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giving kids to uch car is an issue,my first car was a rusted out 88 s10 (im 19). after a year it wasnt worth fixing for inspection so i got a used 90 chevy 1500 pickup. t had a 5.7 v8 in it and may have been just a bit much for me, because i thought i was invincible. i stopped thinking that way when a friend of mine died in a motorcycle accident (hit a van that cut him off while doing well over 100 (think he was about 20 at the time) everyone died he was decpitated). and rally stopped thinking that after my friend wrecked his neon (with me in it) into a tree breaking my femur. he was going about 5 above the limit and jsut cant drive worth a **** and lost it because he was driving to far on the shoulder.
 
Teenagers should never be GIVEN cars, PERIOD. If a car is that important to them, they can work for it, and pay for a used car themselves.

different people do different things in their lives, not ever kid is in a position to earn money, and parents can reward their kids by giving them a car. its all personal choice. but thanks for trying to make guidelines for everyone with your superiority.
 
Jeez, that's pretty bad. You should have driven even though it was her car. I personally think the driving age should be raised to age 18. Sixteen is too early and most of the kids are very immature and take too many risks on the road (ie drag racing, excessive speeding, drinking while driving). Kids don't realize that this isn't a video game. Anyway, I think you did the right thing by driving back. Hope everything turns out ok.

We in the UK have to wait until we are 18 :(

Anyway, thats why teenagers shouldnt have brand new cars! Even I know that and I am 13!
 
Personally i think before people are allowed a licence they should have todo a certain amount of hours/miles in driving as with flying to get the experience. I also think you should be shown car crashes during the driving test and with like a computer generated re-enactment of the details of the crash etc to deter people from using excessive speed. I know i would have been annoyed to have had to sit through this during my driving test but i've seen crashes and had driving experience of tractors and quads etc since i was about 12. Still new drivers should definitely have a certain amount of hours or miles on the clock before they are allowed on their own. Annd in the UK why don't we teach people to drive on motorways? It's an absolute joke that you don't get ANY experience of motorway driving before you have got your full licence.

In relation to the OP's story, i would say giving a 17yo girl/ or boy a GT500 is completely out of their mind! I agree with whoever said that teens should NEVER be given a new car or any car for that matter. They should work for it! I use my mums 1.9TDi Golf but i'm only allowed to use it aslong as i help out on the farm to pay for fuel etc. Also the fact i've had years and years of driving experience means i know how to handle a vehicle and am trusted.
 
We in the UK have to wait until we are 18 :(

Anyway, thats why teenagers shouldnt have brand new cars! Even I know that and I am 13!

I agree completely. I will be given a car, most likely, to drive when I get my license. I'm 14 now.

Anyway, it's a 1975 Lincoln Continental Town Coupe. That's thirty-three years, folks.

It's not like I'm getting a perfectly restored classic car, either. I don't think it's been driven since, oh, eleven years ago.

However, I get it instead of my cousin, who's a year older than me, because I am the only one who bothers to take care of it. It's sitting in my grandmother's garage right now. It was my late grandfather's, and he died eight months before I was born. She keeps it there to make it look like someone's home all the time. :rolleyes:

Anyway, yeah, just kinda a random though.
 
Why is this specified as teenage GIRLS? Plenty of bad teenage drivers of both sex to go around.


Jeez, that's pretty bad. You should have driven even though it was her car. ...
It's a bit presumptuous and rude to make such a request.
If I were picking someone up and they insisted on driving I would tell them to kindly piss off and if they don't like it, they can find another ride.

God. This is the part that gets my goat. Teenagers should never be given brand new cars, ever. Teenagers should never be GIVEN cars, PERIOD. If a car is that important to them, they can work for it, and pay for a used car themselves. They'll still be more careful and take better care of it, because they had to put the time into earning it.
That may be true but when you're a teenager and being offered a car, you're hardly going to say "no", are you?



