Anonymous wrote:Honda fit is quite popular with college kids. It is very affordable, reliable, easy to park, has excellent visibility and high safety ratings. It didn’t make the CR list because its weight is slightly below their cutoff of 2750 pounds but that number is arbitrary.

Honda Fit was discontinued in 2020, so not out there new anymore.

Mazda CX-30. Safe, wide, small, higher from the ground that a sedan, tougher wheels, and has enough torque to speed up on highway.
Cheaper than Honda and Toyota and cheaper to fix.
Some of the featured new car have can cause a new driver to crash, not keep them from crashing. Turn off like automatic high beam and lane departure that comes on way too easily. Same with automatic breaking.

You can have the safest car as possible as far as features and if your kid shows off in it or drives like they are the only one on the road they are still gonna get hurt or die.
I have a teen, not driving yet. She’ll be getting a boring Honda accord or Toyota corolla most likely in boring beige. 5-7 years old.
No suvs or high performance cars.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree with the safest car possible, given the driver's lack of experience and age-related judgment concerns. While many people purchase or pass down old cars for new drivers, that's very short-sighted and counterproductive if the goal is the safety of the new driver rather than the pleasure of the parent driving a new(er) car. The driver most at risk should drive the safest car, which is almost always the newest one possible, one with the latest, most well-developed safety features and benefitting from the latest advances in metallurgy and design in the construction of the core safety cage and crumple zones which surround the driver and passengers.

Not every family can afford a new $35k car. There are many safe cars that are older that are more than fine for new drivers. Toyota, Honda, Subaru, Mazda….

If I couldn't afford to buy the safest possible car for my child, I wouldn't get them a car until I could, or until their skills mature more. "Safe" is relative. If you're ok with "not as safe as what is available if I spend more, or if I drive the older car instead", then...

So do you change out cars every new model year? Since each year is apparently safe than the next?

Anonymous wrote:What car do you recommend for a new teen driver? Make and model and why.

Something non-sporty and older than 25 years old will have rock bottom cheap insurance rates, unless it's one of the forbidden vehicles like a camero.

Is money a factor? In my family the kids get the use of the oldest car in the family fleet. In our most recent case, that was an 16 year old Toyota Prius.

For families with money that buy new cars, I would recommend something boring and common. The usual suspects: Corolla, Rav4, CRV. Wish they still made the Fit!

Our research said weight is the most important thing in an accident.

Honda fit is quite popular with college kids. It is very affordable, reliable, easy to park, has excellent visibility and high safety ratings. It didn’t make the CR list because its weight is slightly below their cutoff of 2750 pounds but that number is arbitrary.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree with the safest car possible, given the driver's lack of experience and age-related judgment concerns. While many people purchase or pass down old cars for new drivers, that's very short-sighted and counterproductive if the goal is the safety of the new driver rather than the pleasure of the parent driving a new(er) car. The driver most at risk should drive the safest car, which is almost always the newest one possible, one with the latest, most well-developed safety features and benefitting from the latest advances in metallurgy and design in the construction of the core safety cage and crumple zones which surround the driver and passengers.

Not every family can afford a new $35k car. There are many safe cars that are older that are more than fine for new drivers. Toyota, Honda, Subaru, Mazda….

If I couldn't afford to buy the safest possible car for my child, I wouldn't get them a car until I could, or until their skills mature more. "Safe" is relative. If you're ok with "not as safe as what is available if I spend more, or if I drive the older car instead", then...

I had financial flexibility and was deciding between a used:
Subrau Crosstrek - with the larger engine
Toyota Corolla Cross - with AWD
Volvo XC 40
Requirements were that they had current- but not necessarily the absolute latest features. So in general was looking for model year 2021 or newer. And mileage under 40K
We were looking for -balance of smaller foot print and safety features. Driving in the city, wanted to be up higher for newer drivers for sight lines
The hoods on these 3 cars have enough of a down ward slant that you can judge space
The way the crosstrek engine is positioned, they have a low center of gravity which helps newer drivers.
All of these we were able to get out the door quotes for under 30K

Anonymous wrote:Agree with the safest car possible, given the driver's lack of experience and age-related judgment concerns. While many people purchase or pass down old cars for new drivers, that's very short-sighted and counterproductive if the goal is the safety of the new driver rather than the pleasure of the parent driving a new(er) car. The driver most at risk should drive the safest car, which is almost always the newest one possible, one with the latest, most well-developed safety features and benefitting from the latest advances in metallurgy and design in the construction of the core safety cage and crumple zones which surround the driver and passengers.

Not every family can afford a new $35k car. There are many safe cars that are older that are more than fine for new drivers. Toyota, Honda, Subaru, Mazda….

Agree with the safest car possible, given the driver's lack of experience and age-related judgment concerns. While many people purchase or pass down old cars for new drivers, that's very short-sighted and counterproductive if the goal is the safety of the new driver rather than the pleasure of the parent driving a new(er) car. The driver most at risk should drive the safest car, which is almost always the newest one possible, one with the latest, most well-developed safety features and benefitting from the latest advances in metallurgy and design in the construction of the core safety cage and crumple zones which surround the driver and passengers.

Thanks!

What car do you recommend for a new teen driver? Make and model and why.