Mercedes-Benz has picked up awards in both the car and van categories at the Fleet World awards.

The CLS-Class picked up Best Luxury Car, while the Sprinter van claimed the Safety Award for the fifth straight year at the Royal Automobile Club event on Pall Mall in London.

Working on the principal that there is "no such thing as too much safety", Mercedes and has designed the first vans for the UK market to be fitted with ESP electronic stability control and a front bulkhead as standard.

Van Fleet World Editor John Kendall explained that the Sprinter has led the way on safety.

"Safety has been ingrained in the Mercedes-Benz culture for many more years than many of its rivals," he said.

Commenting on the Best Luxury Car award, Fleet World Editor Steve Moody said: "For those at the top end of the executive sector … the CLS provides the answer."

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Williams-Renault's Pastor Maldonado has secured his maiden Formula 1 win after beating home favourite Fernando Alonso at the Spanish Grand Prix.

The Venezuelan had started on pole following Lewis Hamilton's demotion to the back of the for a fuel infringement and managed his tyres superbly throughout the race to hold off double world champion Alonso.

In the end, the Spaniard was looking more in his Ferrari's mirrors than trying to find a way into the lead, as a hard-charging Kimi Raikkonen with fresh tyres on his Lotus-Renault closed to within half a second on the final lap. 

He was well clear of his own team Romain Grosjean in fourth, with Kamui Kobayashi an excellent fifth for Sauber.

However, the former world champions Sebastian Vettel and Jenson Button were well off the pace in sixth and ninth respectively, while Hamilton recovered well to take eighth.

Nico Rosberg was seventh for Mercedes and fellow German Nico Hulkenberg rounded out the top ten for Force India. 

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As many as one in five of all cars fail their MOT test first time round, according to new research conducted by consumer car website honestjohn.co.uk.

analysis was conducted using 24.5 million recently obatained MOT records, which were drawn from the Vehicle Operator and Services Agency (VOSA) using the government’s OpenData scheme.

According to the data, between October 1st 2010 and September 30th 2011, 352,000 cars failed their first MoT. Lighting and signalling problems were the most common accounting for 164,837 failures while tyres accounted for 96,760 failures.

Headlight aim accounted for 82,555 failures with issues involving the driver’s view of the road contributing to 80,605 failures.

In terms of manufacturers, Renault was the worst with the most MOT failures, followed by Mini and then Citroen.

Constrastingly, Lexus, Suzuki and Honda were the best performing brands, with the fewest MOT failures registered.

Editor Daniel Harrison said: “Hard-pressed families can take this information and use it to ensure that they're not failing a MoT on something that can be easily fixed beforehand.”

Users will be able to utilise the data provided to spot cars’ common failures by make, model, year of registration and postcode.

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Popstar Gary Barlow has personally handed over the keys of a special Bentley GT Convertible to Children in Need auction winners Brendan and Barbara Ainscough.

The car, which was designed, engineered and built by Bentley associates in Crewe, was handed over to the lucky couple yesterday (May 10th) as part of a special meet-and-greet-ceremony.

The lucky couple paid a sensational £240,000 for the convertible last November, with the auction lot promising the winning bidders would get a chance to meet Gary Barlow.

Speaking after they collected the keys to the vehicle, Mr Ainscough admitted the chance to meet the Take That singer was the icing on the cake  to receiving the car.

"This is a very special occasion for myself and Barbara and we are absolutely thrilled that Gary has joined us here today to hand over the keys,” he said.

“The auction was a unique opportunity to buy a car we know we will love driving whilst raising money for an important cause that means a great deal.”

Completed to their personal specifications, the car also features the signatures of Barlow alongside Children in Need presenters Fearne Cotton and Sir Terry Wogan.

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With Britain wanting to look its best ahead of the arrival of the international community for the upcoming Olympic Games, the Highways Agency has called on motorists to take their litter home with them.

Clearing some 250,000 sacks of roadside litter costs the agency £10 million a year and littering also puts roadside workers lives at risk, blocks drains, endangers wildlife and creates hazards for other road users.

Roads minister Mike Penning is urging drivers to adopt the mantra "Bag It, Bin It" and pulled no punches when describing the menace of the litter louts.

"It's a disgrace that we spend nearly £10 million a year clearing litter from the side of England's motorways, just because a lazy and thoughtless minority can't be bothered to dispose of it properly," he said.

