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Best Car for a 16 and a half year old?

for 16k you can get a pretty nice new car.

My sister got a 06 Cobalt when she turn 16. It been a great car for her. It was the base model and I think my parents paid 13k for it.

Nice car. Good for a 16 year old.

My first car was a a 92 Sentra (it was Dec 99 when I got it) and they paid 3k for it.


Before people get on him for his parents giving him all this stuff. Don't. I was given my first car and my parents covered all the cost. Hell my parents gave me my 2nd car (which was brand new an 04 top of the line Sentra) and covered all of its cost until I graduated last Dec and I had to take on the cost of the car.


My advice is stay away from any of the sportier cars. Get a car with a small 4 cylinder engine.
 
Seriously, no person under the age of 21 needs a new car. 1 insurance is way to much, 2nd, why bother. When you get older you have plenty of time to buy a nice car with all the bling.
 
Rodimus Prime said:
My advice is stay away from any of the sportier cars. Get a car with a small 4 cylinder engine.
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With the right toys on them, a small 4 cyl can pack quite a punch. And some of these toys can come with the car straight from the factory ;)


But that does bring up a good point though....do insurance companies look at engine size, or engine power? For the 2006 and 2007 model year, VW had 2 different Jettas available. One had a 2.5 5cyl making 150 horsepower (same engine as the Rabbit. The 2.5 got a bump to 170hp in 2008, but that's not relevant). The other had a 2.0 turbo 4 cyl making 200hp (same engine as the GTI...and no, this isn't the Jetta GLI either, it was a regular Jetta). Everything else on the cars were identical. Which one would have the higher insurance rate? Bigger engine, less power. Or smaller engine, more power?
 
I think they look at safety, the more dangerous the car the higher the rates. If a car can go fast it will be more. If I am an agent I am looking at 2 things, how fast can it go, and if this car hits something how much damage will it do.
 
First off, don't listen to the people urging you to get a piece of **** car as your first because a "16 year old doesn't need a new car." The point is your parents are able to afford you one and you would of course probably like a nicer car as opposed to a cruddier one. It's not selfish and it's not wrong, no matter what other people on this site say.

Personally, for 16k, I would go with the Scion tC. A couple of my friends have this car and they love it. It looks sporty, has some great standard features that are comparable to cars costing much more, and drives very well. I think they look great, get good mileage, and are very maneuverable. Take a look at them, you won't regret it.
 
Mammoth said:
Daaaaaamn... I see what happened with your cell phone thread. :D

Yeah I'll stick to recommending cars from now on.

If you haven't noticed, I'm kind of a Volvo fanboy. (Maybe it's the Swedish side of me)

Here's a moderately extreme example of how a Volvo can be a mad sleeper. The car itself wouldn't cost more than 6k and the 10k you could slap in a bigger turbo, get better suspension, new brakes, water injection, some gauges to monitor all this... fun fun fun.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SbHEPbS9ZeU
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I have to chime in here, I'd also highly recommend a used volvo. I got a 1996 volvo 850 for $5600 in very good shape, and it's been pretty reliable. Also, if you're willing to spend a couple thousand dollars, you can get a hell of a lot of power out of the 5 cylinder engine.
It's actually a lot of fun to drive (not something that volvo is well known for, but it's true), and I'm about to spend nearly $2500 upgrading the suspension over spring break.

Also a total volvo fanboy here. I like the feeling of having a volvo wagon that can outperform most cars on the road. :D :p

Edit: Also the insurance isn't too high, and it's a very safe car.

--Andrzej
 
yg17 said:
You're 16 and just got your license, the odds of wrecking your first car are extremely high
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Extremely high? What, like 80 to 90% or something? :confused:

I'm sure it's not high. The chances of getting into an accident may be slightly higher when you're young, just like your chances are higher when you're old. I wonder if you'll be willing to give up your car and drivers license when you're 70 years old, even if you believe you can drive without issue.

I know your parents insist, but convince them otherwise. It's just stupid for a 16 year old to have a brand new car
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Is it only stupid for young people? Why is it any smarter for an older person to own a new car? Many people say that buying a new car is stupid, regardless of age.

Ed H said:
Not all young drivers are irresponsible, however the bad ones seem to get the spotlight. Driving is a privilege and not a right.
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Exactly. I have never treated my car badly, and my friends have never treated their cars badly. They don't drive 100 mph all the time, and they don't race or anything. I truly believe that only a small proportion of teenagers do that sort of thing. By treating every teenager like they're an idiot, you'll just give off an overall feeling of mistrust, and they won't trust you either. I really don't get it.
 
