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48 per cent of respondents from New South Wales do not know how to travel through a multi-lane roundabout correctly. That number rises to 49 per cent for Queensland and gets worse at 58 per cent for Victoria and and a shameful 62 per cent in South Australia.

31 per cent of Victorians do not know who should give way at a T-intersection, compared to 21 per cent in NSW and 23 per cent in Queensland.

State vs State aside, what about male vs female? The survey found that 78 per cent of men overall knew who should give way at a T-intersection compared with 70 per cent of women.

“Perhaps this calls for a major rethink from our motoring bodies on how to curb these statistics, they may need to ask themselves whether there’s any value in making written tests compulsory for drivers every 10 years.” The insurance company’s general manager John Dujmovic said

We agree, although we would like to see a compulsory practical test every five years. What do you think the government needs to do to keep drivers aware of road rules.

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While BMW have been vague about specifics, we know that every body panel has been reinforced with special ballistic resistant armoured fibre that was developed in the Netherlands, and as you would expect the windows are upgraded to 22mm thick security glass.

Along with ‘Aramid’ fibre mats on the floor pan to resist explosions, an internal camera system with intercom keeps the occupants aware of which underworld gangster is attempting to make you ‘disappear’.

Cars have been tuned to handle the extra weight with engine, suspension and brake upgrades. The BMW 5 series ‘Security’ is offered with either a 274kW, 4.8-litre V8 that can sprint to 100km/h in 6.5 seconds or a 203kW, 3.0-litre inline-six that can do the same in 7.5 seconds.

BMW Security models availability extends to select dealerships through Africa, Latin America, the Middle-East and South-East Asia.

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Picture this scenario, driving along a lonely road - pitch black, somewhere in the Simpson Desert - roo central, at a hundred clicks in over half a million dollars worth of car.

This is the exact situation the CarAdvice team was placed in when it took two Aston Martins to the heart of Australia on another leg of our Full Throttle expedition.

At the time all we had between us and what was sure to be a viral image of a kangaroo-powered DBS was a sacrificial rental driven by Alborz leading the way - tense times.

This new Night Vision system uses a thermal imaging camera which provides a real-time moving video image which allows the driver to recognise people, animals and other objects, beyond the reach of headlights.

“According to official statistics, 43 per cent of fatal Australian accidents occur at night, even though most driving occurs during the day,” says Guenther Seemann, BMW Group Australia Managing Director.

Now this technology already made its debut back in 2006 on the previous 7 Series, however BMW have made significant software enhancements to the point where the system can now detect individual people for the first time.

Rather than constantly glimpsing at the night-time monitor, the system now uses intelligent algorithms to search specifically for pedestrians then highlights the individual in a yellow colour in the video image.

If the system determines a potential risk ahead, it will notify the driver with an additional warning.

To minimise the number of warnings, the system analyses each situation, restricting its warnings to pedestrians in a warning corridor determined as a function of speed, the steering angle, and the yaw rate of the car.

This warning comes in the form of a symbol in both the control display and the head-up display projected onto the windscreen.

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The system is expected to eliminate low speed front-end collisions. If the XC60 is is being driven at speeds of equal or less to 30km/h and the speed differential between the car infront is no more than 15km/h, then accidents will be avoided thanks to the car’s ability to automatically brake.

The system uses a set of lasers to monitor cars up to six metres in front and brake in case of the XC60 is approaching another vehicle too quickly. Volvo says that accidents might still happen (depending on distance to the car in front and weather conditions) although the severity of the accident will be reduced.

“Surveys indicate that three-quarters of all reported front-end collisions occur at speeds below 30km/h, and in 50 per cent of those cases the driver doesn’t brake at all, front-end collisions often occur at roundabouts, intersections and car parks. They can result in vehicle occupant injury, as well as seemingly minor but expensive-to-repair front-end damage.” Volvo managing director Alan Desselss said

The introduction of the system will mean Volvo is once again the leader in modern safety technology, becoming the first manufacturer in the world to offer this type of safety feature as standard across the globe.

The company anticipates that the benefits are more than just accidence avoidance, the insurance industry is expected to offer reduced premiums for owners of cars equipped with the system.

The planned live demonstration at the Sydney motorshow involves the XC60 driving towards an inflated car-sized obstacle, simulating a real-life situation.

