A solid contract is your main protection in a cross-border deal. It should specify: 1. Vehicle identification: VIN, year, mileage, trim level, and photos of the actual car appended as an annex — not just「a 2021 Toyota」. 2. Condition guarantees: no accident, no flood or fire damage, no structural repairs, supported by a third-party inspection report referenced in the contract. 3. Price and Incoterm: total amount, currency, the named port, and whether freight and insurance are included. 4. Payment schedule: e.g., 20–30% deposit after contract signing, balance against copy of the Bill of Lading. Avoid 100% upfront. Use T/T to the company's corporate bank account only — never a personal account. 5. Timeline: inspection date, estimated loading date, and latest shipment date, with remedies if delayed. 6. Dispute clause: governing law and arbitration (CIETAC or your local chamber) rather than foreign court litigation. Ask for the contract in English (or bilingual) with the supplier's company chop. A company that refuses a written contract or pushes for full prepayment is a red flag.

It does not affect basic driving and regular speed cruise, but it will trigger a fault alert for advanced driver assistance on the dashboard. The LiDAR assembly is extremely expensive, so we focus on checking the integrity of the glass cover with a strong flashlight during inspections.

Test-drive cars experience much more mechanical wear due to extreme conditions like cold starts and emergency braking compared to regular family cars. We can identify this by tracing whether the first owner was a 4S dealership or the manufacturer. If so, we will reassess its value based on "operational intensity" standards.