It?s time to drive away in your brand new car. The dealer has done his pre-delivery inspection, but you should do one of your own. Here?s what you should look for ?

Buying a car can be quite a long-drawn-out process. First, you need to decide your budget, then scour the market to see which cars fit that budget. And with so many cars that do, you have to look at each one in detail, and test drive them all. After weeks of weighing the pros and cons, you finally arrive at a decision. And then you get the call stating that your new car has reached the dealership.

Taking delivery of a new car is an experience in itself. It?s like adopting a new family member?one that will take the kids to school, ferry you on shopping trips, take you to work and stay with you for the foreseeable future. But are you sure you are getting a perfect car? What guarantee do you have that it wasn?t damaged somewhere between the factory and the dealership, and then subsequently repaired?

As a paying customer, these are things you don?t expect to occur. Unfortunately, the world is not perfect and these things do happen. So it pays to keep your eyes and ears open when taking delivery of a new car. Manufacturers take care to conduct a thorough inspection before the car is sent to dealers from the factory, but once out on the road, any number of things can happen. So it?s worth conducting a full check of the car at the dealer. Inspect the car in daylight and in an open area.

Exteriors

In case there was damage to the body during transit, it would have been repaired. A workshop?s paint quality can?t match that of the factory, so you should look for any difference in the shade and finish of paint. Look for consistency in the gaps between panels?a replaced panel may not match the original. One sure-fire way to find if the car was in an accident is to look at the bolts, like the ones under the hood. They are marked with paint at the factory and if there are scuff marks or the paint is missing, they have been opened to replace a part.

Make sure the locks are operational and that the door handles work properly. Ensure the doors and boot shut without any excessive force. Make sure the tyres are new; a brand new tyre will have small ?hairs? which are remains of the manufacturing process. Ensure the spare is new as well.

Check that the tools mentioned in the owner?s manual are present inside the car. If the car is from an older date of manufacture, it may have been at the stockyard for a while, and could have been exposed to the elements. Look for signs of rust under the carpet and door hinges.

Interiors

Check if the seat functions properly in terms of reclining and the height adjust. Also look at the inside locks and door handles. The windows too should wind up without a hitch; be it manual or powered. Switch on the ignition and make sure all relevant lights in the instrument binnacle light up. Start the engine and see if any warning lamps are flashing. Next, make sure the instruments, like the headlamps, indicators and music system, work well.

Look for any visible scratches on the interiors. The windshield and window glass should be blemish-free too. Note the mileage on the odometer?it should ideally be less than 50 km, which is the commonly accepted limit. It?s also a good practice to ask the sales representative to give you a full demo of all the features in the car.

Details

The manufacturer issues a fitness certificate which gives details like the VIN (vehicle identification number) and the month and year of manufacture. You can find the VIN on the car?s body, it?s usually marked on a metal plate inside the engine compartment or near the door next to the fitness certificate. Also make sure that the date of manufacture is according to the details furnished by the dealer when he pitched the car to you. Remember that previous-year models are sold at a bigger discount, so choose wisely as resale value will take a hit. Also, the longer a car is sitting in stock, the more problems it is likely to have. If you find anything not to your liking, raise the issue right then and there. Don?t accept any dilly-dallying from the representative.

Delivery

Once you give your approval, the dealer will set the ball rolling for the final delivery process. Once the final payment is made, the car is insured and registered. Ensure you are handed all the keys, including the spare. Toyota for example has three keys whereas a Hyundai will have two. Take a 10-15-minute test drive with the dealer to check all the car?s systems, and make sure you highlight any issue you find. Lastly, check all the papers (sales invoice, sales certificate, insurance, manual, original warranty, etc) that you should have at the time of delivery.