Thanks to a new electronic system called the `MyKey' technology pioneered by Ford, safety while driving may soon be inflicted forcibly on teenage Victorian drivers --- more so as the technology has essentially been designed to restrict the top speed of a vehicle, and it can also stop the teenagers from raising the volume on the stereo!

The safety feature - which has been dubbed "teenage mode," and can be programmed by the parents to limit their teenaged child to a top speed of between 72km/h and 128km/h - gets activated the moment a young driver uses a special car key. The technology has been rolled out in the US and has recently been fitted to some vehicles in the UK.

According to Ford, other than helping the parents ensure that their children drive safely, the MyKey feature can also drivers in case they are running low on fuel; and can even send an emergency mobile phone message in the event of a crash. The message is generated by the on-board computer in the vehicle, and is complete with GPS co-ordinates.

As such, according to Paul Mascarena - the chief technical officer at Ford -, even though the MyKey feature has essentially been designed to target young drivers, it can also be of immense use to the fleet operators.

Noting that Ford was taking a keen interest in MyKey, the company's spokesman Sinead Phipps said: "It's definitely something we're interested in and would also be of interest to Australian parents, but we have no definite plans to introduce it at this stage."