finale. Speculation on the boards is that they're already recycling segments. Say it isn't so, Tom and Ray!