Personal Consumer Issues • First car for a new driver

The first car for a new driver needs to be a vehicle to learn with and on. There are a lot of criteria it should meet including:

Low in value in the event its damaged
Relatively old for insurance reasons
Relatively simple mechanically and otherwise
Reasonably reliable and easy to work on
Sufficiently, but not excessively powerful
Should seat 2-5 people
Has a manual transmission.

I'm guessing you don't have a vehicle that meets these parameters on hand, so buying a vehicle is the best route. However, that should be a learning experience. You should buy used, and your new driver needs to be part of the process to learn how to buy a used vehicle (preferably private party).

I didn't see your criteria for IMHO the most important thing to consider, that being safety.

If the vehicle is "low in value in the event its damaged" and "Relatively old for insurance reasons" it isn't going to be equipped with the safety features commonplace on cars with even low trim levels today.

"Relatively simple mechanically and otherwise" Cars haven't been simple for years now.
"Reasonably reliable and easy to work on"- Reasonably reliable isn't good enough. And so far as easy to work on, if you are thinking DIY, the last couple of generations haven't seemed to be interested in DIY auto care. In fact, many aren't interested in getting their driver's license at all. My SILs have never worked on their cars, save maybe replacing windshield wiper blades or an air filter. I don't know why the younger generation has so little interest in an activity that opens so much freedom.

"Sufficiently, but not excessively powerful" - I agree.
"Should seat 2-5 people - I mostly agree, though "2" people would likely be either a sports car, a truck, or a tiny car. No thanks.

"Have a manual transmission" - My three daughters learned how to drive in my Nissan Sentra with stick-shift. One daughter had a manual transmission in her first vehicle, a Nissan Hardbody truck. She put 150,000+ miles on it, but had to sell it as she couldn't put a car seat on the front seat.

If it were my decision it would be one of the top safety picks, and a new vehicle. After 1972 we never bought a used car. We tend to keep cars a long time, and I know how our new vehicles have been cared for, a used car, not so much.

Broken Man 1999

Statistics: Posted by Broken Man 1999 — Thu Sep 12, 2024 6:15 pm — Replies 44 — Views 1499

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