“Volvo’s City Safety demonstration will add an additional dynamic element to the event and is part of plans to make the show much more than simply a display of new cars,” said Australian International Motor Show event manager, Robby Clark.

The Australian International Motor Show will be held at the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre at Darling Harbour from 9 to 19 October. More information on the show will be available closer to the date.

CarAdvice will also be attending so expect full and live coverage from the show.

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It works by literally simulating the sound of a conventional petrol engine through a waterproof speaker mounted at the front of the car.

At low speeds when a hybrid such as the Prius would be running completely silently on its electric motor, throttle and speed dependent synthesised sound projects a realistic engine sound in front of the vehicle.

When the hybrid’s petrol engine starts operating, the control system automatically stops the external synthesis.

The system apparently fills a very real safety void, which up until this point has been the focus of many humorous hyperboles - as seen in this Clarkson review.

Whilst for the average pedestrian the idea seems almost comical, it has been mainly developed for the blind and partially blind who rely heavily on the sound of vehicles when approaching a cross walk.

“Guide Dogs believe further research and development is needed to address the issues of identifying ‘quiet vehicles’ for blind and partially sighted people. The charity recognises the environmental benefits of these vehicles however more consideration needs to be given to the safety implications to visually impaired pedestrians.”

The engine sounds were recorded using a ’suitable’ donor car which was analysed to establish the characteristic frequencies at different engine speeds.

Let’s hope Lotus has at least had a sense of humour when choosing the donor car, and dubbed the track from a Supercharged Exige - expect to hear more high performance Prius’ on the road!

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The ANCAP rating will apply to all petrol-engined models of the Falcon sedan, including the V8, but does not apply to the Utility, which must be tested separately, or E-Gas powered models, which currently do not have Dynamic Stability Control, Ford’s version of ESC, fitted.

Mr Osborne told CarAdvice that one of Ford’s top engineering priorities was to get DSC into the E-Gas Falcon and he expected this would have been achieved by early next year.

The E-Gas Falcon is being increasingly marketed by Ford, not just as a fleet vehicle, but as a cost effective option for families who want to stay in a large car but are concerned about growing fuel costs.

“The petrol FG Falcon sedan range has been judged by ANCAP as being the safety leader amongst locally-manufactured vehicles, cementing Ford’s long standing reputation for safety leadership in Australia,” Mr Osborne said.

“We design our cars to deliver real-world safety benefits for our customers. This result is a resounding third party endorsement of the extensive safety development program undertaken for the all-new FG Falcon.

“Not only is the FG Falcon the safest vehicle ever produced in this country, it is also competitive with the safest sedans in the world.

“These safety test results add further validation to the extensive crash simulation process and physical crash test program conducted by Ford Australia for the FG Falcon, which was the most comprehensive in the company’s history.”

Mr Osborne said the ANCAP result vindicated Ford’s own testing in which more than 38 different vehicle crash modes were investigated during the course of the vehicle’s development, with 426 full vehicle-representative physical crash tests and more than 5000 start-of-the-art simulated crash tests completed.

The Chair of ANCAP, Mr Lauchlan McIntosh was on hand to congratulate Ford and to praise the Falcon which he said “now leads the pack in safety for the large Australian-made family car.”

He said ANCAP now had high expectations that this achievement would encourage other manufacturers to strive to build five-star cars.

When tested soon after release the Holden Commodore scored 27.5 points and got a four star rating, while the Toyota Aurion scored 30 points and also got four stars.

Mr McIntosh said the Falcon scored a very commendable 34.61 points out of a possible 37 points for the ANCAP test, and this was the highest score ever by an Australian made car “by a long margin.”

However it was not all good news for the Falcon with the FG Falcon scoring a relatively average two stars for pedestrian safety out of a possible four.

Mr McIntosh said; “This is an improvement on the previous Falcon, but there is still plenty of room for improving pedestrian protection.”

For the Falcon to be in the running for the five-star rating Ford had to donate an additional crash test vehicle to ANCAP so the challenging Pole Test could be conducted.

Mr Osborne said at the launch of the FG Falcon that a vehicle would be made available for this test, which was a departure from the previous attitude of Australian car manufacturers, which have previously refused to provide the extra vehicle for the Pole Test.

