Volkswagen Beetle Dune 'could be built'

IF YOU like your Beetles with a little more ‘dune buggy’ about them, Volkswagen’s latest concept is right up your street. And what’s more, it really could be right up your street if public reaction to the so-called Beetle Dune is strong enough. With a body raised by 50mm, 19-inch wheels and a special rear-mounted luggage rack reminiscent of early Beetles, the Dune plays on its dual heritage strands of its earliest predecessor and the fully off-road biased dune buggies built on Beetle chassis.

Mercedes S-Class Plug-in Hybrid revealed for Frankfurt 2013

We’ve driven the new 2013 Mercedes-Benz S-Class already this year (and loved it), but now the ‘best car in the world’ has added another feather to its cap. The German firm has released details of a super-high efficiency version of its S-Class saloon called the S500 Plug-in Hybrid, ahead of the car’s debut at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show next month. It goes on sale in the UK in 2014, and its vital statistics are absolutely astonishing.

Auto-safety history gets its place in the Smithsonian

Smithsonian museum officials say their new collection of auto-safety objects dating to the 1930s is about America's love affair with its cars. But really it's about our passion for, well, staying alive. While some enthusiasts might question whether their cars should be braking for them, it's hard to quarrel with most of this technology.