02-05 Bmw E46 / E83 2002-2005 Battery Cable - Front 6910539 on 2040-parts.com

Court order BANS publication of VW’s Luxury car security codes

Bentley is just one of VW’s marques whose security has been compromised There have been plenty of stories around in recent years of car makers’ security systems being easily hacked by spotty boys with a laptop, and now a scientist at Birmingham University has cracked VW’s Megamos Crypto system that protects cars like Bentley and Porsche. Flavia Garcia has cracked the code that transmits between VW’s luxury cars – like Bentleys and Porsches – and the key fob, which potentially fatally compromises VW’s security. Garcia had planned to publish his paper on the fatal flaws in the Megamos Crypto system at the Usenix Security Symposium in Washington next month, but a judge has put the kybosh on that.

Stop-Start Freelander on the way

Land Rover has announced that it will be introducing stop-start technology on its Freelander range from May 2009, thus saving around 8% on the Co2 emissions, and taking the Freelander down a group on VED, which should help move a few more Freelanders off forecourts next year. The technology for the stop-start was developed in-house, with a new engine management system coming from Bosch and an uprated starter from Denso. The stop-start option will be available on the 2.2 TD4, which accounts for nearly half of UK sales.

Watch a Volvo find its own parking spot

Cars that can navigate into a preselected parking spot have been around for a few years now, and they've proven that under the right conditions they can pull it off successfully most of the time. But what about a car that finds its own parking spot just after you step out? Volvo is about to show a car that can do just that, and it manages this feat without an array of sensors on the roof that make the car look like a military aircraft.