FrankieTDouglas said:
Well, at first I had an idea for a 16 year old, but you said 16 and a half so that of course changes everything.
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LOL. I found that funny when I read the title too.

G5Unit said:
I don't want a new car, yet my parents insist so I'm going ahead with it.
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I strongly recommend against buying (financing) a brand new car. If you buy a slightly used car (1-3 years old), you will save a lot of money (or be able to apply that to a better car), and nobody will even know the difference (especially if there hasn't been a model update).

If you or your parents are concerned about reliability/warranty- there are certified used dealerships, and most cars in that age range still have some factory warranty remaining.

If you can pull off a five-year old car you will save even more money (or be able to get an even nicer model) as cars generally lose 50-80% (http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2005-12-22-resale-usat_x.htm) of their value within that time. Just think, if you go brand new, you'll be the one "paying" that depreciation.

Use kbb.com to help make sure the price is appropriate.

You should really look at going to CARMAX. You can check their inventory online (with actual car photos) before you even go. Their website is carmax.com. Most of their used vehicles are 0-6 years old, they perform a 125+ point inspection, and they provide a five day return period and a limited warranty with extended warranty options. They have many locations throughout the country, especially in large states like CA and TX, and will transfer vehicles from another location upon request. You can take your car in for repair at any branch.
 
yg17 said:
With the right toys on them, a small 4 cyl can pack quite a punch. And some of these toys can come with the car straight from the factory ;)


But that does bring up a good point though....do insurance companies look at engine size, or engine power? For the 2006 and 2007 model year, VW had 2 different Jettas available. One had a 2.5 5cyl making 150 horsepower (same engine as the Rabbit. The 2.5 got a bump to 170hp in 2008, but that's not relevant). The other had a 2.0 turbo 4 cyl making 200hp (same engine as the GTI...and no, this isn't the Jetta GLI either, it was a regular Jetta). Everything else on the cars were identical. Which one would have the higher insurance rate? Bigger engine, less power. Or smaller engine, more power?
Click to expand...

Sorry I should of added to that stay away of sports cars to include the 4 cyl ones as well. My parents made the mistake of getting me a sporter 4 cyl by mistake. It was the 92 Sentra SE-R.

As for your 2nd question it depends on the company. Some will go by engine size. Others go by what the manufactures says. For example I drive a an 04 Sentra SE-R Spec V. It is a 2.5 L 4 cyl engines that puts out 175 hp. Some insurance companies/agents will put it as your normal car. Others will throw it in to the sports car class.

I have seen a lot that will throw the V-6 Mustangs into the sports car class and leave my car out of that list. My car out does those cars in every way.
 
do some research (not just on paper, in person, quality is hard to detect online) and you'll see the volkswagen rabbit is unbeatable.

here's a window sticker from a new one too, just ignore that pesky automatic transmission. i'm a die-hard VW owner, so when it was new car time i knew it would be another VW, but i was thinking about a 2002 or so cabrio. when i saw what you could get a brand new rabbit for, there was no question.

people suggesting the yaris, cobalt, focus, things like that. how many airbags do those have? the rabbit has eight, with an option of ten for rear thorax.

i just don't trust japanese and domestic cars not to crumple up like a soda can, especially entry levels. i always thought the yaris hatch was adorable, i sat in one and could not believe how much they get away charging for a car with nothing but A/C! it was about $1000 less than a rabbit base model, but it was a world away.

this is why i say, please do research IN PERSON, many cars sound like a great deal in paper, they look good in commercials, but in person you can see the lack of quality. people say repairs are too expensive on a german car, the trouble is, you rarely have to repair them! i have a 1997 golf i've had since 2000, i've put about 90k on it, and it has only once left me in a position where it wouldn't start. it turned out to be the distributor cap i had just replaced a few days before, it was just a faulty part. i picked up a new one and was on my way again. take a look at a ten year old cavalier with 143k, it'll be a POS at that point. i know BMW owners with well over 200k who have done little beyond oil changes and a clutch or two.
 
joeshell383 said:
I strongly recommend against buying (financing) a brand new car. If you buy a slightly used car (1-3 years old), you will save a lot of money (or be able to apply that to a better car), and nobody will even know the difference (especially if there hasn't been a model update)..
Click to expand...


While it does save a lot of money getting a slightly used car it does remove away from that new car feel. There is a certain sence of pride you can get by getting a car brand new and putting all the miles on it your self. Mind you does cost a fair bit more.

Only reason I say this is I got my car with 3 miles on the odo. Now it has over 40k on it. It feels kind of cool saying I have owned the car since it had 3 miles on it. But yeah it cost a lot more to go that way.
 