The five-star score by the Falcon is also a strong vindication of Ford’s claims that it did not need to offer curtain airbags as standard in the base XT to achieve the safety rating.

The vehicle tested was fitted with what Ford calls a ‘chest/head’ side airbag and this was sufficient for the car to win the rating.

Previously ANCAP has indicated that cars without a curtain airbag, which protects the upper areas of both front and rear passengers, had little chance of achieving a five-star rating.

Mr McIntosh said the Ford had set a new standard and it may mean that in future ANCAP would have to look at an additional rating, beyond five-stars, for vehicles with curtain airbags.

Ford Australia Vice President of Product Development Trevor Worthington said a world-class body structure and comprehensive suite of active and passive safety features had given the Falcon the opportunity to score a five-star safety rating.

He said the company’s long held reputation for designing vehicles to deliver innovative real-world safety benefits ensured that the safety development program for the new Falcon has remained a step ahead of growing consumer awareness of the importance of vehicle safety.

Mr Osborne told CarAdvice that Ford would be promoting the five-star rating of the Falcon by displaying an ANCAP sticker on all vehicles, and this would be added to other five-star vehicles in the Ford fleet, including Focus and Mondeo.

He said safety would be the point-of-difference that Ford would offer the Australian buying public.

He added that while the large-car segment of the market was struggling Ford was seeing growing sales for its entrant in the market and he expected even stronger success in the future, on the back of the Falcon’s excellent safety rating.

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The reports indicate that the FG Falcon scored the results in the latest round of ANCAP testing and CarAdvice understands that the Falcon G6E, which recently narrowly won our latest Four Car Comparison Test, was the vehicle to clinch the top safety rating.

It’s major local rivals the Holden VE Commodore and the Toyota Aurion/Camry both scored only four stars when they were tested soon after their release onto the market.

To achieve the full five-star rating a manufacturer must donate a vehicle to ANCAP to undergo the ‘pole test’ and to-date, Holden and Toyota have avoided taking this step.

 Ford indicated from the launch of the FG Falcon that it would donate a car for the test, an indication it was confident of getting the elusive five-star rating.

The pole test is the most difficult to pass and side-curtain airbags are a virtual prerequisite for any car to pass this demanding test.

In addition any car wanting to achieve the five-star rating must have Electronic Stability Control as standard and have seat belt warning lights for every occupant.

 Ford has side-curtain airbags available as an option on some lower spec models and CarAdvice would expect that these will have achieved a four-star rating, while the higher spec models with the extra airbags as standard will get the five star rating.

The five-star ANCAP rating is certain to give Ford a big boost over its rivals, with local consumers paying an increasing amount of attention to safety ratings in recent times.

Click through to read our  Four Car Comparison Test.

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Laguna has for a long time lead the charge for the French as being a symbol for innovative and intelligent automotive design, a datum other cars aspire to, which was a point well validated when BMW purchased Sandouville’s Laguna build number one. Sadly perhaps we Aussies just don’t get it, and more often than not pass up the opportunity to own one - maybe this time round all that will change.

Voted 2008 Company Car of the Year (in France) and The World’s Most Beautiful Car (Estate variant) at the Automotive Festival of Paris, the new Laguna is a stylish and sophisticated modern car with ideals set to challenge convention in much the same way French cars always have. Although at times Renault styling has been quirky, the reasoning behind it is usually sound, and now with the Phase III Laguna conquering showrooms back home, there’s a suggestion sound French reasoning may have finally surrendered to German good looks.

Estate due in Australia from December

From almost any angle, the car is stunning, quite Bavarian in sculpt, and although I’m not personally a fan of the tail light positioning (hatch), just about every other angle of the car strikes a chord for aesthetic pleasure. It’s not quite majestic, but it is certainly striking, sleek and rather elegant, with well proportioned, slippery lines and a free flowing energetic feel.

It also feels very well built. The doors shut beautifully and just the lightest touch will see the weighting take care of the rest, something I’ve not experienced since playing with old Jaguars. Panel fit is uniformly tight all over and the assertively styled Mille Miles 18 inch alloy wheels still manage to hold a certain decorum in those large, slightly flared arches whilst at the same time maintaining grace and purpose. The bright work around the windows contrasts wonderfully with the Charcoal metallic paint (no cost option) and with large headlamps adding a slightly overwhelming look, the front seems bold and insistent, like a larger GT car.

