Not having a car, social situation?

[G5Unit]

<rant>You have a GTI and your 16. Thats a joke and a half.

Im sorry but over here in the UK having a car like that at that age is just unheard of unless you have more money than common sense to pay for INSURANCE!!!

So could someone enlighten me as to how that works in the US, I have no clue and would like to be educated.

Also having a car like that as well would be seen as a bit irresponsible of many parents as its way way to powerful for a young driver, unless the one you have is some ancient shed VW??</rant>

Ok thats the rant over, now for the advice section as I am actually in the EXACT same situation except I have already made the move.

At home I live in the country and if I didnt have a car then doing all the things you talked about would have been impossible. Everything you have said is exactly the same as me, honestly to the letter.

Regarding the social thing, yes definitely having a car makes a HUGE difference. There is no question about it.

However in the city, where I am the rest of the time, having a car would have very little impact on anything, yes it may be handy having it there but unless you can afford to have it sitting doing nothing the savings you will make are, as you have stated, a lot.

What I do at the moment is this. I share my car with the family, so when I am away in the city and not using it, they pay for everything and use it themselves. When I am at home I pay for and look after it and obviously use it whenever I want. That way I have the best of both worlds.

Sorry about the rant but if you were in the UK you would understand, it seriously does my t**s in the way it is over here!!!

Well, I mean where I live, the public transportation is non-existent. I need to somehow get to my job 21 miles away.

And the fact that my parents let me guy a GTI is irrelevant. They are generous and insisted that it was ok for me to own one.

 

[Eraserhead]

In fact, once you lose the car and start using your legs and public trans, you'll find yourself starting to hate drivers. They're always angry, they drive too fast, they ignore traffic laws, they honk at old women who walk across the street too slowly

To be fair cyclists could fit most of those criteria too .

I never understood where the stereotype of German promptness came from...

Probably Swiss transportation .

To the OP, if someone won't be your friend/girlfriend because you don't own a car, you don't want to be hanging out with that person anyway.

+1

 

[ErikCLDR]

I wouldn't hate on the kid for driving a GTI.

I know kids that drive much nicer cars than GTIs, not that the GTI isn't an awesome car, but compared to a BMW 530i, ML320, BMW 330i, A6 2.7t,etc> My sister has a friend that got a G500 for a grad present and another friend where everyone in their family drives a Range Rover or Range Rover Sport.

Anyways, keep the car until you don't need it. To me it sounds like you need it. Besides, the higher the gas prices go up, the more your little GTI is worth. I read something that this year compact cars are selling for ~$700 more than they would have last year.

 

[Santa Rosa]

No one has really bothered to answer my question then.

I was looking recently at getting something far better than a GTI and there would have been no problem with it either (why you need to boast about it I dont know).

Anyway because I live in the UK the insurance on said car (VW Corrado Storm, 2.9 200 BHP) was going to be nearly the price of the car EVERY YEAR!!

I'm asking how does that work in the US. Either you have a ton load of money, fair enough, or insurance is different out there?

 

[yg17]

I'm asking how does that work in the US. Either you have a ton load of money, fair enough, or insurance is different out there?

I'm 22, have a 2008 GTI, and my insurance is about $2000 each year. Pricey, but not nearly as bad as the UK from what it sounds like.

I'm not sure how you guys do it over there, but over here, there are a million factors in determining your insurance cost. Gender, age, marital status, where you live, your driving record, how many miles you drive a year, grades in school (for younger people), safety features on the car, etc. Someone else could very well pay much more or much less than $2,000/yr for the same car.

And before we hate on the kid for having a GTI, what year is it? The MkIV GTIs are much different than the MkVs, and if he bought a used, older GTI, there's much less reason to hate than if he brought a brand new MkV

 

[leekohler]

I've been to Chicago once for a visit. It depends on where you live. If you're right on Millinium Park, you could get by. If you live in Naperville, then a car would be more than convient.

You could always compromise by getting a motorcycle

Naperville isn't Chicago. Chicago is not a place you want a car either. I've been here 16 years and never wanted one. I haven't owned a car for over 10 years now. You'd be surprised at how much money you save and also how liberating it is.

 

[0098386]

I'm 22 and have no real need for a car. It's much cheaper to use public transport, and dare I say better (cheers video playback on iPod). It's just the waiting around I don't like. A couple of my friends drive but they're just used as drugs mules (no really).

If you're a nice person who can't turn down a friend, or even someone who tries too hard to impress new friends, avoid a car for now.

But this is England and theres always a bus, coach, train, ferry, hovercraft, jetpack ensemble going to where you want to go and petrol costs the same as a kidney or 2.

 

[iJohnHenry]

and petrol costs the same as a kidney or 2.

Skip the Premium, 'cause loosing your second kidney is not recommended.

 

[ErikCLDR]

No one has really bothered to answer my question then.

I was looking recently at getting something far better than a GTI and there would have been no problem with it either (why you need to boast about it I dont know).

Anyway because I live in the UK the insurance on said car (VW Corrado Storm, 2.9 200 BHP) was going to be nearly the price of the car EVERY YEAR!!

I'm asking how does that work in the US. Either you have a ton load of money, fair enough, or insurance is different out there?

I can't comment on insurance but the cost of living is less over here. Gas is cheaper, some cars are cheaper, etc. I'm 17, I drive a 2000 Land Rover Discovery and my insurance is I think $1600 with comprehensive, and I am tacked onto my parents plan so it is cheaper.

 

[G5Unit]

I'll tell you this, if you can't find a date because you don't own your own car then that girl isn't worth a damn.

Sorry I worded that wrong. My bad

I meant how it just works out with seeing people and such.

The thing is, I've never known anyone FROM besides my mom when she was a teenager, so I have no idea what living in one is like.

 

[cleanup]

Sorry I worded that wrong. My bad

I meant how it just works out with seeing people and such.

The thing is, I've never known anyone FROM besides my mom when she was a teenager, so I have no idea what living in one is like.

Good God. Well if you want to know what living in a big city is like, then lose the car!

 

[The Doctor]

16 year old kids in orange county always have nice cars... and rich, rich, rich parents... move to nyc... its awesome.