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Need input on teenager car

Discussion in 'General Automotive Discussion' started by Husker, Feb 13, 2018.

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  1. BMW.SauberF1Team

    BMW.SauberF1Team F1 World Champ

    Dec 4, 2004
    14,244
    +1 they look good and are reliable. An old Lexus SUV may fit the bill as well.
     
  2. fatbillybob

    fatbillybob Two Time F1 World Champ
    Consultant Owner

    Aug 10, 2002
    26,292
    socal
    The best car for a new young driver is a 4 door sedan. It has storage as needed and room for passengers so your good driving kid is not a passenger of the lame driver with a big car. An SUV is the worst car for a young driver. The young driver has fast reactions and no experience. They react often faster than the suv and lack experience to control the suv. So young drivers are more likely to rollover an suv than their slow 45 Y/O parents. Crash tests also bare out the value of the 4 door sedan. Also the newest cars have the best safety systems. The less experience on the road the more you need that. Even a few days in the hospital can't justify the cost between new safety systems and 12 y/o beater car safety system.
     
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  3. LI2782

    LI2782 Formula Junior
    Rossa Subscribed

    Jul 19, 2010
    915
    LR3 is a great truck. General maintenance must be kept up on, lower control arms, trans connector sleeve will need to be done etc. I'm at 130k on ours and really love it. Find one that's been cared for and you should have many years of trouble free enjoyment. You see more x5s because they sold more of them. The disco didn't hit it's stride until the lr4 came out and prettied it up - also the old x5 has a much longer production run than the lr3 (remember 3 years of lr3 production were during the crisis). Euro Motors in Raleigh sells a ton of used LRs that they truly thoroughly recondition. Very well respected in the LR community. Land rover of roaring fork and land rover Centerville also regularly stock very nice LR3s. I've helped a number of buddies get into these trucks as snow/wheeling vehicles so feel free to PM for for info
     
  4. JOEA2

    JOEA2 Formula 3

    Feb 2, 2006
    1,160
    Staten Island, N.Y./ Sea Girt,N.J.
    Full Name:
    Joe A
    I had a Discovery that needed a Front End at 42,000 miles. They told me that I didn't use it enough.

    Joe
     
  5. BT

    BT F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa

    Mar 21, 2005
    15,291
    FL / GA
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    Bill Tracy
    Jeeps are cheap to fix generally (at least the Wranglers are). Also, they are trail rated! They will need plenty of smallish repairs, and I found it annoying to fix all the stupid stuff after a few months with my daughter's Wrangler. Now she wishes she had the 99 Tacoma she had started with. For something cool with a $12k budget, I would go for an FX 35 or similar. What does she think of the Mazda 6? It is pretty slick looking, and my nephew just got a 2014 for around that price. No way would I buy a Land Rover in that price range. You may also want to show her the scooter from Dumb and Dumber on Ebay right now. That may give her some perspective! Tell her she could get 70 MPG on that hog.

    :)
    BT
     
    G. Pepper likes this.
  6. Husker

    Husker F1 World Champ

    Dec 31, 2003
    11,788
    western hemisphere

    Great info! That was one thing that I noticed - most of the SUVs out there are NOT trail rated like the Jeeps are. Definitely something else to consider.
     
  7. JP365

    JP365 Formula 3

    Mar 8, 2007
    1,340
    Chicago
    Full Name:
    John F
  8. ross

    ross Three Time F1 World Champ
    Owner Silver Subscribed

    Mar 25, 2002
    36,210
    houston/geneva
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    Ross
    a friend got a new passat on lease for $199/month for 5 years, for his daughter.
    that seems pretty cheap to me.
     
  9. Tcar

    Tcar F1 Rookie

    Can you do that with the primary driver younger than 25? Could not a few years ago.
     
  10. nicoff

    nicoff Rookie

    Sep 2, 2016
    2
    No experience with any of those. It has been over ten years but my daughter’s first car was an old Volvo sedan. Its cool factor was zero. My son inherited the car when daughter went to college. Their safety was the main concern to us.

    Today, I would (again) pick a vehicle with an excellent safety rating regardless of cool factor. An SUV is not likely to make the cut based on the safety criteria.
     
  11. ross

    ross Three Time F1 World Champ
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    Mar 25, 2002
    36,210
    houston/geneva
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    good point and i have no idea
     
  12. Innovativethinker

    Innovativethinker F1 Veteran
    Silver Subscribed

    Aug 8, 2009
    8,601
    So Cal
    Full Name:
    Mark Smith
    My suggestions;

    1) good, and maybe only time to teach humility. Kia, or other conservative vehicle

    2) fewer seats the better, very small back seat. You don’t want to be the car everyone piles in because there will always be at least one idiot. Small back seat speaks for itself.

    3) reliability is king when it’s 11:30 and you are up waiting for her.

