I drove my dad’s ancient pick up truck in high school. Our teen will drive one of the two vehicles we already own when it’s available. There’s no way I’m buying my kid their own car.

Our daughter received her grandmother’s car, an old sedan with very low mileage, when grandma could no longer drive safely. It took some of the sting out of losing some independence for grandma to be the shero of the day and our daughter loves the car.

Anonymous wrote:Bit of a spin-off but what are thoughts on giving teens a car with a 3rd row? We have a 2018 Toyota Highlander and I like the idea of a larger car for more safety. And DC would know that car is gone if he uses the third row (more kids in the car=more distracted driving).

Just make sure they don't pack the car with friends. Bigger cars aren't always safer, especially in roll overs. Speeding is the biggest problem.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was offered a Jeep but had just heard about someone who tipped over at school, so didn't want that. So my dad got me a BMW. (This is not normal.)

Keeps tip over. Friend was killed in high school in one.

We were thinking about giving DD DH's Jeep Wrangler when she's old enough. The thing is really hard to drive IMO, and would be really difficult to get up to any speed related shenanigans. After reading about the recent cases where kids were driving recklessly and killed others, I feel like a car that cannot go fast without significant effort (that my 85 lbs. DD is not really capable of), is a good bet. And without any extra doohickeys, she'll actually learn how to drive, instead of relying on imperfect technology.

I have no idea what this means. What does her weight have to do with anything? Do you have a Fred Flintstone car, which requires propulsion form the driver?

Anonymous wrote:Old Honda Accord. Driven by multiple teens who have all banged it up a little more. No way I'd buy a new car for a teen

Yes something like this. It also leaves you some budget to maybe buy a different car when they are in college if the need arises. So if you have 2 kids, who may use the old car for 6 years total, I'd definitely go used. Then you can see where the end up for college and if a car is even needed. If they are driving a LOT in college, then maybe they'll need a new car. If they are in an urban setting, the older car might be useful.

Anonymous wrote:We bought a new civic in 2018 when our oldest learned to drive. We wanted the latest safety features and reliability. It was a good move. Our 15 yo will soon be driving it. It’s still reliable and while they have probably improved safety features, I doubt they’ve improved enough to justify a new purchase.

So you wanted the latest safety features for your oldest, but for your 15 you, whatever you have is good enough (without even investigating what the new features are)? Nice.

Anonymous wrote:Bit of a spin-off but what are thoughts on giving teens a car with a 3rd row? We have a 2018 Toyota Highlander and I like the idea of a larger car for more safety. And DC would know that car is gone if he uses the third row (more kids in the car=more distracted driving).

My DD, with a learners permit, is learning to drive in my 3rd row SUV. With car prices what they are now, she won't have her "own" car to drive when she gets her provisional license in a few months, so she'll be using mine. I think a lot of kids are probably driving 3rd row SUVs with how common they are.

I am a firm believer kids should not get luxury cars for their first car. Don’t you remember how good it felt when you finally graduated from your first few cara to a really nice car you could afford? It’s a rite of passage. I think you take that from kids when you hand them an Audi. It’s ridiculous. Kids also tend to kill themselves and others in these cars because they’re fast.

Now what you should do is buy YOURSELF the new car and hand your teenager whatever you’re currently driving which is surely older, more miles.

Bit of a spin-off but what are thoughts on giving teens a car with a 3rd row? We have a 2018 Toyota Highlander and I like the idea of a larger car for more safety. And DC would know that car is gone if he uses the third row (more kids in the car=more distracted driving).

When my son starts driving in 3ish years, he'll get my current car (2020 4runner). It'll have about 125-150k miles on it, and I'm the original owner. Feels appropriate and works for our time frame for upgrading my car

I got a 6 year old 4runner to drive when I was in HS and that took me a few years past college age. My husband got his dads old Accord (probably like 8 years old) and same story he drove it until he was 26ish.

So, this is the norm in our family and has worked out well for us! I would recommend a lightly used mainstream car...a new driver in a new or luxury brand car looks kind of douchey IMO.

They will get a civic or corolla, likely used. I’d be open to new if the price difference was very slim. My DH will likely buy new a couple years before DC starts driving then had it over to “borrow” and upgrade for himself

Here’s a good list

https://www.iihs.org/ratings/safe-vehicles-for-teens

I was in the market for a new car myself. I don't drive much so didn't want to spend much. We ended up buying me a new Civic with the plan to pass it down to DS in 4 years at which point I will get a new car.

Funny enough when I was 16 my parents bought me a 5 year old Civic... we're coming full circle. Of course it was only $3k... ha

Anonymous wrote:we bought a new honda after we found that 2019 cars were going to be very close in price. It was amazing at the prices. This was a few months ago, not sure if it is still this way. Didn't really want to buy a new car but felt stupid to buy a 4 yo car for only a thousand less, just so I didn't give my kid a new car.

FWIW, we did get the new car under MSRP, and 2020 and above were more expensive somehow?

+1 this was us last summer. Bought kid a new Civic

I’m inclined toward a hand me down with a known history, as compared to a regular used car or a new one.

It needs to be new enough to have strong safety features and crashworthiness ratings. I personally think a lot of the “safety” technology is just distracting.

Size is a double edged sword. Bigger is usually safer but smaller is easier to drive and park.

I think perhaps the most important thing is that it be in good repair in terms of reliable starting and running, good brakes and good tires.

It needs to be powerful enough to get out of its own way but not a rocket ship.

The more boring the styling the better.