Seaton man Vikramjeet Singh, 30, said he wanted to have the Audi RS4 checked out by a mechanic after he collected it from a Plympton dealership at 9am on Friday. 

When the vehicle failed to return by 2pm as promised, the dealership turned to tracking data from an AirTag fitted to the car.

It revealed that the Audi had been in Blanchetown by 1.30pm, with the car then being reported as stolen. 

It was Victoria Police who then located the vehicle on the Sturt Highway, approximately 35km over the border and 322km from the dealership where the test drive had commenced.

Singh was arrested and also found to be in possession of an illegal Indian aphrodisiac.

He pleaded guilty to taking a stolen car into Victoria and possessing an illegal substance. 

After spending three days in custody, Singh was released.

The incident highlights the importance of security measures for car dealers.

“It appears that the person has come back once or twice and appeared to be a genuine buyer,” Kaes Cillessen from the Motor Trades Association said. 

“Luckily for the dealer, they did have that AirTag and vehicle tracking available.”

The car was quickly returned and has now been sold to a genuine buyer.