1970s Land Rover Deluxe Hardtop Factory Brochure on 2040-parts.com

New Mercedes E-Class Cabriolet and Estate delayed

The new Mercedes E-Class Cabriolet - now put back until Spring 2010 Mercedes has done a pretty good job on updating the E-Class, and its been receiving good comments all round. But Mercedes has lost the momentum a bit with the revelation that the E-Class Coupe is actually based on a C-Class chassis. Not that that alone is reason for complaint, but there was a big hoo-haa around the nomenclature for the E-Class Coupe (should it have been the CLK?) so it was a bit disingenuous of Mercedes to reveal the Coupe’s roots after its reveal.

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.

Jeep brings duo of remixed Cherokee concepts to Beijing

China has become and important market for a number of American automakers, and even though Jeep's partnership with local automotive companies goes back decades, it has always faced stiff competition from other brands in the SUV segment. Hoping that the debut of the new Cherokee will revitalize interest in the brand, Jeep has brought a number of concepts to the China auto show in Beijing this week. First up is the Jeep Cherokee Sageland concept, whose design theme and colors were inspired by historical landmarks and scenery of the Shangri-La region, with the SUV's exterior painted in ivory tri-coat pearl with bronze grille collars.