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The incoming ‘baby’ Mercedes-Benz G-Class will sit on a bespoke ladder-frame platform, use “nearly all unique” parts and sport a design that “is even more modern than the current car”, bosses have said.

The new SUV will arrive within the next two years and will be the entry point to what is planned to be a new range of models, with Mercedes turning the G-Class into a brand in its own right – in much the same way JLR has done with Range Rover.

Speaking at the Munich show, Mercedes CEO Ola Källenius said test mules would be appearing on roads “very soon”. A new preview image of the incoming model’s rear end was also revealed.

The ‘Mini G’ will be based on a unique architecture, confirmed tech boss Markus Schäfer, in order to be “as authentic as possible”.

He added: “The G is a very special, authentic car, and the Mini G has to be authentic. So I cannot take just a platform, I cannot take an existing platform – I have to create my own. It’s a completely new development.”

Schäfer called the platform a “miniature ladder-frame chassis”, which he described as being “not ladder-frame [to the G-Class’s] extent”, but with similar qualities “when it comes to suspension and wheel size”.

Schäfer also revealed that the Mini G will use a signifi cant number of unique components, “far more than I ever wish to tell you”. These include most of the model’s bodywork.

He said: “Over time, just looking at the car’s capabilities and what’s needed, I came to the conclusion that everything has to be unique, the whole upper body and everything.

“You know, I can’t even take a door handle from [the current] portfolio, because the G-Class has such unique door handles.

“So we spent a lot of time tuning this car, and over time we started to develop so many unique components to make sure it’s a very good-looking car and very capable.”

The current G-Class is offered with both combustion engines and electric power, but Autocar understands the Mini G will be sold exclusively as an EV.

Asked about powertrains, especially an electric one, Schäfer was coy, stating: “Stay tuned. I don’t want to go in to this detail.”

The Mini G’s styling will be that of a “tweaked” G-Class, according to Mercedes design boss Gorden Wagener, which will make it “even more modern” than the electric G580 EQ that was launched last year.

Speaking about the design, Wagener said: “You cannot change the G much: it’s iconic. I like the new [current G-Class]: that’s a modern G.

“On the little one, we will give a slight tweak: a bit more sharpness, a bit younger [headlight] graphics but still circle. So really it’s details.

“But otherwise we stick to the G, and it’s a modern G – even a touch more modern than the big one.”

Asked if he wanted to be slightly more radical with the design, Wagener said the fundamentals had to stay the same: “You have to hold yourself back and understand what the icon is about. We strive for iconic design, and there is not such an iconic piece like the G.”

Jeep has cut the price of the electric Avenger by £3750 following the introduction of the government’s Electric Car Grant (ECG), for which it has yet to qualify.

The discount has been applied to all trim levels of the EV, meaning its price now ranges from £26,249 for the entry-level Longitude model to £30,249 for a range-topping Summit.

Jeep will also make a £1500 deposit contribution toward financing on the Avenger Summit when a buyer chooses a 0% APR contract, which requires a 20% down payment. This results in a monthly payment of £270 for the model.

The discounts and finance contributions will be available until 30 September.

Jeep is the latest in a line of manufacturers who do not yet qualify for the ECG but have introduced their own discount. Chinese brand Leapmotor moved first, cutting prices by £3750 to match the maximum discount provided by the grant, and it was soon followed by Alfa Romeo, MG and GWM, among others.

The criteria for electric cars to receive the grant are based on minimum sustainability criteria, including the manufacturer being signed up to the Science-Based Targets initiative for carbon emissions reduction. For those that qualify, the grant provides either £3750 or £1500 based on the emissions created by the production of the car and its battery.

Only two models currently qualify for the full £3750 grant: the Ford Puma Gen-E and the related Ford E-Tourneo Courier. A further 26 cars receive a £1500 discount.

Several manufacturers that have yet to be included in the scheme have hit out against its perceived preferential treatment of European manufacturers. 

Stella Li, chief of the European arm of Chinese manufacturer BYD, recently told Autocar that it was “not fair to consumers” because of its effective exclusion of Chinese brands. 

“They did that more to target Chinese firms, which is not fair to consumers," she said. "But we have to deal with that. We are not afraid, because I'm sure our sales numbers will continue increasing every single month.”

The UK government has officially stepped in to help JLR as it looks to restart car production following a cyber attack that has severely affected the firm's operations.

