Kids and Cars

[RockAndRollBallerina]

In the parking lot when I was in high school, which was a privilege reserved for Junior's and Seniors only. The only kids who had new cars were those whose parents were financially well off, the majority of the lot was older models.

 

[bjscheel]

Lots of junkers in our HS parking lot. There is a freshman boy with an orange Dodge Charger (new style), but other than that there is nothing too nice. For DD we found a great deal on Craigslist, it is a 1999 Dakota with under 50,000 miles so it will last her a long time.

 

[ebtbmom]

In my area it seems more common for 16yr olds to not get their license at all, much less a car. Supposedly a lot of kids claim that they are nervous or not interested in driving, it's kind of odd. Maybe the parents can't afford insurance but they are embarrassed to say?

We were going to get DS something used but we were given a 05 Altima by the in laws for him!! We were super grateful and he was excited so it all worked out.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Is it a better car and or newer than what you drive? Just curious. I see kids here driving new BMW's and parents old clunkers. DD's friend is looking at a new Mustang (sports cars and teens is another one of my head slap issues) while mom is driving an old Taurus.

My oldest daughter will probably be driving a newer, though not necessarily "better" car than me. We're currently a 2-car family which includes a full-size pickup and a full-size SUV. We've been looking at 4-cylinder cars for me to drive so I can park my truck and use it strictly for "truck duties". Oldest daughter is 13 and she would eventually take over the "new" car with the understanding it still belongs to the "family" and Mom & Dad can use it any time we want.

Should we get the little car, it will most likely be new as rebates and cheap financing make new as affordable as 2-year-old ones. But, it'll still be about 1/2 what my truck cost new in 2001 and my wife's car in 2007. So yeah, a few years from now could find my daughter in a 2014 or 2015 while my wife & I drive older vehicles. Admittedly, neither of ours are "clunkers", but they could be quite a bit "older" than her potential car.

 

[powellrj]

I am sure people said the same thing about my DD when she was driving my brand new mustang to school. I let her drive it on days I wasn't using it.

 

[pigletgirl]

Is it a better car and or newer than what you drive? Just curious. I see kids here driving new BMW's and parents old clunkers. DD's friend is looking at a new Mustang (sports cars and teens is another one of my head slap issues) while mom is driving an old Taurus.

Yeah I really don't understand it either. When I was that age, MOST kids had a new car while I drove a clunker. The majority ended up totaling their car and I went on my merry way with mine.

I just know with my kids, they won't ever drive anything nicer than what DH and I have!

 

[LisaR]

I'm shocked at the amount of newer BMW's, Mustangs, Corvettes, etc in the parking lot at DD's college. I guess the cost of college isn't as big of a hardship for most people as I thought it was.

 

[disneychrista]

My daughter bought herself a newer car than what I drive. But like I said SHE bought it.

 

[ilovepcot]

My cousin bought her 15 1/2 year old son a $55,000 Mustang for Christmas. It's the one with the BIG engine. He's taken driver's ed but can't get his license for months. She drives to the school every day and picks him up so he can "ride" in his new car. This is fine...they can comfortably afford the car, BUT...this poor young man is horribly accident prone. He's had some seriously close calls on 4 wheelers and even flipped over the hood of a passing car while on his skateboard. Other family members are afraid he can't handle this car at his age with his inexperience. We're seriously worried but it's their son and their business.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Not a trend here. Most teens I know are working to save for their own cars and insurance. Some even had to pay for their own Driver's Ed (which costs $500 here).

My two have their permits. Both are working. My mother's car (2003) will be available to use most days, and DD will use it for sure. DS would like to buy his own, and that's fine with us, but DH and I want him to start out with an older, but safe and reliable car so he has something to work towards in college. (Also an incentive to keep college debt down.)

I drove a rust bucket and all kinds of beaters when I was young, and only because my brother worked with cars and I got them cheap; and DH drove nicer cars but always worked and bought them himself. He had a Corvette and nice Jeeps, and a new car when I met him. Currently my car is a 2006 and DH has a 2008. (Guess I dragged him down, lol.)

It's just a personal preference that each family has, for their own reasons. I can understand people's reasoning if they can afford it and don't want to compromise on safety or reliability, etc., just as I'd hope they understand mine. But I doubt anyone's going to change anyone else's mind here. It's one of those parenting issues that people probably feel strongly about either way.

 

[dawnhaze]

My first car was a cheap used beater I bought myself... The brakes failed after I'd been driving it a few months, despite it having passed a mechanic's inspection, and I was in a pretty bad accident as a result. Totaled the car, put me in the hospital.

