Make sure you are familiar with the car you are driving. This avoids embarrassing mistakes such as trying to find that elusive 5th gear if the car has only 4 gears. You will also get used to how powerful the car is so you don't stall it on those steep Scottish hills.
Take care to concentrate on your driving, instead of pointing out local sites of interest such as the roundabout where you failed your first driving test. This will ensure you don't stall at the roundabout in question and act out a re-run of your driving test.
Don't fill the car with too much luggage. Remember that 8 hours seems a long time for that person underneath the rucksacks in the back, and will the car really get up those steep Scottish hills?
Remember what season it is - if you are going to Scotland with the intention of doing some winter mountaineering, then you will be hoping for cold, icy and snowy weather. This means that there is a possibility that the roads will be icy!
If, when you stop at the last town before a high mountain pass, there is ground frost & clear skies, then you should not press on regardless. As you climb higher the conditions will worsen.
If the road becomes steep, twisting, and covered in snow, then you should not ignore the implications.
Practise driving at night - a few hours into your first nighttime journey is not the time to inform the owner of the car of this.
If you follow these simple rules then hopefully you will have a safe journey. But if things go wrong, don't panic; even the best of us meet with black ice.
And does it really matter if
Happy Driving!