Any thoughts on a great first car for teen?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The oldest-but-still safe car that you already own. You get a new one.

+1 Unless OP just leases two luxury cars like you see all over the Money Forum on this board.

[Anonymous]

A used Jetta will cost you a fortune in repair bills.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Whatever car she can afford, or at least afford to pay half the purchase price + insurance. So maybe an 6 year old Civic or Corolla?

If you buy her a car, she'll crash it. If she buys a car, she'll take care of it.

I gotta say I totally disagree with this. My dad bought me a new Mazda 3 in cash when I turned 16 (they had just come out) and I kept the thing for 12 years until I upgraded to my mommy mobile SUV. I took great care of it, too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The jetta is cuter. Does that matter?

All the more reason to get the civic.

[Anonymous]

+1 on the manual transmission. It keeps the driver much more focused on the driving experience - with both hands and both feet - and it's harder to do distracting things like eat and text.

Try to get something with the most recent safety features like forward collision prevention and lane departure warnings. They're very helpful for new drivers (and old ones, too).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Whatever car she can afford, or at least afford to pay half the purchase price + insurance. So maybe an 6 year old Civic or Corolla?

If you buy her a car, she'll crash it. If she buys a car, she'll take care of it.

I gotta say I totally disagree with this. My dad bought me a new Mazda 3 in cash when I turned 16 (they had just come out) and I kept the thing for 12 years until I upgraded to my mommy mobile SUV. I took great care of it, too.

+1, my parents got me a car at 21 or so and I never crashed it and took great care of it. When I drove, I drove my Mom's car and took care of it better than she did, including oil changes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agreed with the "solid and slow" comment. Something like an older Town Car would be ideal--it isn't "cool," it won't go fast, it is heavy and stable, and it has plenty of metal on the exterior to protect the occupants. They also tend to be unpopular on the used market and, thus, relatively inexpensive.

But, really, any mid-size or full-size sedan that has been well-maintained is probably fine. Don't get an SUV or minivan (they are built to lower safety standards than cars and also have a high center of gravity and are likely to tip or roll over). Don't get anything that will go fast. My own opinion is that Jettas and Civics are both fine cars, but that a larger car is preferable in this case.

Whatever you get, make sure that it has good tires and brakes and have a trusted mechanic check it out before you buy it.

Lots of bad advice here. A steel hulk will not protect a passenger better than a modern vehicle with multiple airbags, crumble zones and all the other features in newer cars. The Town Car may be heavy and stable, but it would not be a good car for a beginner driver. Not to mention that it would be really difficult to park in many places. Ever seen how small the parking spaces are in a typical high school parking lot?

You are also mixing up SUVs and minivans. SUVs are usually built on a truck chassis, but minivans are usually built on a car chassis. The design and safety standards between the two are drastically different. Putting them in the same category isn't even close.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm going to look at a Jetta for her after work. Good first car? If not, any recommendations on another?

If she likes camping, an old station wagon.

[Anonymous]

A full sized sedan like a Camry or an Accord, if you can. With a four cylinder engine so it's not super-powerful. The latest model with as much safety equipment as you can afford.

For example, my son will get my Subaru Legacy with the Eyesight front end collision avoidance system when he turns 16. It's a four cylinder and not fast. It's not showy. But it's pretty safe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I got my kid a 2017 Lexus IS350 4-door sedan this past year. Full of safety features and nice looking

Seriously?

yes, seriously. Why would I not want to have my child in a Lexus IS350 with all the safety features and 24x7x365 road side assistance available to him/her? About the comment of having a flat tire in the middle of the night, you can get run flat tires so the teenager driver can still drive home safely and the tires can be replaced the next day.

It is priceless when it comes to the safety of my children.

[Anonymous]

Teens need ALL the help they can get. Something with the latest safety devices like auto braking/etc

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:+1 on the manual transmission. It keeps the driver much more focused on the driving experience - with both hands and both feet - and it's harder to do distracting things like eat and text.

Try to get something with the most recent safety features like forward collision prevention and lane departure warnings. They're very helpful for new drivers (and old ones, too).

+2 on the manual transmission. Impossible to be messing around with your phone when you need both hands to drive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I got my kid a 2017 Lexus IS350 4-door sedan this past year. Full of safety features and nice looking

Seriously?

yes, seriously. Why would I not want to have my child in a Lexus IS350 with all the safety features and 24x7x365 road side assistance available to him/her? About the comment of having a flat tire in the middle of the night, you can get run flat tires so the teenager driver can still drive home safely and the tires can be replaced the next day.

It is priceless when it comes to the safety of my children.

Hard to believe that this needs answering, but you can have all those safety features in a non-luxury car like a Toyota, Kia, or Honda. You can also get those features in a car that's lightly used. I would not want my child to be so entitled as to have a new luxury car. But then again, I'm also NOT a parent that lets my teen host drinking parties at my house to help him and me feel cool. To each their own.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The jetta is cuter. Does that matter?

Horrible reliability. We went with cute and it was nothing but trouble.

Back to Hondas.

[Anonymous]

Subaru. All wheel drive.