MacNut said:
Seriously, no person under the age of 21 needs a new car. 1 insurance is way to much, 2nd, why bother. When you get older you have plenty of time to buy a nice car with all the bling.
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Back when I was getting my first ride, my parents liked the idea of the general reliability of a new/newer car. They said they just felt better knowing I had a new Toyota when I'm out on the road, instead of one with 150,000 miles. And if you have the $, why says you can't provide as best as you please?

Also, trust me, a Cobalt isn't a car with "all the bling". It's designed for the youth demographic.

For the record, I recommend the Toyota Yaris. You can get a well equipped one for $14-15k, and you'll get GREAT reliability and 40MPG (sticker underestimates!). Gas mileage means a lot to a younger person, and you know it's going to be a good car for quite a while. It doesn't look terrible either :).
 
If I were you I would buy new Honda Civic or at least new Mitsubishi Lancer. I don't know exactly how much these cars cost in your country but I think $16000 will be enough.. Honda Civic costs $22000 in Russia. But it is the price + 30% of price for taxes.
 
Daveway said:
Okay, don't mean to sound elitist or anything, but...
There aren't many teenagers with a grand marquise on their list, in fact its probably in the realm of impossibility. Car companies make different classes of vehicles for a reason, grand marquise = 75+ crowd.
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But they drop in price like a rock, faster than the Ford, so a $4-7 Grand Marquis isn't unusual -- and because it caters to the 75+ crowd, the insurance typically is amongst the lowest you can find.

Something that may help make insurance a lot more affordable for a 16 yo.

And for $16k you can get a relatively new model, considering that isn't far off what we paid for one with 10k miles on it.

While people typically don't shop Mercury, you can at times find that in the resale market they might be priced the same or lower than the competing Ford product. And will generally be less to insure.
 
If I was in your position (and HAD to buy new), I too would buy a VW Rabbit.

But, if I had $16,000, I would not buy a new car... I'd get a used $30,000 car and enjoy the better features, both safety and connivence.
 
Badandy said:
First off, don't listen to the people urging you to get a piece of **** car as your first because a "16 year old doesn't need a new car." The point is your parents are able to afford you one and you would of course probably like a nicer car as opposed to a cruddier one. It's not selfish and it's not wrong, no matter what other people on this site say.
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Nobody ever said it's not because he doesn't deserve a new car or whatever. There's 2 reasons why I said he should just get a crappy car. 1) He's inexperienced and has a higher chance of getting in an accident. This is a fact backed up by numerous statistics. Why do you think insurance is so high for teenagers? 2) He said his parents are going to give him the $16,000, but he has to pay them back in 5 years. He could easily find a nice used car for like $5,000 and save the rest of the money to put it towards college. College is extremely expensive and every bit is going to help (a 4-year state college is going to cost at minimum $50,000 for the 4-years)

Abstract said:
I'm sure it's not high. The chances of getting into an accident may be slightly higher when you're young, just like your chances are higher when you're old.
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It's most definitely high. Why do you think insurance is so much more expensive? My insurance alone is about the same as both of my parents combined, even after it just went down since I've had 3 "incident free" years. If I had a new car instead of an old piece of ****, it would be even more.

Is it only stupid for young people? Why is it any smarter for an older person to own a new car?
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A middle aged person usually has a full-time paying job where they can afford the monthly payments (and won't have student loans), plus they have more driving experience.

Exactly. I have never treated my car badly, and my friends have never treated their cars badly. They don't drive 100 mph all the time, and they don't race or anything. I truly believe that only a small proportion of teenagers do that sort of thing. By treating every teenager like they're an idiot, you'll just give off an overall feeling of mistrust, and they won't trust you either. I really don't get it.
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It's not mistrust or anything. It's just the fact that kids don't have much experience and are much more likely to misjudge something or make a stupid mistake and end up getting in an accident.

I agree with you that most teens aren't reckless drivers, but they can still make mistakes.
 
I'm sure they want a new car for reliability and warranty. I strongly recommend you try to talk them into a certified used car with a warranty. Many of these cars are about 3 years old and just came off a lease as a company car. You'll either get a heck of a lot more car for 16k, or since you want to pay them back, a heck of a deal on a 12k car.
 
Another option besides Carmax is Enterprise Rent-a-Car.

http://www.enterprisecarsales.com/carsales/home.do

According to their website they have been selling cars since 1962 and offer:

Vehicle Certification
Worry-Free Ownership
7-Day Repurchase Agreement (You can return car within 7 days)
12 months/12,000 miles Limited Powertrain Warranty
Vehicle Service Contracts
Enterprise Roadside Assistance
 
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