Anonymous wrote:OP, a 2008 is not up to modern safety standards, no matter what you add to it. I would not let a first-time driver have this car.

I had a 1985 Grand Prix as a first time driver… How many safety standards were on that car? Doesn’t matter the vehicle, it’s the driver.

My kids drive a 2007 Honda.

I taught them to drive without any camera - just turning their heads/using the mirrors. Once they did that reliably, I had a backup camera installed. Like PP it isn't as perfect as my 2022 back up camera and there are no warning sounds, but it is helpful. I also installed a new entertainment console to use navigation/screen for back up camera. Total was about $700

It doesn’t seem worth the hassle to retrofit the car. All drivers should know how to drive without those things anyway.

Anonymous wrote:OP, a 2008 is not up to modern safety standards, no matter what you add to it. I would not let a first-time driver have this car.

How is it not up to modern safety standards?? Lol

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, a 2008 is not up to modern safety standards, no matter what you add to it. I would not let a first-time driver have this car.

He can just turn his head to look at the blind spot and back up like we all did

No! We cannot have THAT! My Larlo is special and talented and gifted. He’s so much smarter than his peers - like 99th percentile smart - and did I mention gifted and talented? We can’t let him look over his shoulder and check his blind spot. It’s far too dangerous. We need technology for this.

Anonymous wrote:OP, a 2008 is not up to modern safety standards, no matter what you add to it. I would not let a first-time driver have this car.

He can just turn his head to look at the blind spot and back up like we all did

Anonymous wrote:OP, a 2008 is not up to modern safety standards, no matter what you add to it. I would not let a first-time driver have this car.

A 2008 car is perfectly safe I have heels older than that.

OP, a 2008 is not up to modern safety standards, no matter what you add to it. I would not let a first-time driver have this car.

Back up camera is easy. Collision sensors are impossible.

We have an aftermarket backup camera. It’s not quite as accurate as our car w/a built in camera - although maybe we could fix that by adjusting the camera angle? - but it’s lots better than not having one.

Back-up camera is easy. Just mount the camera, wire it into the reverse lights and run the wire to the display in the cab. Neatness counts.

Don't know about collision sensors. Calibrating them would be more difficult.

The alerting systems aren't easy to retrofit. The backup camera can be added with a little work. However, he could also just try to avoid backup up too often. For eaxmple, in a parking lot, jsut park further away where you can "pull through" to the opposite spot.

I’m curious if anyone has purchased after market safety features and installed them on an older car. My cousin gifted my son a 2008 Chevy Malibu and it drives like a dream with low mileage (the kid is lucky—my sister and I shared an Accord that we partially paid for with no AC in the South with 200K+ miles). The Malibu is like a boat—longer than my small SUV and does not have a good turning radius. Slow pick up and not at all cool—it feels perfect for a new teen driver.

DS is getting his license in the coming month and it would be really helpful for him to drive himself to sports. He wants to drive to school, but I am terrified of distracted teen drivers. I see it all the time when I pick up DS from soccer and when the high schools let out after school.

I’m fully committed to holding him accountable and by all means possible helping him understand how dangerous and reckless the phones are while driving. And, with everyone on the phones (pedestrians while walking!!) I am wondering if a few were in gadgets that beep or somehow help alert are worth it. I’ve seen that are back up cameras, front collision alert systems and blind spot detectors that can be added on.

Any thoughts/insights/recommendations? I was in a bad accident in high school (one person died due to complications from injuries) and I’m tightly wound. If I am looking in the wrong direction to support a new driver, please call me out in this.