(generally speaking) Teenagers ARE lousy drivers. It's just how it is. Old people are often even worse. Still, you cannot assume ALL of these groups of people are hazards on the roads though so not much can be done about it.
Complaining about it is a worldwide pastime and a right, so have at it.
 
(generally speaking) Teenagers ARE lousy drivers. It's just how it is. Old people are often even worse. Still, you cannot assume ALL of these groups of people are hazards on the roads though so not much can be done about it.
Complaining about it is a worldwide pastime and a right, so have at it.

My dad "hates all women drivers", although I keep saying how stupid that is... Ah well.
 
What on earth is a 17 year old doing with a RWD car in the first place?

Bad juju all around.

RWD doesn't make the car dangerous. It's the HP. Just imagine if the 500 HP was going to the front wheels? That would be more dangerous then the 500 HP going to the rear wheels. What would you say if the girl had a Dodge Charger with the 2.7 V6? It only has 178 HP and 190 lb of torque. Would you still be against her having it due to the Charger being RWD? Plus, it weighs 3727 lb. It's a heavy vehicle. The 2.7 will be pushed hard to get it moving at a decent rate( my mom's old Sebring had the 2.7 V6, it's a POS when it comes to acceleration. Our Equinox out accelerates it).
 
RWD doesn't make the car dangerous. It's the HP. Just imagine if the 500 HP was going to the front wheels? That would be more dangerous then the 500 HP going to the rear wheels. What would you say if the girl had a Dodge Charger with the 2.7 V6? It only has 178 HP and 190 lb of torque. Would you still be against her having it due to the Charger being RWD? Plus, it weighs 3727 lb. It's a heavy vehicle. The 2.7 will be pushed hard to get it moving at a decent rate( my mom's old Sebring had the 2.7 V6, it's a POS when it comes to acceleration. Our Equinox out accelerates it).

RWD most certainly can make the car dangerous. HP or not I see many folks kick the rear end out of a RWD around a bend because they don't know any better.

And, FWIW Torque is what breaks tires free.. and since HP is a function of Torque it's really a problem with Torque and RWD.
 
RWD most certainly can make the car dangerous. HP or not I see many folks kick the rear end out of a RWD around a bend because they don't know any better.

And, FWIW Torque is what breaks tires free.. and since HP is a function of Torque it's really a problem with Torque and RWD.

Well with FWD, you got to teach the teen how to deal with understeer and torque steer. Each has their characteristics. Frankly, I would rather have the rear pop out. It is much easier to get out of then a front skid, IMHO. If you teach the teen how to deal with the RWD " dangerous" characteristics, wouldn't it make the teen a better driver?
 
Nina wasn't punished, she wasn't grounded, she wasn't even yelled at. She spent the day crying to her boyfriend, he had the gulls to come up to me to tell me that "if the police come looking, you're gonna cover for her right?"

I'd love to know what you told her boyfriend. Personally, I'd told him to F-off.

I hate to say it, but with her and her parents attitudes toward this incident, I feel that it is only a matter of time before it happens again with possible serious injuries.
 
To the OP, I am glad to hear you escaped without injury. I am especially happy that you made her return to the scene of the accident (if you so wish to call it that).

The fact that she drove away from the accident after not getting things to go "her way" shows her level of maturity. People (guy and girls) who act in this manner should not have a license...period.

As for the vehicle discussion, to say what the minimum level of HP that is adequate is impossible. I drive a vehicle with 128hp and it drives just fine. I have no problems passing. I drive a minimum of 80 miles per day on Chicago expressways, if 128 is enough here it is enough anywhere, save maybe autobahns. That being said, a GT500 is just downright stupid.

Sigh, I am 24 now and I will never forget my first car. It was a $1k '85 Pontiac Fiero. I had to drive safe, if I got into an accident, I would most certainly die in a plastic and gas fueled ball of fire.
 
I'd be interested to know how car insurance works in the US, because in the UK you can't even THINK about getting insurance for something like that until you are like 25.
I am 18 and have tried in vein to get insurance on my Dad's 911 :(
 
I'd love to know what you told her boyfriend. Personally, I'd told him to F-off.

