Test Drive Etiquette
08-08-2008, 01:02 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Bay Area
Posts: 189
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Test Drive Etiquette
I just had to vent about my latest test drive incident and was curious what other people consider to be proper test drive etiquette when buying from a private seller. Warning, this is sort of long.
Story:
I'm selling my 2004 modded Sti and got a call yesterday morning. The kid asks me to drive and meet him about 30 minutes from where I live saying it's half way only to find out that he lives 5 minutes from the place we meet. Already I'm a little irritated but whatever, I need to sell the car.
He's brought his father with him and they proceed to ask me the usual questions about maintenance, problems, etc. and then we go for a test drive. The father decides he wants to drive first even though the car is for the kid, which I think is pretty normal. We get in, he turns the key and starts revving the crap out of the car. He revs all the way out of the parking lot complaining about the exhaust noise the whole way and then guns it the second we get onto the main road. He redlines every gear and is constantly coming up quick on traffic in front of him. He continually downshifts from 5k with no rev matching and gunning it only to immediately let off the gas...I was getting whiplash by this point. He continues to drive for 20 minutes like this we me saying to take it easy, but he's russian and didn't seem to get it.
So finally he stops and the kid gets in and I'm thinking "thank god, the kid has to be better than this guy." Nope. The kid gets in turns the wheel about 90 degrees and guns it causing the tail to whip out and proceeds to redline in every gear. Drives basically the same way as good ol' dad except for the fact that he's constantly remarking about 0-60 times and how he is great at rev-matching/heel-toeing. He starts talking to dad about how this would probably beat dad's porsche and the dad keeps asking him to test the car so he can decide if that's true.
The kid finally pulls back into the parking lot after 25 minutes and starts flooring the car from ~1k rpm and then balking at the fact that the car doesn't tear off. There were people right in front of him at the cross-walk and he is attempting to test 5mph rolling starts. We finally get back and park and I immediately leave because I'm livid.
Later that night he calls back and wants me to bring the car over again and reflash it back to off-the-shelf stage 2 for him (I have a protune) cause he swears I have a problem with the tune. Now this tune was done by the top STi tuner in the Bay Area and has been test driven by numerous trackday instructors who love the throttle response and power. I come to find out he was on iWSTi ranting about being letdown by his test drive and asking why a protuned car felt like it was a 20hp scooter at low speeds. Obviously no concept of boosted vs n/a he insists that my car is damaged or has a terrible tune, thus potentially scaring members away from my car.
Sorry for the long rant but I still can't believe people like this exist. This is the type of kid we see the random article about every month "Dumb kid with even dumber parents wraps his high-hp car around a telephone pole killing everyone involved."
What would people here do or have done in my situation? And what do you even consider appropriate etiquette for test driving a sports car?
Story:
I'm selling my 2004 modded Sti and got a call yesterday morning. The kid asks me to drive and meet him about 30 minutes from where I live saying it's half way only to find out that he lives 5 minutes from the place we meet. Already I'm a little irritated but whatever, I need to sell the car.
He's brought his father with him and they proceed to ask me the usual questions about maintenance, problems, etc. and then we go for a test drive. The father decides he wants to drive first even though the car is for the kid, which I think is pretty normal. We get in, he turns the key and starts revving the crap out of the car. He revs all the way out of the parking lot complaining about the exhaust noise the whole way and then guns it the second we get onto the main road. He redlines every gear and is constantly coming up quick on traffic in front of him. He continually downshifts from 5k with no rev matching and gunning it only to immediately let off the gas...I was getting whiplash by this point. He continues to drive for 20 minutes like this we me saying to take it easy, but he's russian and didn't seem to get it.
So finally he stops and the kid gets in and I'm thinking "thank god, the kid has to be better than this guy." Nope. The kid gets in turns the wheel about 90 degrees and guns it causing the tail to whip out and proceeds to redline in every gear. Drives basically the same way as good ol' dad except for the fact that he's constantly remarking about 0-60 times and how he is great at rev-matching/heel-toeing. He starts talking to dad about how this would probably beat dad's porsche and the dad keeps asking him to test the car so he can decide if that's true.
The kid finally pulls back into the parking lot after 25 minutes and starts flooring the car from ~1k rpm and then balking at the fact that the car doesn't tear off. There were people right in front of him at the cross-walk and he is attempting to test 5mph rolling starts. We finally get back and park and I immediately leave because I'm livid.