My parents bought me a new car after that - it was an inexpensive subcompact Toyota, and I took care of the upkeep for 12 years before giving it back to my mother in nearly-new condition when I moved to the city and no longer needed it.

Used cars can be perfectly safe, and I don't get buying a kid a luxury vehicle, new or otherwise, but my new Toyota didn't cost significantly more than "good" used cars at the time.

 

[Pakey]

Is it a better car and or newer than what you drive? Just curious. I see kids here driving new BMW's and parents old clunkers. DD's friend is looking at a new Mustang (sports cars and teens is another one of my head slap issues) while mom is driving an old Taurus.

Since you asked, I drove a less than a year old SUV at the time. I bought him a little 4 cylinder Compact. I didn't care if he had a nicer car but I did care that he got something without a lot of power.

 

[disykat]

No cars for my 2 kids, but never say never, we're now thinking of giving them our old ones when they graduate from college and we buy new ones. They'll be the lucky recipients of a 1996 and a 2001 when they graduate from COLLEGE!

I thought it was funny when we told our kids this. Oldest son's girlfriend is jealous that she's not getting a car from her parents when she graduates. Her parents give her spending money each month during all four years of college while DS takes care of his own spending, but she's jealous of a car that will probably be worth a thousand bucks!

 

[Handbag Lady]

Wow, my sister and I each had to buy our own cars. We were responsible for the gas. Parents paid the insurance simply because they didn't want us working real jobs that would take us away from school. I was allowed to babysit or anything else that would make money without me having to have a schedule.

And I'm sure many parents would not even offer to pay for insurance. It is all subjective.

At least we were told far in advance so we would save money. The day I turned 15.5, I bought a car.

 

[kacaju]

DD20 will be getting dh's old car this summer because next year as a Junior in nursing school she will need a car. It is a 1996 Dodge Intrepid. We will then buy him a newer used car.

 

[HM]

We got our children new cars. We always buy new cars. I've never owned a used car. We wanted to get our children cars that they could keep a long time, get good mileage, are safe, and are under warranty. We also have a GM credit card that had thousands of dollars of rewards on it to use toward one of the cars, which can only be used on new cars. We did not buy fancy cars for them, just good starter cars.

 

[Blinking Blue Light]

What is up with parents buying their 16yo kids NEW cars to begin with?

We bought our daughter a new car for her 16th birthday (Volvo) because we could afford it


I don't see the issue.

 

[lafemmega]

I have no problem with my kids driving better cars than me. I've always wanted my kids to have more than I had. Of course, mine are too young for driving now. I can see both perspectives. My parents "let me drive their car" when I turned 16 but I had full access to it.

 

[Katie]

We bought our son a brand new camero when he turned 16. In return, we asked that he treat it like a new car should be treated.
He has always been the responsible one of the three, made good decisions while his friends were not, and had a great GPA. We felt he earned his car.
In return, he kept his end of the bargin, the car still smells new ..3 years later. It doesn't have a scratch on it, and the inside is for the most part cleaned up.

He is a freshman at Mizzou this year. We did not allow him to take his camero to college. We felt that was just asking for trouble in a college parking garage. He did however, in January, take a 2005 Grand Prix GT, he didn't complain about the downgrade as he understood our thinking.
He actually said he didnt' care if we sold the camero to help pay for his tuition to school.

He appreciated his car and we appreciated that he was taking good care of it as he promised.

I consider it a good life lesson. We still have the camero, it is sitting the garage, we haven't decided what to do with it at this point. On college breaks, when he comes back to Illinois, he drives it, but other that that it it sits. Financially , it makes sense to sell it. Emotionally, he was his first car. ( plus, my husband loves driving around it, i think it makes him feel 20 again

 

[4luv2cdisney]

Didn't read all the replies, but these reasons immediately come to mind:

Mom or Dad's current cars are not the best fit for the teen.
(needs frequent repairs, gas guzzler, large SUV, full size pick-up, sports car, etc. - these things may be fine for some, not for others - just examples)

Cash flow.
(Mom and Dad don't have $xxxx.oo sitting around for the car (or maybe just don't want to spend it), but a car payment feels comfortable. Sometimes new cars with 0% financing become more affordable than a used car if you need financing.

Or maybe they just want their kid to have a nice car. Maybe they don't really care what they (themselves) drive, but prefer their kid be driving a clean, safe, more reliable, fuel efficient car. FWIW, my kids have nicer (and more) clothes and shoes than I do. It's just not very important to me, but it is to them.