As well as the highways, campaign group Keep Britain Tidy says that a total of over 30 million tonnes of litter are collected from our streets every year at a cost of £885 million.

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A new study has found that 12.5 per cent of British drivers will have their eyes closed for 60 seconds per 45 minutes' driving this summer because of sneezing fits caused by hay fever.

More Th>n believes 2012 could be a bumper year for hay fever and is concerned that accidents could be caused as a result.

As well as driving with their eyes closed, 53 per cent of hay fever sufferers admit they purchase medication that can cause drowsiness but still drive after taking it.

Over 3.5 million (63 per cent) also say they have had a minor accident or near miss as a result of driving under the influence of over-the-counter medication.

Managing director at More Th>n, Janet Connor, said: "British drivers that suffer from hay fever need to start putting in place the correct measures to ensure both their safety and the safety of others when on the road."

Recent research by esure car insurance revealed that UK motorists last just 11 minutes of driving before switching off. 

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The Road Safety Foundation (RSF) has declared that the UK's roads are "unfit for 80" as the government prepares to trial the new speed limit on motorways.

Former transport secretary Phillip Hammond called the current 70mph limit "out of date" when he first proposed the idea last year and the concept has since been advanced by his replacement, Justine Greening.

However, following a detailed report, the RSF has found a number of areas of concern, including the provision of safety features on the UK's motorways.

According to the report, an independent safety rating of England’s motorways found that only half have the maximum 4-star rating, while half have significant flaws in run-off protection.

"Only a handful of motorway sections are lightly trafficked enough with adequate run-off protection to entertain 80 mph as a legal default speed," the RSF said.

"An 80 mph limit in England can only plausibly be introduced within a system of variable speed limits."

Road charity Brake has already called the plans "a gamble with people's lives". 

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The EU gender directive, which comes into force on December 21st this year, will provide insurers with an "opportunity", according to financial research firm Defaqto.

Although the firm acknowledges that the need to remove gender weighting from insurance premiums will provide insurers with some challenges and leave female drivers facing price hikes, it says providers can use the ruling as a chance to change tack.

According to Mike Powell, Defaqto's insight analyst for general insurance, insurers no longer need to focus on price.

"This is a clear opportunity for the market to move consumer focus away from price and onto the quality of the actual product they are purchasing - and to differentiate their products in a crowded marketplace."

Insurers have already started to make strides in this area by utilising black box technology to reward the safest drivers - based on speed, braking and cornering - regardless of their age or gender.

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Nissan's NV200 has been named the Best Small Trades Van in Trade Van Driver magazine’s annual awards.

Available as either a Panel Van or as a five or seven seat Combi, the NV200 has Bluetooth connectivity and the option for Nissan Connect satellite navigation, along with cruise control and an adjustable speed limiter.

However, it was the small van's impressive storage that made it stand out from the crowd.

Matt Eisenegger, editor of Trade Van Driver, explained: "Although it has a small footprint ideal for city use, it will swallow an amazing 4.2 cubic metres of cargo – more than any other van in the sector."

James Douglas, corporate sales director at Nissan Motor GB, added: "Its compact dimensions and tight turning circle make it perfect for city driving."

Already this year, Nissan has announced that it will be building two new models, including the Invitation, at its plant in Sunderland. 

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Monkeys at a safari park near Liverpool have been called upon to put the new Hyundai i30 hatchback through its paces.

Having previously damaged Liverpudlian footballer Wayne Rooney's Audi when he visited the park last May, a troop of 40 baboons from Knowsley Safari Park were let loose on the family car.

However, the Hyundai fared much better than Rooney's luxury Audi, as it has been specifically designed to withstand the punishment that boisterous children can hand out - leaving the baboons unable to make off with a pair of Hyundai wiper blades as a souvenir.

Felicity Wood, i30 product manager at Hyundai, said: “You have to be pretty brave to subject a car to the most rigorous quality testers in the world, and the monkeys certainly gave our New Generation i30 a thorough examination!

"The fact that it survived with only a few scrapes is testament to the way a modern Hyundai is designed and engineered."

A satnav is the in-car gadget most relied upon by British motorists, a new study has found.

Over 25 per cent of the votes cast for the Readers' Award for Best Car Accessory, which is given as part of the Auto Express Product Awards, were for the GPS navigation system - beating air-conditioning and in-car audio.

