Real friends can sit in a quiet car for twenty minutes and nobody panics.

Silence is the test most friendships never get to take. Early on, every gap has to be filled, because quiet might mean something is wrong and nobody wants to find out. Later, with the right people, the quiet stops being a problem to solve. Nothing needs performing, and the drive is just a drive with somebody you like in it.

Try not filling the next pause with a friend you trust. Let it run for ten seconds longer than is comfortable. If it settles, you have learned something good about that friendship, and if it does not, that is useful too.