Today is Journalist’s Day, and we decided to reminisce about the past when our editor-in-chief unexpectedly and effortlessly won a contest for the best post on car topics about five years ago. And since today is such a celebration, we decided to share this very article with you. 
TopGir has always tried and tried (and tries) to be alternative and not boring, but we don’t pretend to be anything, just doing what we love. Therefore, our tests or video reviews on YouTube are completely subjective and “in our own words.” Usually, test drives are written according to generally accepted templates and are done approximately like this… Grab a cup of coffee and enjoy reading)
It’s enough to read a car test drive once in any publication or watch a story on TV, so you don’t have to bother and search for other tests.
Everything else will be, if not the same, then at least very similar. It seems like the profession is creative, and the field of activity is not that small, although constrained by limits. But the frameworks of our journalism are sometimes so narrow that reading these works comes down to the motivation “just to have a laugh” … Sometimes it seems to me that many auto journalists were specially kept after classes and taught “template-ometry.”
In general, I thought here and decided that anyone can become an auto journalist.
And for this, one day is enough. The main thing is to learn the templates and look smart even when you don’t understand anything.
Where to start?
Here are the main theses that will allow an aspiring auto journalist to write a test drive without much effort and to do it at least not worse than more “experienced” colleagues. Since the PR services of dealers and importers know how to “chew snot” about the incredible advantages of their models, you can safely take the press release and rearrange the sentences. In case you work for an already serious and popular publication, you may not rearrange.
For “old” (read old-fashioned) publications, it will be enough to take the same press release with many participial constructions describing the best car in the world. But you are an aspiring “journalist,” so you have to work a little. Of course, according to the scheme. And for the “mega-creative” automotive sharks of the pen, who have long become keyboard woodpeckers, it looks like this:
- Introduction.
- Historical excursion.
- Exterior.
- Interior.
- Driving characteristics.
- Technical characteristics (engine, brakes, etc.).
- Conclusion
Don’t even think about changing the order of the points. For more than 20 years, most auto journalists in the CIS countries have observed this tradition!
If you intend to change it, the reader will not feel nauseous by the end of the test, which means the test was unsuccessful. As domestic auto sharks like to write, “I’d like to note right away” that almost all of the templates below are taken from real websites about real cars and written by real people. Probably, by people.
Introduction
Since the presentation of new cars takes place if not abroad, then at least in suburban restaurants, the beginning of the article should be such that the reader envies, and the organizer appreciates your flattering reviews about their efforts in selecting wines and dishes for dinner. But remember!
If you were given a cheap gift, fed poorly, or God forbid, failed to pay the editorial office for the article – write dryly. More precisely, take the press release, and replace all the laudatory words with antonyms. The location of the test drive. You haven’t forgotten yet, have you, that readers must feel envy, so you need to pay special attention to this block. So, you rode:
- Along the winding roads of Spain
- On the wide autobahns of Germany
- On the serpentine roads of the Swiss Alps
- Along the vineyards of Burgundy
- On the French Riviera
Historical Excursion
Here it is best to take Wikipedia and copy individual sentences from there.
If you get paid for the number of characters, you can really expand here, causing the reader to have a gag reflex before reaching the description of the technical specifications. This is important. You can add, “its appearance made a splash in 19…!” The words “legendary,” “bestseller” are worth their weight in gold.
Exterior
In this chapter, you must also do everything possible for the reader to at least fall asleep over the magazine/monitor. The best templates describing appearance:
- exciting curves
- dynamic silhouette
- even when the car is stationary, it seems to be moving forward
- lines by Walter de Silva
- aggressive front
- prominent wheel arches
- muscular look
- designers clearly went for lightness and bold design
- The first thing a person notices when meeting – is the appearance…
Interior
Often, the description of this section begins with the words “comfortably seated in the driver’s seat” or “inserting the key into the ignition,” or “pressing the start button.” There are also more creative phrases like “turned the key and the engine came to life,” followed by “at idle, the engine runs almost silently,” you can add “and it’s a diesel!” Oh, but I kind of “jumped ahead and told you…” …
in general, remember the phrases about the salon:
- The plastic is a bit hard. If you were fed well at the press event, you can add “but not everywhere… the plastic on the top of the dashboard is very pleasant to the touch” (important, because every driver only does that “touches” it)
- All controls are in place. Well, where else should they be?
- Exemplary German order. Here you can also flaunt your language skills and write “ordnung” instead of “order”
- Wooden/carbon/aluminum inserts in the interior spoil the whole view (if the organizer facilitated – add a special charm to the interior).
If they spat in your soup, you can say “garish overlays” – this is the highest insult.
- The interior is ergonomic. Synonym: ergonomics at height
- It is convenient/inconvenient to use climate control (after all, after your Priora or Lanos without air conditioning, you need to get used to where and what to press)
- The instrument panel lights up…
- Lateral support is poorly/well developed
- Access to the interior is opened by wide doors…
- The seats have longitudinal adjustments and allow changing the backrest angle (what a novelty!)
- Note that our specimen is equipped with a standard leather interior, but… (if the organizer facilitated – list all possible options)
- Can accommodate 4 (5-6 – it doesn’t matter) people on board
- Sitting behind myself, there was enough legroom
- In the back, three adults of any build will sit comfortably (if they refueled the test car with a full tank)
- At the same time, separate climate control is provided for rear passengers, and in our version, they could also admire the sky through the panoramic sunroof… (again, when the car was given for at least 7 days and they threw in money for gasoline). If not – it is unethical to write such a thing, colleagues will not understand.
Such is the dumping.
- Trunk large/small
Driving Qualities
Phrases to choose from, after which no reader will doubt that Mochanov is your best friend, and Hakkinen is your godfather. Well, you at least participated in several rally championships:
- The car is easy to skid
- The steering bites
- During a long skid, the front end drifts a little (especially relevant when testing cars like Renult/Dacia Logan – it is these cars where properties during long skids are important)
- On turns, understeer is apparent (nobody knows what this is and how it differs from oversteer, but it looks solid)
- The suspension is a bit stiff, but I’m (hinting that you’re a rally driver in the 8th generation) used to it
- The suspension is too soft (better add that compared to your sports car. Invent one yourself – Evolution or STI will do)
- The suspension deserves a separate description/parag..