Hall is managing director...
Hall is managing director of RAC Insure, and told Auto Express: "We have to acknowledge the idea of owning a car may soon be a luxury many can"t afford. And we should perhaps not be surprised that some break the law, such as by driving uninsured, to cut costs." According to new RAC figures (see table, below), the average car costs í‚á£101.75 a week to run - that"s more than í‚á£400 a month. And adding to the burden is the news that recent rises in petrol prices are pushing up the bill by a further í‚á£102 a year. According to the motoring organisation, drivers should reduce their costs by opting for vehicles powered by diesel. For example, a Ford Mondeo owner can save í‚á£7 per week by swapping from a petrol model to an oil-burner - that"s í‚á£373 over 12 months.
It wears a Ferrari badge...
It wears a Ferrari badge, but unlike the Italian brand’s cars, this sat-nav won’t get you to your destination any quicker! Don’t let that put you off, though – with the famous name strapped across the top, the Becker system oozes cool.
The Traffic Assist Pro Ferrari is a bit on the large size for a portable navigation device, but the benefit is a large and clear four-inch touchscreen. Fire it up and a smart display of a Ferrari dash illuminates the screen. Menus are clear and easy to use, and while some of them can be a bit slow to scroll through, the display picks up most inputs quickly. We found setting destinations a breeze, and the predictive software ‘guesses’ locations as you type.
Navigation was good over our test route. When we tried to confuse the system, the software redirected us fast, giving a sensible alternative. Maps for 37 countries are included, and it highlights petrol stations, airports and hotels. But some sub-menus are fiddly with navigation in progress, and the instructions weren’t much help.
The Traffic Assist Pro has an MP3 player with 64Mb of memory, plus a digital photo viewer. And as the battery is rechargeable, you can set it up when it’s not plugged in.