What Women Want

The government has unveiled plans for the biggest shake up to the driving test in a quest to reduce the number of deaths and injuries caused by novice drivers.

Audi have just launched the most powerful road car they have ever produced. It is even faster than the R8 sport-racing car that won Le Mans in both 2004 and 2005. With a V10 engine in its heart, this road car takes just 4.6 seconds from 0- 62mph as proved by myself in a safe surrounding I hasten to add. Top speed is limited to either 155 mph or if a customer prefers 175 mph. The icing on the cake is that this car produces an incredible 650 Nm of torque.

We have heard it all now. Parents are to be charged up to £75 a year by councils to drop their children off on the school run.

A touch of style is being brought to the car forecourt with the launch of the world’s first drive-in fitting room, which allows motorists to check out what they look like in their car before they commit to purchase.

Monday morning will see the return of the school run for many families. What is appalling with these school runs is the irresponsible way some of the children are driven to school.

Road safety is a major social issue, both nationally and internationally. According to the World Heath Organisation (WHO), road accidents are the eighth biggest cause of death worldwide and are expected to become the third largest by 2020. Studies show that human error is involved in 80% of all road traffic accidents contributing to 1.2 million fatalities worldwide each year.

If I were Prime Minister, I would make it law that any motorist caught tailgating another driver should be banned from driving for life. Unfortunately, the chances of me becoming PM are as rare as this ever becoming law, but for those who have experienced being tailgating, I bet you are sitting there nodding your head in agreement.

Without having to state the obvious the best thing you can do to avoid breaking down is to maintain your car properly. We females are not prone to spending hours tinkering under the bonnet but we can learn a few basic skills that can prevent us from having a breakdown. After all, if our teenage offspring have to learn basic car maintenance as part of the driving test, then we cannot let them put us to shame can we?

Hikes in the cost of practical and theory driving tests, announced by the Driving Standard Authority (DSA) last summer, are set to put further strain on would-be drivers’ pockets when they come into force on 1st April 2008. This, by the way, is no April Fools’ Joke,

With school holidays upon us, many families will be taking to the roads, either for their holiday or, like me, simply having lots of days out.