    4) tracking systems are sneaky but bring peace of mind. Never tell anyone including your wife about it.

    5) Hyundai Elantra, but I’ve said that many times before.

    6) AAA, $30 in glove box plus a cheap cell phone, and pepper spray (2).

    7) spare tire with inflator and triangles, water.
     
  13. BT

    BT F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa

    Mar 21, 2005
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    Bill Tracy
    I wonder if the trail rated Jeeps consider the effects of Daylight Savings Time in their certifications. You know, it affects the environment in many negative ways. It could also affect SUVs (Trail-Rated or not).
     
  14. JOEA2

    JOEA2 Formula 3

    Feb 2, 2006
    1,160
    Staten Island, N.Y./ Sea Girt,N.J.
    Full Name:
    Joe A
    After she gets the car, I would suggest my wife's system. Have someone sleep in her bed so you know when she gets home.

    Joe
     
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  15. VGM911

    VGM911 Formula 3

    Apr 8, 2007
    1,379
    New Jersey
    It might be wise to send her to a driving school (for example, the Bob Bondurant school, or one similar). Proper car control and accident avoidance skills would help keep her safe.
     
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  16. bobbyd

    bobbyd Formula Junior

    Nov 17, 2003
    722
    True story: was out for a jog a few years ago, and a young female driver spun and flipped her SUV right in front of me making a left out of a T junction from a stopped position -slick rainy day - no joke! She was unhurt but that should be a lesson.

    Best car for a new driver is a late model Accord or Camry with a 4 cylinder engine. Well engineered, reliable, low center of gravity, and not too powerful. Enough safety as well. And not expensive.

    Good luck!!
     
  17. dm_n_stuff

    dm_n_stuff Four Time F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa Owner

    Used Honda Accord, 2 or 4 doors, depending or her preference for style.

    Go stick if she wants to learn, automatic if she doesn't.

    ok looking, bulletproof, not crazy expensive to repair and 5 star safety rating.

    both my teenage sons (at the time) learned on, and then drove Hondas. We got 14 years out of the Civic and 140K miles while teaching multiple kids in it. Both boys were in accidents in the car, both escaped without a scratch, second accident totaled the car, when my older son, who was still driving it full time, was 28.

    /EOT
     
  18. WPOZZZ

    WPOZZZ F1 Veteran

    Aug 22, 2012
    6,477
    Honolulu, HI
    Mini Cooper?
     
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  19. davidoloan

    davidoloan Formula Junior

    May 6, 2009
    584
    Full Name:
    David
    Very popular in Europe.

    How come no mention of the VW Golf? Very popular here with big wheels, aggressive front spoiler and sills combined with the 1.4 litre engine.

    And how come no mention of the MX5; are these not popular in the US. I think an MX5 would make a great car.
     
  20. davidoloan

    davidoloan Formula Junior

    May 6, 2009
    584
    Full Name:
    David
    R129 Mercedes SL's are extremely well engineered, very reliable, and very very cheap.
     
  21. carguyjohn350

    carguyjohn350 F1 Rookie
    Silver Subscribed

    Mar 7, 2007
    3,826
    Houston, TX
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    John P
    If you read the whole thread, you'll see it's a first car for a teenage girl who's not a gear head but is badge conscious. Slammed golf would probably not be the badge she's looking for. I wouldn't put my daughter in something as small as a miata, or a mini either for that matter.

    Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
     
  22. davidoloan

    davidoloan Formula Junior

    May 6, 2009
    584
    Full Name:
    David
    VW Golfs are cool here. Still seen as classless and desirable.

    I don't claim to know understand what the very young see as cool. I saw Dior chauffeuring young vloggers in Paris in large black Mercedes vans with leather and wood interiors in the cargo section. They were going totally nuts over the vans and I was confused.
     
  23. Protouring442

    Protouring442 F1 Veteran

    Sep 5, 2007
    8,723
    Harriman, TN
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    One Stupid SOB
    Spoiled is okay so long as she understands that she is spoiled. Back in 1990 or so, my sister's first car was an '88ish IROC Camaro. No tickets, no accidents, and she kept the thing clean as a whistle.
     
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  24. Nurburgringer

    Nurburgringer F1 World Champ

    Jan 3, 2009
    11,031
    Texass
    2014+ Kia Soul.
    Neat looking inside and out, very nice to drive, good outwards visibility, airbags everywhere, can get with all sorts of options including AC'd seats and pano sunroof, very good infotainment system.
    Don't know where you are but you can easily find a well equipped, mid-spec "+' model with decent mileage for <$12k. Top spec "!" model with leather and all the goodies will have a little higher miles at the price.
     
  25. davidoloan

    davidoloan Formula Junior

    May 6, 2009
    584
    Full Name:
    David
    There must be a cultural element to that, the norm in the US, because the opposite is common in Europe, and I doubt the parents are less caring on the whole.
     

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