Later that night he calls back and wants me to bring the car over again and reflash it back to off-the-shelf stage 2 for him (I have a protune) cause he swears I have a problem with the tune. Now this tune was done by the top STi tuner in the Bay Area and has been test driven by numerous trackday instructors who love the throttle response and power. I come to find out he was on iWSTi ranting about being letdown by his test drive and asking why a protuned car felt like it was a 20hp scooter at low speeds. Obviously no concept of boosted vs n/a he insists that my car is damaged or has a terrible tune, thus potentially scaring members away from my car.
Sorry for the long rant but I still can't believe people like this exist. This is the type of kid we see the random article about every month "Dumb kid with even dumber parents wraps his high-hp car around a telephone pole killing everyone involved."
What would people here do or have done in my situation? And what do you even consider appropriate etiquette for test driving a sports car?
08-08-2008, 01:20 PM
#2
wow. you are a very patient person.
i would certainly have pulled the plug on the test drive. if he shows any additional interest in the car i think you should politely ask him to shampoo your crotch.
as far as him bashing you on the forum, just post your honest impressions with the kid and maybe link to this thread. you are well spoken and after reading your account i am left with zero doubts that he was an idiot and that your car would be a better fit for anyone else.
i would certainly have pulled the plug on the test drive. if he shows any additional interest in the car i think you should politely ask him to shampoo your crotch.
as far as him bashing you on the forum, just post your honest impressions with the kid and maybe link to this thread. you are well spoken and after reading your account i am left with zero doubts that he was an idiot and that your car would be a better fit for anyone else.
08-08-2008, 01:22 PM
#3
p.s. how long did it take you to recover from that little fall through the green house? ;-)
08-08-2008, 01:23 PM
#4
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Bay Area
Posts: 189
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Yeah, at this point I don't why to see my car go to someone so reckless. And yes, I tend to be a very patient person but my god did he and his father test that.
"p.s. how long did it take you to recover from that little fall through the green house? ;-)"
Either this is an expression I'm completely unaware of or I just have no clue what green house you're talking about. Or it's just been a long Friday and I'm missing something which is very possible.
"p.s. how long did it take you to recover from that little fall through the green house? ;-)"
Either this is an expression I'm completely unaware of or I just have no clue what green house you're talking about. Or it's just been a long Friday and I'm missing something which is very possible.
08-08-2008, 01:23 PM
#5
Community Organizer
08-08-2008, 01:31 PM
#6
If someone did that to my car, I'd have thrashed them.
Proper test etiquette in a sports car is to let the OWNER drive it hard and show you what it's capable of doing. Then, ask him what he is comfortable with you doing when you take the wheel. I wouldn't buy a sports car that I wasn't allowed to push a little bit but realistically, all I'd be looking to check are the brakes, the acceleration, and general handling. The rest can wait for a track or the street, when I actually own the car....
Proper test etiquette in a sports car is to let the OWNER drive it hard and show you what it's capable of doing. Then, ask him what he is comfortable with you doing when you take the wheel. I wouldn't buy a sports car that I wasn't allowed to push a little bit but realistically, all I'd be looking to check are the brakes, the acceleration, and general handling. The rest can wait for a track or the street, when I actually own the car....
08-08-2008, 01:33 PM
#7
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 1,028
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
quite frankly, the car is your property. b4 the testdrive, it is up to you to set how your car wants to be driven. it didnt seem like you set a tone. secondly, you could've pull the plug at any moment. i'm not sure why you didnt stop the test drive - let alone allow the dad to continue at antics for 20 mins - let alone allow the kids to do what he wanted to do.
yes there are clowns out there that has no testdrive etiquette and that drove me up the wall reading your story, but at the
same time, if someone did that to my baby and i didnt stop it after a couple minutes, then i'm to blame as well.
yes there are clowns out there that has no testdrive etiquette and that drove me up the wall reading your story, but at the
same time, if someone did that to my baby and i didnt stop it after a couple minutes, then i'm to blame as well.
Trending Topics
08-08-2008, 01:51 PM
#10
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Bay Area
Posts: 189
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Yeah, unfortunately that is easier said than done. The father really didn't understand me and the kid wasn't a whole lot better. I was stuck in the backseat in an area I didn't know with two people that probably couldn't have given me directions had they needed to.
But yeah, I really should have done whatever possible to get them out from behind the wheel and save my car the pain. I have given a lot of test drives before and never had an issue remotely close to this so I didn't even think to say don't redline in every gear or act like a complete ass.
But yeah, I really should have done whatever possible to get them out from behind the wheel and save my car the pain. I have given a lot of test drives before and never had an issue remotely close to this so I didn't even think to say don't redline in every gear or act like a complete ass.