DUR! Read read read. You can’t abrogate all of your responsibility can you? See what you fancy by going for a drive past some car yards. Do you want new or used? Do you want snob value? Is a badge more important than life itself? You’d be amazed at how many people just HAVE to buy the badge. They don’t care a rats for how it drives or how much it costs.

If you’re the sort of knob who happens to have a bottomless piut for a wallet, then go ahead and buy whatever you want.  But if you would sooner bite off your left arm than hand over more cash than utterly necessary, you must do a spot of googling. You’re at home so you can afford to throw caution to the wind and brainstorm yourself into a frenzy. It can be exciting to research then haggle.

If google isn’t your thing, you can go low-tech and buy a magazine. Of course the dealer is always going to try and flog you whatever he has on the floor and the car makers’ websites will give you accurate info, but not opinions. Why not ask someone who knows such things? You wouldn’t ask a plumber to do your brain surgery so it only stands to reason that you would ask a motoring expert about your impending purchase.

Of course if it all goes tits-up and you can’t stand the sight of another word about cars, just hire a broker and let them doo all the rubbish work for you but don’t blame him if you don’t get exactly what you want!

Be involved!