Safest car and teens

[Anonymous]

I'm absolutely overthinking this but thoughts on whether a 7-year-old large SUV (with only backup camera) or a newer, smaller SUV (with lane departure alerts, braking sensors, etc.) is safer for a new driver? Size vs technology....

[Anonymous]

My dd does not like large cars. She is very petite and she just feels overwhelmed by the size of them, parking is also harder for a new driver. Aside from that, I don't think there is a major need to upgrade in terms of safety.

[Anonymous]

it depends on what you mean by safer. If you want to avoid the accident, the newer technology may help in that. If you want your DC to be safe/protected when they (more likely) get into an accident then the larger, more substantial car will do that.

For our first kid, we gave him out larger fulll size older SUV. That kid ended up hating it, because parking was difficult and staying within the lanes was not easy. As an adult, they avoid driving as much as possible, doesn’t have a lot of experience, and honestly is not a very good driver.

For the second kid, we went with the smaller newer car with all of the technology (they actually drove our brand new car Because I WFH). That kid loves driving, is more confident at it, and is an overall better driver).

[Anonymous]

Larger is a recipe for trouble. Harder to park, harder to see, harder to control. Get a small or medium size car with a great safety record.

When I was a kid, a lot of my friends wound up with used Volvos. Don't know what the equivalent is now, but something the kid can park. I'd fear putting my kid in a Suburban and they'd turn a minor fenderbender into a fatal collision—that they survive without a scratch. There are definitley cars that will keep them physically safe in a wreck without relying on being the largest mass in the wreck.

[Anonymous]

Smaller. Most teens are horrible at parking and the smaller the better. My oldest has a Honda Civic and she was able to learn parking quickly and is pretty good at it. My middle has my old Acura MDX and took her forever to learn how to park well. She's still not fantastic but is ok with it.

[Anonymous]

Small suv is much better - larger size is harder to navigate and even a small fender bender will be horrible for insurance rates on a teen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My dd does not like large cars. She is very petite and she just feels overwhelmed by the size of them, parking is also harder for a new driver. Aside from that, I don't think there is a major need to upgrade in terms of safety.

Same with my DD. Loves driving the Honda Fit but can’t deal with my three row SUV even a year after getting her license.

[Anonymous]

Larger SUV. If she crashes it will do better than a small car but ultimately the one she is comfortable driving.

[Anonymous]

If you’re considering buying a car I’d look at a used crosstrek with eyesight. I have one and it’s easy to park, somewhat sluggish acceleration (but not dangerously so) and loaded with auto braking, lane departure, lane keep assist. Mine is a 2018. Impreza is the car version.

[Anonymous]

AAA says weight is the largest safety feature if a crash occurs.

[Anonymous]

I think older without those functions is better for new driver. You want them to learn the habit of looking before departing a lane, etc. I fear with all the computer technology, it will impair actually learning to do these things as second nature when driving.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:AAA says weight is the largest safety feature if a crash occurs.

There wouldn't be a crash if they drove a small car they could control better.
I was made to drive a minivan vs a regular sedan as a young driver. The minivan was painful to drive and slowed down getting better/swifter at driving and parking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Larger SUV. If she crashes it will do better than a small car but ultimately the one she is comfortable driving.

No it will roll over and be much worse off.

[Anonymous]

A medium size sedan is going to be the safest for a new driver.
A car they are not going to show off in us also going to be safer than a new car with bells and whistles.
Anytime you hear of teens dying in car accidents because they ran into a tree or whatever, they’re in SUVs, sports cars etc. kids driving in beige Honda accords aren’t flying around risking their lives to show off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:AAA says weight is the largest safety feature if a crash occurs.

Cybertruck weighs 6000 lbs. these electric cars are heavy. It’s an arms race.