I agree absolutely.
But I think it's a 2-stage process. One is just to get it running, safely, and perhaps tentatively try moving it backwards and forwards, trying the brakes etc. That gives confidence, and lets you then plan carefully what you want/need to do next.
Lots of little but crucial things are likely to be seized/perished/rusted/collapsed. You don't realise with a car in use daily/weekly/monthly or even only annually how much a car's smooth working depends on use.
On the other hand I have heard of cars that have been left standing outside for years and start first time with a fresh battery and a can of fuel and been driven off. I once bought a Saab 96 for spares. It had been abandoned under a hedge for years, with bushes growing around it. We dragged it out, I had been going to tow it home, but thought I'd give it a go starting. It fired-up after a few turns, and moved, after a fashion. I drove it 15 miles home, completely illegally. That's what people did in rural areas in those days.
