Yes, as you can see, the trip down the village lane took on an extra dimension this morning. All I can say is thank God I wasn’t in a rear-wheel drive BMW (why are they so bad in the snow?).

The hill is far steeper than it looks but it’s the kind of morning when smug people in SUVs just love to rub road salt into your two-wheel drive only wounds.

Of course, not all the school run mums have worked out that four-wheel drive can still come unstuck on ice. You could have six-wheel drive and still slide off the road by travelling too fast. I’ve never seen a Ford Kuga on its roof before. Still no improvement on the styling…

So today I was one of the smug few. Even on standard road tyres the XC60 has more than enough traction and ground clearance to do the job.

Oh and it also has the ultimate cold weather solution – a heated steering wheel. Bliss….