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Mercedes-Maybach Ultimate Luxury SUV concept shown in leaked images

Just days ago, we posted the interior teaser image Mercedes-Maybach released of its Ultimate Luxury concept due to be presented at the Beijing Motor Show. Now photos of the entire vehicle, inside and out, have leaked online courtesy of the manufacturer. Thanks to the concept's own microsite being live for a short while, we've gotten a good look of the concept. And it's not just a dressed-up GLS by any means, even if there might be a GLS platform underneath it all: It's a high-riding four door sedan with a clearly formed trunk instead of a traditional SUV shape. There's a big waterfall grille flanked by low, aggressive three-unit headlights, and the detailing is a combination of SUV cues and something a lot more luxurious. It's not easy to design a three-box sedan that's still recognizably an SUV. Inside, there's white leather and rose-gold detailing everywhere. But the big deal is the powertrain, which in the concept is all-electric. The all wheel drive is propelled with four electric motors, with a combined power output of 750 horsepower. The battery, said to be a flat underfloor design, is good for 80 kWh and an EPA range of over 200 miles, and the vehicle's top speed is limited to 250 km/h, or 155 mph. There's DC fast charging at up to 350kW, meaning that the range can be boosted by 60 miles in just five minutes, and induction charging is also available. All in all, the vehicle reminds us of the 2009 Lagonda Luxury Utility Vehicle concept, which was also created around a three-box sedan shape and also based on a Mercedes platform, GL-Class in that case. It did not yield a production version, but maybe the Vision Ultimate Luxury will. Related Video: Featured Gallery Vision Mercedes-Maybach Ultimate Luxury View 9 Photos Image Credit: Mercedes-Maybach Green Beijing Motor Show Maybach Mercedes-Benz Concept Cars Electric Luxury mercedes-maybach

2017 Mercedes-Maybach S650 Cabriolet includes guaranteed exclusivity

For certain buyers, the only thing better than a super-luxurious cabriolet that requires enormous sums of money to buy is a a super-luxurious cabriolet that money can't buy. That's what Daimler promises with the 2017 Mercedes-Maybach S650 Cabriolet to be unveiled at the LA Auto Show. Limited to 300 units worldwide and just 75 in the US, having just three available color combinations magnifies the exclusivity. Turning the Mercedes-Benz S-Class cabrio into a droptop worthy of the Maybach family means slight revisions outside and in, and a whole lot of Maybach badges. Instead of the three lower intakes familiar from Mercedes' corporate language, there's black mesh highlighted by a shiny design element. It's not the most graceful face from dead-on, looking sort of like a chrome-lined grimace picked up from Wallace and Gromit. A Maybach emblem adorns the fenders and gleaming kickplates, the 20-inch wheels add an edge to the brand's traditional dinner-plate design. The 6.0-liter, twin-turbo V12 carries over from the donor convertible, with the same 621 horsepower and 738 pound-feet of torque hooked up to a seven-speed automatic transmission. The only three color treatments available in the US will be Zircon Red with a porcelain and black interior and a black top, Cote d'Azur Blue with a porcelain and saddle interior and a beige top, and Designo Diamond White with a porcelain and Yacht Blue interior with a dark blue top. The cabin works nautical themes lifted in part from the Mercedes-Benz Style Arrow 460-Granturismo yacht. Perforations in the leather seats evoke waterfalls. The "Flowing Lines" trim ornamenting the seats comes two different colors depending on the exterior hue; either "Piano lacquer" black with the Zircon Red or Magnolia Nut Brown with the other two options. Buyers will find profuse badging in embroidered, embossed, and inlaid varieties, as well as chrome-plated "1 of 300" lettering in several places like the cup holder and steering wheel. The few lucky customers who buy an S650 will also find a four-piece set of Maybach-badged luggage in the truck, two travel bags and two weekenders tooled up in the same leather as the interior. The key fob gets finished in Porcelain leather. A car cover comes standard, in the same color as the convertible top. A certificate signed by the mustachioed one, Daimler Chairman Dr. Dieter Zetsche, provides the corporate-badged icing on the cake.

Are future vehicular hacks inevitable?

Before the hack of the Uconnect system in a Jeep Cherokee resulted in a 1.4-million vehicle recall, the potential software vulnerabilities in vehicles were already a hot topic with Congressional inquiries and even proposed legislation in the US. As cars' interconnected systems gain the ability to go online, they become open to a host of new threats. Automakers are trying to stop this, but it might be too late to put the genie back into the bottle. Throughout 2015, the issue of software security in vehicles has become increasingly vital. For example, the recent Jeep case wasn't even the biggest hack this year. In February, a major flaw was discovered in the BMW Connected Drive service that allowed researchers to remotely lock and unlock the doors and potentially affected 2.2 million cars. The fix was an over-the-air patch for the problem. Automakers are actively working to fix the issues. Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Audi reportedly are using encrypted connections and firewalls in their vehicles to prevent hacking. "Absolute, 100-percent safety isn't possible," Daimler spokesperson Benjamin Oberkersch said to Automotive News Europe. "But we develop our systems, tested by internal and external experts, so they're up to date." These vulnerabilities seem to be popping up more often. A successful hack took $14 in parts from Radio Shack in one case. There was also a 60 Minutes report earlier in the year about DARPA's ability to hack into OnStar to take control of a Chevrolet Impala. Experts aren't so sure companies can contend with hackers' advancement. "The difficulty for the carmakers at the moment is the question whether they can keep pace with advances in technology, and especially hacking technology," Rainer Scholz, executive director for telematics consultant EY, said to Automotive News Europe. "We seriously doubt they can." At this point, vehicle hacks are coming more from researchers looking for holes than from those with malicious intent. Still, the vulnerabilities are definitely there. It's up to automakers to keep patching the problems before they become dangerous to drivers. Related Video: News Source: Automotive News Europe - sub. req.Image Credit: Bill O'Leary / The Washington Post via Getty Images Audi BMW Jeep Mercedes-Benz Safety Technology Emerging Technologies hacking cyber security