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FAMILY FUN: We've heard of losing concentration at the wheel, but this is ridiculous

FAMILY FUN: We've heard of losing concentration at the wheel, but this is ridiculous. A Macedonian man left his wife at an Italian service station and realised he had driven off without her only six hours later.

The couple, travelling with their four-year-old daughter, pulled over for petrol in the coastal city of Pesaro as they were heading back to their home in Germany.

After filling the tank, the husband drove away - without noticing that his wife had got out to go to the toilet.

The woman contacted the police who eventually traced her husband to Milan, some 340 km (210 miles) north of Pesaro. The husband told police he hadn't missed his wife because she always sat in the back of the car with their daughter.

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AUDI AHEAD:

Audi reports a 23.4 per cent rise in July car sales, speeding past larger rivals BMW and Mercedes. A spokesman said the brand's record figure of more than 72,800 deliveries was mainly due to demand for the A3 Sportback (above) and the A6 executive, in particular its estate version A6 Avant.

Audi is a major earner for parent Volkswagen, which is battling with losses at its core VW brand.

First half pretax profit at the Ingolstadt-based unit rose 1.6 per cent to €510 million, giving it a margin of 3.8 per cent. Earlier this month, BMW reported a 15 per cent increase in BMW sales to 93,797 units while Mercedes sales were 4.4 per cent up to 88,200.

In the first seven months of 2005, accumulated Audi deliveries to customers rose 10.2 per cent to roughly 494,800 units, the company said. It reaffirmed last week's target to deliver more than 800,000 cars to customers this year after selling 779,441 cars in 2004.

The car-maker had previously forecast stable earnings for the full year, although Audi finance chief Rupert Stadler had already indicated early this year that a growth in profits was possible.

SHAKEN INDEED:

Spoiled by Aston Martins and BMWs, James Bond may be getting a lowly Fiat Panda 4x4 (above). The Italian marque has confirmed that it has given two black Panda 4x4s to the producers of the 21st movie in the series, Casino Royale, which is due to be released next year.

Will the Pandas hold up to the secret agent's habitually rough treatment? It's difficult to say, because Fiat doesn't know how the film-makers intend to use the cars.

One thing's sure though: Bond will have to adapt his driving style from the 528bhp, 322km/h, V12 Aston Martin Vantage used in Die Another Day, in order to cope with the Panda's more modest 60bhp, 145kph, 1.4 litre engine.

INFINITY BECKONS:

The sporty Infiniti M35 has powered past its competitors to become the best luxury sedan on the road, says Consumer Reports, a leading source of information for US buyers.

The Infiniti M35 was tested against four other models and each, as equipped, was priced at roughly about €62,000 ($50,000).

The other models were the redesigned Audi A6, the Cadillac STS, Acura RL and Lexus GS300.