On Tuesday, the Jaguar and Land Rover company said it would attempt to restart production lines from 24 September. No cars have been built globally since the 1 September hack.

A statement from UK trade body the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) now confirms the government is helping the effort, as JLR continues to rebuild the internal computer systems that were infiltrated.

As well as aiding moves to restart production, government cyber experts are helping to assess “any impacts on the supply chain”, which workers’ union Unite claimed on Wednesday was at the brink of collapsing.

The SMMT statement said: "The recent cyber incident is having a significant impact on Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) and on the wider automotive supply chain.

"The government, including government cyber experts, are in contact with the company to support the task of restoring production operations, and are working closely with JLR to understand any impacts on the supply chain.”

The attack on 1 September has left JLR incapacitated. It has led to production shutdowns at all of JLR's global plants, created issues with parts ordering and stifled retailers.

The effect could be costing JLR up to £5 million a day, business economics professor David Bailey told Autocar last week.

Since the cyber attack, the majority of JLR’s employees have been off work, with lost hours being banked.

Union Unite said on Wednesday that employees within the supply chain are being told to apply for Universal Credit as they are moved onto reduced or zero-hours contracts by employers battling to stay afloat.

Earlier reports suggested that some suppliers “will go bust” as a result of the ongoing issues at JLR.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said the union has written to the UK government demanding it set up a furlough scheme to take the pressure off suppliers by supplementing workers’ pay packets while they’re unable to do their jobs.

“Workers in the JLR supply chain must not be made to pay the price for the cyber attack,” said Graham. “It is the government’s responsibility to protect jobs and industries that are a vital part of the economy.”

Graham cited a similar scheme set up on 15 September by the Scottish government to support bus maker Alexander Dennis and said “a similar scheme for workers in the JLR supply chain [should be set up] now”.

JLR suppliers 'could go bankrupt'

Recent reports have claimed that some of the firm's suppliers could go bust as a result of the shutdowns.

Former Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer told the BBC on 12 September: “I would not be at all surprised to see bankruptcies.” 

Palmer added that many suppliers will soon begin to slim their staff count as a result of the shutdown, saying: “You hold back in the first week or so of a shutdown; you bear those losses. But then you go into the second week, more information becomes available – then you cut hard. So layoffs are either already happening or are being planned."

Along with Unite, another making the call for a furlough scheme is Commons Business and Trade Committee chairman Liam Byrne.

The Labour MP said: "What began in some online systems is now rippling through the supply chain, threatening a cashflow crunch that could turn a short-term shock into long-term harm. We cannot afford to see a cornerstone of our advanced manufacturing base weakened by events beyond its control."

JLR hack: what happened?

Autocar first reported issues affecting JLR on 1 September, when dealers couldn't register new cars on 'new plate day' , traditionally one of the year's busiest for registrations.

In an effort to combat the hack, JLR began “shutting down our systems” on 2 September.

It's still in the process of rebuilding them and is unabel to confirm a timescale for the fix.

The hack has left JLR incapacitated. No cars have been produced globally since, leading to millions of pounds of lost income.

The extent of the issues meant JLR brought police and cybersecurity experts in to “restart our global applications in a controlled and safe manner”.

During this process, which included an investigation, it was discovered that "some data" was "affected", said JLR. Those affected will be contacted, said the firm.

It's not officially known what data was taken or if a ransom demand has been made, but it is thought it most likely involves customer data given the involvement of the police.

JLR said in a statement on 15 September that it will look to restart production on 24 September.

Who has claimed responsibility for JLR hack?

On 3 September, a group of hackers calling themselves Scattered Lapsus$ Hunters claimed responsibility for the attack on JLR.

This is the same group that hacked Marks & Spencer in May, causing the British retailer seven weeks of disruption and costing £300 million in lost operating profit.

It claimed to have obtained customer data after exploiting a similar flaw in JLR’s IT system. The claim was made on a Telegram messenger group, where a user linked to the hackers posted a screenshot of what appeared to show JLR's internal system.

A member of the group revealled that a well-known flaw in SAP Netweaver, third-party software used by JLR, was exploited to access the data.

The US's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency warned about the flaw earlier this year. An update for the software was released, but whether JLR applied it is unknown.

It's also not known what data was taken or if a ransom demand has been made of JLR.