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Fiat 500 Cabrio hits the US

The Fiat 500 Cabrio hits the US for Spring Actually, we’re not completely convinced that the Fiat 500 cabrio (that’s Fiat 500 Convertible for those of us on the old continent who prefer real words)  has hit the US. Because although Fiat has told us the 500 Cabrio hits the US ‘Just in time for spring’, it doesn’t say when US customers will start to get cars. Which may be a bit nit-picking, but there doesn’t seem much point saying it’s hitting in time for Spring when Spring’s a third done and there’s still no date.

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.

Lotus Exige S Roadster Official: Price (£52,800) and Specs

It’s the first properly good news from Lotus for a while, and looks a promising offering at the same price (£52,800) as the tin top Exige S and, remarkably for a convertible, actually weighing less than the hard top – although by only 10kg. The Exige S Roadster gets the same 3.5 litre V6 as the coupe which means 345bhp, 295lb/ft of torque and a 0-60mph of a very respectable 3.8 seconds, but it does lose the coupe’s rear wing and front splitter for better airflow. The folding roof on the Roadster is a manual affair, but Lotus say fresh air motoring is just ‘Two clicks and a roll away’, so the manual roof is probably the best – and lightest – option.