I hate to say it, but with her and her parents attitudes toward this incident, I feel that it is only a matter of time before it happens again with possible serious injuries.

I told him, would you like me to do your homework for you too?
 
I'd be interested to know how car insurance works in the US, because in the UK you can't even THINK about getting insurance for something like that until you are like 25.
I am 18 and have tried in vein to get insurance on my Dad's 911 :(

If you are willing to pay for it they will insure you. But it will cost and arm and a leg.

I am looking forward to my drop in a month because I turn 25
 
I see nothing wrong with giving a teenager a new car. I was given a new car for my 19th birthday BUT I am a responsible driver. I always use my turn signal, wear my seatbelt, and stay relatively close to the speed limit ;) The only accident I have been in was because the other person was driving on the wrong side of the road and couldn't swerve in time. But like someone stated earlier, I would have been happy with ANYTHING for my first car. If/when I have kids I will trust them as my mom trusted me but they have one time to do something stupid like this and I will put them in a 15 year old subcompact, if that.
 
Well with FWD, you got to teach the teen how to deal with understeer and torque steer. Each has their characteristics. Frankly, I would rather have the rear pop out. It is much easier to get out of then a front skid, IMHO. If you teach the teen how to deal with the RWD " dangerous" characteristics, wouldn't it make the teen a better driver?

Tell you the truth understeer is safer than over steer. It is easier to regain control (slow down) compared to over steer that requires more though. All but very high end sports cars (RWD or not) will tend to understeer instead of have the rear come out from behind them. It is just safer.

As for Torque steer. Not as much of a problem as it was in the past and up to a point it is not noticable. I have a 175 HP engine and it takes me pushing it in before I noticed it and even then it normal requires me turning a little. In a straight line I have to drop the clutch and in a good point into the power band (4k min when 3k my car is entering it power band)
 
Um here in Illinois you get your permit in HS Drivers ED. You have to hold permit for 9 mos. and must have at least 50 hrs 10 of which are night driving. then once you complete that. When you get your regular license you can only have 1 person under 18 that is not a family member for 1 year.
 
I see you live in Scottsdale. I'm also in the Phoenix-Metro area (Glendale).

Bicycling and walking here is awful. When I rode my bike regularly (before it all went to hell and almost every imaginable part of it broke at the same time) I'd almost get hit by a car every single day. I'd get the middle finger almost every day, too. Most often by drivers who don't care about/know the rules regarding cyclists legally riding their bikes in the street. I eventually just started riding on the sidewalk to avoid getting hit by a crazy driver.

I've almost been run over in the crosswalk while walking about 5 times now; three of those within 3 seconds of one another. And they all got mad at me, even though I was legally crossing when I had the "Walk" signal.

It seems Tempe is the only city that cares at all about cyclists and pedestrians. Most of the bike lanes I've seen in this city are in Tempe.

All of this said, though, I can't wait to get a new bike in a few months and ditch my car once again.

We have bike lanes, but I can't use them half of the time, because ignorant drivers will have their cars all the way up the curb. It's a hazardous mile to school, sadly.

Tempe is very nice for cyclists, I agree.
 
I own a 380 HP Mustang GT /Cervinis mod. I also have a son (7 yrs)
Lets pretend that he's 16-17 and asks to borrow my car. My answer, HELL NO, Save your money & we'll get you a car that you can afford, when you can afford it. Go ask your mother to borrow her PT Cruiser.
Listens & Hears same Hell No......
To think that someone is irresponsible enough to put 500+ hp into an inexperienced self centered little girl- boy is mind boggling.
I hope we're not being updated in a few months as to the wreck that killed the girl, her boyfriend, and a car full that she ran into when she blows into the other lane around a curve because she's doing 130+ and doesn't think the laws of physics apply to her.
Some People have too much money & no sense whatsoever.
 
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