REVEALING research published today shows that millions of male motorists will happily swap their stereotypical driving music for "chick hits"... when on their own in the car.

One in five men (20 per cent) confessed that when alone in their vehicle they enjoy nothing more than singing along to a bit of Shirley Bassey, WHAM! or Take That, pictured. And 71 per cent even admit to enjoying a bit of false falsetto (such as the Bee Gees' Stayin' Alive) while waiting for the lights to change.

The study of almost 3,000 British motorists also showed that there are plenty of women (17 per cent) who love to belt out their versions of "macho classics" from the likes of The Clash and Thin Lizzy in their car-aoke sessions.

The research by sporty Spanish car maker SEAT revealed that 14 per cent of men and 11 per cent of women admit to having embarrassing "closet" musical tastes that they indulge only in the car.

A surprising 12 per cent of men admitted they will sing along to show tunes like Don't Cry for Me, Argentina if alone, one in four will join in with a Take That tune and 26 per cent can't resist an Abba singalong. And, while unlikely to join in within earshot of their mates, 15 per cent of men say they love Cindy Lauper's Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, 12 per cent will guiltily sing along to Westlife classics such as Flying Without Wings, and 11 per cent like the Village People's YMCA. Other "secret" listening statistics include 15 per cent of men humming along to Kylie, 29 per cent to Robbie Williams, 14 per cent to the Spice Girls, 13 per cent to Erasure and 12 per cent to Britney.

Women, too, will abandon their traditional love of Robbie Williams or Abba for something much rockier if they are behind the wheel with no one else on board. Twenty per cent will bellow along to The Clash and 19 per cent to The Jam. The SEAT survey even found that 10 per cent of lone women drivers will roar out the lyrics of heavy metal groups like AC/DC and Motorhead.

The research was commissioned alongside the launch of reality show SEAT Sex Drive which aims once and for all to settle the debate over which of the sexes is better behind the wheel. The show will see competitors put through their paces in a series of gruelling, high-performance and advanced driving tests led by celebrity team captains Jack Osbourne and Emma Willis.