New Car: What are the first things you do
Discussion
Drive home, think of any excuse to pop out for a drive.
Next morning, wake up 2 hours earlier than normal to drive to work. This reduces by 30 mins every day until the end of the week when all novelty has worn off and I'm knackered from the early starts. Receive bonus for working harder than normal. Wish I'd gone for the upgrade wheels.
Adjust Piston Heads Garage.
Next morning, wake up 2 hours earlier than normal to drive to work. This reduces by 30 mins every day until the end of the week when all novelty has worn off and I'm knackered from the early starts. Receive bonus for working harder than normal. Wish I'd gone for the upgrade wheels.
Adjust Piston Heads Garage.
[quote=Tickle]A good clean also try to pick up on any jobs that need doing and make a list
Oil change,
Wheel refurb and new tyres
Then...
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/imgs/10.gif
Point it to North Wales and drive! --- Best idea on this thread, we have some fantastic roads up here, it's a great place to have fun without swmbo
Oil change,
Wheel refurb and new tyres
Then...
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/imgs/10.gif
Point it to North Wales and drive! --- Best idea on this thread, we have some fantastic roads up here, it's a great place to have fun without swmbo
sam303 said:
Dannbodge said:
Last 2 new cars have been 6cyl BMW so golf tee the exhaust
What does this mean? Current car - picked it up from previous owner, drove straight to the guy I bought a table on ebay from, loaded that into the car, got home and fitted my Thule bike racks to the roof. Then I err, drive it around when I need to get places (but only when I can't be bothered with the motorbike or I need the carrying capacity of the car). Owned it for a year now and whilst I haven't actually cleaned it myself I have taken it to those hand car wash places a couple of times. I haven't yet got around to removing the old tax disc from the windscreen, and I can't imagine I will.
Picking up an old 306 1.9D tomorrow
First things to do...
Fill up with fuel, they're always in the red
Pick up a Haynes book
Perform mini service and hope that when "cambelt changed" is written with pen in the service book that it wasn't seller who wrote it before I turned up.
Check all the receipts that came with the car.
First things to do...
Fill up with fuel, they're always in the red
Pick up a Haynes book
Perform mini service and hope that when "cambelt changed" is written with pen in the service book that it wasn't seller who wrote it before I turned up.
Check all the receipts that came with the car.
Gibbo998 said:
James Junior said:
- Full valet
- Remove all stickers from interior windows
- Get the missus' hairdrier and an extension cable and use it to remove all badges
Man after my own heart!- Remove all stickers from interior windows
- Get the missus' hairdrier and an extension cable and use it to remove all badges
That's exactly what i do as well.
Replace the number plates if they have any dealer markings on them.
I used to do all that cleaning and checking stuff...
My most recent three cars though, got:
Immediately after paying, call roadside recovery company and arrange for my new purchase to be carried 300 miles home (the hand brake seized on at the end of the test drive, but I still wanted it).
Park on the drive, cram the boot with two weeks worth of holiday luggage, put my wife and children inside, drive to Cornwall.
Buy chips on the way home, drive to attractive local view, eat chips in the new car.
My most recent three cars though, got:
Immediately after paying, call roadside recovery company and arrange for my new purchase to be carried 300 miles home (the hand brake seized on at the end of the test drive, but I still wanted it).
Park on the drive, cram the boot with two weeks worth of holiday luggage, put my wife and children inside, drive to Cornwall.
Buy chips on the way home, drive to attractive local view, eat chips in the new car.
Hey, welcome OP!
Good question. for me, it depends on the type of car - new/lease, or used.
If used:
-drive home very carefully, listening and analyzing each strange new noise heard for potential to either (i) drop me on the hard shoulder, and/or (ii) cost me a lot of money in the near future;
-stall at least once as brain/hands/feet subconsciously are still driving last car's clutch/gearbox;
-pretend that no-one has noticed the numpty who just stalled his sportscar;
-ask myself why I have just spent a large amount of money on a used car which surely has large repair bills just around the corner (possibly even literally in some cases) and why didn't I get a nice new car;
-when I get to the highway, thrash the nuts off it and explain to my wife that this is needed to 'test' the car.
If new/lease:
-drive home very carefully, watching the odometer add huge percentages of mileage to the 25 miles on the clock at collection and try to calculate the depreciation per mile;
-try desperately to understand the vehicle's minor controls, and wishing that I had bothered to look at the manual before starting;
-try to find CD player (specific to new Golf) - get home, find that it is in the glovebox (?!?);
-at least once, get turn signal and windscreen wiper stalks confused, so that I signal a left turn by activating my wipers (oddly, other drivers don't seem to understand my new signaling system);
-ask myself why I have just spent a large amount of money on a brand new car which surely has large depreciation occurring even as I think of the word and why didn't I get a nice used [insert name of used exotic car you could have bought with the same money here];
-when I get to the highway, thrash the nuts off it and explain to my wife that this is needed to 'test' the car.
Good question. for me, it depends on the type of car - new/lease, or used.
