Brian Wilson on the Beach Boys' car songs

Brian Wilson, the musical giant behind so much of the Beach Boys great music, sang at the Petersen gala in Los Angeles last week, and there were plenty of songs about cars and drag racing in the mix. "We're going to do a series of car songs because this place has a lot of cars," Wilson announced before leading his 10-piece band into "Little Deuce Coupe," "409," "All Summer Long" and "Shut Down." The band played to a packed house at the museum's annual fundraiser. Wilson's set was surely the most entertaining in the Petersen's 15 years of fundraising galas.

Land Rover Defender 90 XS by Chelsea Truck

The Land Rover Defender 90 XS by the Chelsea Truck Company (owned by Kahn Design) is a nice titivation of Land Rover’s iconic off-roader. Kahn Design turn their hand to modifying Land Rovers for the residents of Cheshire, Surrey and Essex – the most recent being the Evoque RS250 Vesuvius Copper – but, under the guise of off-shoot Chelsea Truck Company, Kahn has given the Land Rover defender a bit of a makeover too. Under the bonnet is the familiar 2.2 litre diesel with its adequate 120bhp and 265lb/ft of torque that comes in completely bog-standard setup, but cosmetically Kahn has given the Defender 90 XS some of the frills the regular Defender is missing.

Mazda6

The second generation of the Mazda6 doesn't stray far from the successful look of the outgoing model.  Though slightly longer, wider and taller than the model it replaces, its styling cues still clearly define the car as a 6. Offered in sedan, hatchback and wagon versions in Europe, the new Mazda6 sedan features a flowing roofline that is steeper at the C-pillar and a sculptured rear end.