READING - QUESTION PAPER TASK ONE: Paragraph Headings Questions 1-6 You will read a text about test driving cars. ™ Match each paragraph to the correct heading. = Place an X in the appropriate box on your Answer Sheet = The first one has been done for you. = There are two extra paragraph headings that you DO NOT need. Paragraph Headings DOES IT MATTER IF I DRIVE A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT MODEL FROM THE ONE 1AM INTERESTED IN? SHOULD I TEST THE CAR IF AM FAIRLY CERTAIN I WILL NOT BUY IT? SHOULD I FEEL A DEBT TO THE SALESMAN? WHAT AM I LOOKING FOR WHEN I TEST A CAR? WHAT SORT OF ROADS SHOULD I CHOOSE? SHOULD I TAKE A KNOWLEDGEABLE FRIEND WITH ME? HOW FAST SHOULD I DRIVE? WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO START TALKING ABOUT THE PRICE? HOW FAR SHOULD I GO? dx wg ER RR 2EREADING Bf Test 3 Test Drives Eee 0] You are seeking a feeling of well-being and ‘oneness’ with the car. Don't let anybody, car expert or not, tell you which car suits you best. On this one, the ball is entirely in your court. Above all, the right car will feel comfortable and easy to handle. Today's car makers go to great lengths to make their products pleasurable to drive. Do not buy a car you cannot enjoy. me The only way you can make a decent decision about how the car will fit into your life is to drive at your normal speed. Some drivers feel they have to test a car ‘to its limits’ but this leaves them none the wiser about how the car behaves in normal motoring. See if the vehicle has enough power to safely merge with highway traffic and if the brakes have a solid, reassuring feel to their operation - but forget about doing your Sebastian Vettel impression for the salesperson. Be Try to take your time on a test drive, even if you feel the seller breathing down your neck. Too many salesmen. regard the test drive as a formality. It is not. You need time to get used to the controls, to decide whether a particular seat will give you backache, to judge if the ventilation suits you. If you are trying aused car, it is far more likely to display hidden gremlins on a lengthy test drive. Certainly. Any experienced car salesman can reel off dozens of examples of people whose preconceptions were completely changed after a test drive. A professional test driver must be unprejudiced. Be honest and tell the salesperson your plan. ‘I'm committed to buying a vehicle in the near future, but I’m not sure whether or not this. vehicle fits me.” Better to go with someone who understands how you will use the car, and will have to travel regularly in it. That way, you will be discouraged from buying a sports car when as estate is what you really need. Unlike the other phases of car purchase (checking the mechanics, negotiating the price), car expertise is not needed for test driving. aa Plan your own driving route in advance. A salesperson or private seller may suggest routes that hide or minimize problems. Drive on familiar roads, says Andrew Fraenkel, road test editor of Autocar magazine. Only on roads you know will you be able to tell exactly what a car is like, how it copes with bumps, how much effort the steering requires.ag If the car has the same shape and mechanical specifications as the one you are seeking, then the test drive will be valid. If the salesman is simply trying to interest you in a more expensive model, then you should hold out for the Test 3 Ml READING car you wanted in the first place, or try another dealer. But don’t be neurotic about this point. Dealers simply cannot afford to have every variant registered as demonstrators, they just tend to put on the most popular spec. A bit of leather and a few more buttons make no difference at all.