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WA’s automobile club, the RAC, said it was sick of the current government’s lack of progress on road safety.

“The one thing that concerns us most is the fatality rate is still up there with the worst,” RAC Executive Manager, Member Advocacy David Moir said. “Only the Northern Territory is up there with us, and that’s no endorsement.”

“What is most disturbing is that WA has been up there for the past couple of years,” Mr Moir said. “The Government needs to get this new road safety strategy implemented as soon as possible. We are concerned there’s no step-up in the Government’s efforts on road safety at the moment, when we have a serious problem with road safety in WA.”

This is despite an increase in speed cameras, and more visible police cars with highly reflective livery.

Regardless of where we live in this country, deaths on the roads are not acceptable.

CarAdvice would like to know what your strategy for tackling the road toll would be. What would you present to your state government, as a solution to bringing down the road toll?

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The ‘SX’ level variant gains ESP integrating a Traction Control System (TCS), front and rear curtain airbags and side front (thorax) airbags - now making these features standard equipment throughout the Santa Fe range.

This is in addition to the list of equipment already on the SX model including 17” alloy wheels, Anti-skid Braking System with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution, dual front airbags, 6 speaker audio and a standard roof rack system with ‘one touch’ sliding bars.

The mid range ‘SLX’ model gains full auto dual zone climate control system with external temperature display as well as adding a third row of seats, cool box, conversation ‘parent’ mirror, front fog lamps, mesh sports seat fabric, trip computer and heated door mirrors over the SX model.

The ‘Elite’ flagship model adds power front seats, 18” alloy wheels, auto headlights ‘on’ system, chrome inserts in the door and boot handles, electro chromatic interior mirror with integrated digital compass, electric glass sunroof, 6 stack in-dash audio with separately mounted amplifier and 7 speakers, leather seat facings, rear spoiler and stainless steel scuff plates.

Two new exterior metallic colours have also been introduced into the new Santa Fe range - Blue Titanium and Gun Metal - whilst Espresso Black has been added to the interior colour range.

Enhanced Santa Fe – model range:

2.7 V6 petrol AWD powertrain (available in ‘SX’ trim):

• 138 kW of peak power @ 6,000 rpm
• 248 Nm peak torque @ 4,000 rpm
• 5 speed manual or 4 speed automatic
• Fuel consumption 10.4 litres / 100 km (man), 10.6 litres / 100 km (auto)

2.2 CRDi turbo Diesel AWD powertrain (available in ‘SX’, ‘SLX’ and ‘Elite’ trims):

• 114 kW of peak power @ 4,000 rpm
• 343 Nm peak torque @ 1,800 to 2,500 rpm
• 5 speed manual or 5 speed automatic with Selectronic manual shift
• Fuel consumption 7.3 litres / 100 km (man), 8.2 litres / 100 km (auto)

Enhanced Santa Fe - retail prices:

• 2.7 V6 AWD SX 5 seat 5 speed manual          $33,990 RRP
• 2.7 V6 AWD SX 5 seat 4 speed auto          $35,990 RRP
• 2.2 CRDi AWD SX 5 seat 5 speed manual          $36,990 RRP
• 2.2 CRDi AWD SX 5 seat 5 speed auto          $38,990 RRP
• 2.2 CRDi AWD SLX 7 seat 5 speed auto          $41,990 RRP
• 2.2 CRDi AWD Elite 7 seat 5 speed auto          $46,990 RRP
• Optional Metallic / Mica paint          $375 RRP

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This offer will also be extended as an option to workhorse models - which includes the R6 variant - with ¾-tonne and one-tonne suspension packages from December production.

“With the introduction of DSC on Falcon Ute, in conjunction with the availability of side head/thorax airbags, customers are able to configure their vehicle with a comprehensive safety package that is unmatched in the passenger-derived ute market,” Ford Australia Vice-President Marketing and Sales Mark Winslow said.

The DSC system will incorporate Traction Control, four-channel Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD) and Emergency Brake Assist (EBA), with the latter not previously available on Falcon Ute models.

From September 1, the inclusion of DSC as standard fitment will effect the recommended retail price of all XR model Utes which will increase by $500 - while the option price for DSC on the rest of the FG Falcon Ute range will be $500 RRP.

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