DRIVE TALKING

What’s hot on the road

BAD CALL FOR DRIVERS

WHAT do we most hate about other drivers? A new survey by Continental Tyres has revealed that mobile phone use is the most annoying bad habit we observe on the road, with over 68% of those polled placing it a No. 1. Hot on its heels were illegal or dangerous overtaking, driving too slowly, lack of indication and poor lane discipline, and breaking the speed limit. This being Ireland, there was a level of hypocrisy involved, though, as 45% admitted to regularly breaking the speed limit, and almost 40% to using their phones while driving.

VOLVO’S DESIGN AWARD

THE Volvo S90 saloon has won the Production Car Design of the Year 2015 award, an accolade which is voted on by a panel of professional car designers from around the world (including experts at Bentley, Daimler and Ferrari) and presented at the Geneva International Motor Show, which kicked off earlier this week and runs until March 13. The award, which is organised by Car Design News, was accepted by Volvo’s Thomas Ingenlath, who said: ‘Our use of high-end materials, classic proportions and controlled surfacing reflects our intention to forge our own path.’ He added: ‘We don’t want to fit in, we want to stand out.’

FORD FOCUS ON NEW VERSIONS

LAST year, Ford introduced the Mondeo Vignale, and now plans to roll out the high-end spec version of other models. At Geneva, it unveiled the Ford Edge Vignale SUV and the S-MAX Vignale, and also showed a concept version of the Kuga Vignale.