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Of course, if it’s a second-hand car you’re courting, the test drive comes after the service history has checked out, and you’ve had the car looked over by someone you trust, such as your mechanic.
If it’s a new car, some new car dealers will offer to loan you the car overnight or over a weekend – and if they do, say yes, as it’s a golden opportunity to trial the car in your own time, and in your own circumstances.
Often immediately prior to starting a car, all the instrument icon lights will illuminate – but if one in particular remains on, be wary. That’s the little orange engine symbol that means ‘check engine’, indicating the car wishes to see a mechanic immediately. “That’s number one,” says Feck.
Try to undertake a test drive prior to the car warming up at all. “When you start the car on a cold start, it may present some issues that are reflective of a cold start,” says Riggio. “Valve stem seals, for example, are more common to show in a cold start rather than a car that’s been heated or pre-heated.”
Even if the owner or a salesperson is sitting next to you, take your time getting comfortable. Adjust the steering wheel, seat and mirrors. Like the shoe analogy, make sure the car ‘fits’ you the way you like. Some cars, the pedals might be too close or the steering wheel too far away. Future you will be eternally thankful if you can notice this before handing over your hard-earned.
A seller might assume the air-conditioning works, and price the car accordingly. Crank it to maximum cold and check it’s nice and frosty. If it isn’t, it might need to be re-gassed or, even worse, overhauled.
If you’re an audiophile and expect to use all four, six, 10-or-more speakers on a regular basis, connect your phone and play your favourite tune to see how the stereo performs. Totally Addicted to Bass is a good reference track (and not a bad tune, to be fair).
Do you tend to use a car’s built-in satellite navigation and audio controls rather than Apple CarPlay or Android Auto? Enter an address to gauge how fiddly the software is, and see how it navigates you (or doesn’t). Try the native voice control – these systems range from godly to god-awful. Equally, you might find the navigation voice reminds you of that person you worked with all those years ago, who you couldn’t quite stand. You might not be able to change it.
A simple parallel park can reveal a great many things about a car: its rearward visibility, whether it has parking sensors or a reversing camera, its turning circle, if it’s deceptively large. If you intend to leave the car on the street and foresee a parallel park in your daily routine, try it before you buy.
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