If used:
-drive home very carefully, listening and analyzing each strange new noise heard for potential to either (i) drop me on the hard shoulder, and/or (ii) cost me a lot of money in the near future;
-stall at least once as brain/hands/feet subconsciously are still driving last car's clutch/gearbox;
-pretend that no-one has noticed the numpty who just stalled his sportscar;
-ask myself why I have just spent a large amount of money on a used car which surely has large repair bills just around the corner (possibly even literally in some cases) and why didn't I get a nice new car;
-when I get to the highway, thrash the nuts off it and explain to my wife that this is needed to 'test' the car.
If new/lease:
-drive home very carefully, watching the odometer add huge percentages of mileage to the 25 miles on the clock at collection and try to calculate the depreciation per mile;
-try desperately to understand the vehicle's minor controls, and wishing that I had bothered to look at the manual before starting;
-try to find CD player (specific to new Golf) - get home, find that it is in the glovebox (?!?);
-at least once, get turn signal and windscreen wiper stalks confused, so that I signal a left turn by activating my wipers (oddly, other drivers don't seem to understand my new signaling system);
-ask myself why I have just spent a large amount of money on a brand new car which surely has large depreciation occurring even as I think of the word and why didn't I get a nice used [insert name of used exotic car you could have bought with the same money here];
-when I get to the highway, thrash the nuts off it and explain to my wife that this is needed to 'test' the car.
1) Walk round it, very slowly, doing a panel-by panel check that it is exactly as the vendor had described it [I bought one of my current cars by means of a sight-unseen negotiation over the telephone]. Then, perform eyeball check on under-bonnet condition, presence of spare wheel, jack, interior is as was described, windscreen free of chips/cracks, vendor indeed does have two operable keys for the car, etc, etc.
2) Go into the vendors' office/house/garage , ask to see the paperwork history file and go through every service bill, MOT history, any one-off items or other garage jobs, one by one.
3) If all in order, shake hands and pay up.
4) Borrow vendors' internet connection and set up a one-off 24 hour insurance deal.
5) Set the drivers' seat right back on its rail before even trying to get into the car [I'm six foot - four]. Now, set the steering wheel rake and reach, next, the seat distance from the wheel/dashboard, then, the seat height [as low as possible, usually..]. Final interior activities - set all mirrors just so, then ditto for the aircon and vents.
5) Drive to nearest local garage; here, (1) Set tyre pressures to correct spec, (2) Take pin from jacket lapel, operate windscreen washers, set bonnet units to spray correct windscreen areas, 3) Re-check engine oil level & condition of brake fluid reservoir, then (usually) , buy some fuel.
6) Put the new mileage book for this car (have already purchased this) in the glovebox, having first recorded at the top of page one the date of purchase, mileage at time of purchase, first quantity of fuel added & cost of same. Re-set trip reading on odometer to zero.
7) Drive home, listening to car as do so. Memorize "usual" RPM settings for 30 & 70 mph when travelling on a level road & in a straight line. Find out optimum "happy" cruising speed for this particular car.
8) Once home, load own small toolkit into car and especially own extendable wheelbrace; check car jack supplied actually does its job with the car and also check wheelnut torque settings against car handbook recommendation.
9) Load own floor mats & boot mat into car. Check I-Pod jackpoint. Head to local car parts emporium to purchase yet another variant of jackpoint interface. Finally, plug in I-Pod & check music sound.
10) Get on with life!
2) Go into the vendors' office/house/garage , ask to see the paperwork history file and go through every service bill, MOT history, any one-off items or other garage jobs, one by one.
3) If all in order, shake hands and pay up.
4) Borrow vendors' internet connection and set up a one-off 24 hour insurance deal.
5) Set the drivers' seat right back on its rail before even trying to get into the car [I'm six foot - four]. Now, set the steering wheel rake and reach, next, the seat distance from the wheel/dashboard, then, the seat height [as low as possible, usually..]. Final interior activities - set all mirrors just so, then ditto for the aircon and vents.
5) Drive to nearest local garage; here, (1) Set tyre pressures to correct spec, (2) Take pin from jacket lapel, operate windscreen washers, set bonnet units to spray correct windscreen areas, 3) Re-check engine oil level & condition of brake fluid reservoir, then (usually) , buy some fuel.
6) Put the new mileage book for this car (have already purchased this) in the glovebox, having first recorded at the top of page one the date of purchase, mileage at time of purchase, first quantity of fuel added & cost of same. Re-set trip reading on odometer to zero.
7) Drive home, listening to car as do so. Memorize "usual" RPM settings for 30 & 70 mph when travelling on a level road & in a straight line. Find out optimum "happy" cruising speed for this particular car.
8) Once home, load own small toolkit into car and especially own extendable wheelbrace; check car jack supplied actually does its job with the car and also check wheelnut torque settings against car handbook recommendation.
9) Load own floor mats & boot mat into car. Check I-Pod jackpoint. Head to local car parts emporium to purchase yet another variant of jackpoint interface. Finally, plug in I-Pod & check music sound.
10) Get on with life!
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