Despite being voted the UK's favourite in-car gadget, bad driving has been blamed numerous times in the past on an over-reliance on satnavs.

The village of Luckington in Wiltshire made the news after a number of drivers ploughed into the River Avon after following their guidance system's advice on how to avoid roadworks.

Luckington resident Lesley Bennett, 59, told the Metro: "Before the road closure there was one a week but now we're getting one or two a day.

"When the car conks out the driver looks stunned and points to his satnav."

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Google's self-driving car has been granted a licence by the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) in the US.

Following a demonstration drive along freeways, state highways and through neighbourhoods both in Carson City and the busy Las Vegas Strip, the Nevada DMW was satisfied enough to grant Google a licence to test the car on public roads.

The car will now be fitted with red number plates featuring an infinity symbol on the left side to alert other drivers.

"I felt using the infinity symbol was the best way to represent the car of the future," Nevada DMW department director Bruce Breslow said.

Mr Breslow added the car attracts attention from other road users for its performance.

"It gets honked at more often because it's being safe," he said. 

Other groups looking to develop robotic cars include Oxford University and BMW.

BMW has already tested its highly automated driving mode on the autobahns. 

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A new table has revealed that the Suzuki Splash is the top performing family car in UK MOTs.

The Best MOT Pass Rate: Top 50 list compiled by Honest John for vehicles that have undergone over 1,000 tests in the UK reveals that, since 2008, Splashes have been subjected to 2,120 tests and enjoyed a pass rate of 90 per cent.

What is particularly impressive about this achievement is that this places the Splash fifth on the list overall - ranking it alongside luxury and much more expensive sports cars such as the Aston Martin Vantage and the Bentley Continental GT.

Suzuki also has the ninth place model, the Jimny, which is two places ahead of the Daihatsu Terios.

Commenting on the Splash's ranking, Dan Harrison, editor of Honest John, said: "It's no surprise as it's also top model for passing the first MOT, too.

"The table [is] dominated by Japanese and German (or German-owned) models. Forty-four of the overall 50 are either Japanese, German or German-owned."

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Motorists are risking a hefty bill by putting off maintenance to make short term gains, GEM Motoring Assist has warned.

Not only will delaying repairs increase overall costs, the safety association is also warning that lives could be put at risk by an austere approach to maintenance.

Furthermore, with 20 per cent of new cars failing their first MOT, it is clear that regular servicing cannot be neglected.

Blaming the tough economic climate and soaring petrol costs for motorists adopting a lax approach to repairs, David Williams, CEO of GEM Motoring Assist, urged drivers not to let servicing slip.

"What drivers don't realise is, if a problem is discovered sooner rather than later, they could avoid serious damage to their vehicle which would end up costing a lot more," he said.

Earlier this year, a study by Britannia Rescue found that 23 per cent of motorists are driving a car with a defect that renders it illegal and 14 per cent have a car in urgent need of repair.

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With all the rain that's been around this month, you may have found yourselves turning a corner only to be faced with a flood across the road.

But should you plough on through it?

Not unless you've got a 4x4 according to Robert King, technical editor with motoring guide Glass.

Speaking to This is Money, Mr King warned would-be rally drivers that they could end up with a costly bill for repairing their car if they take on the floods.

He warns that because modern cars have intakes low down at the front, there is the very real possibility of water entering the engine and causing hydrostatic lock.

"Water enters an engine cylinder and during the compression stroke will lock the engine piston in place," he said.

"This in turn overloads the connection rod, causing it to deform and cause significant engine damage. It can even destroy the engine altogether."

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Over a third of classic car owners are breaking the law because they have failed to make a Statutory Off-Road Notification (SORN) for their vehicle.

The law says that if you are the registered keeper of a vehicle that is not being taxed and is being kept off the road - as many classic cars are during the winter - you must inform the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency.

Failure to do so could result in an automatic penalty of £80 and the vehicle could even be clamped and taken away.

Classic car insurer Footman James surveyed over 3,500 classic vehicle owners and found that eight per cent did not even know what action they should take when they take their motor off the road.

Andy Fairchild, Footman James' managing director, said: "It is noteworthy that such a high percentage of those surveyed do not obtain a SORN for their vehicle when it is off the road.

"It is essential they [classic car owners] understand and follow the correct procedure."

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