I need some car buying advise.

[tlawler]

My 16 year old daughter has now saved up enough money and with what we are matching her, has decided it's time to buy her first car. My biggest concern is for the crash test rating followed by dependability and reliability. Of course she wants something small and economical and has been looking at the Nissan Versa mainly. I'd like to hear opinions from anyone who currently owns one and mechanics that have to work on them. Opinions on good alternatives are welcome also. Of course, I'd like to put her in a full size Hummer with full roll cage and 5-point harness, but I realize that isn't practical.

 

[Triathloncoach]

Our 18 year old daughter is on her 2nd car. It's a Nissan Rogue. I have been a nissan guy for 25 years. Nissan has been great for my Wife and me.

My daughters first car is in the below photos. She rear ended an Escalade with a friend in the car. She was ticketed. Nobody received so much as a scratch. I know all things being equal big beats small. But her Corrolla protected its occupants in an accident that totaled her car. I believe small cars are significantly easier to drive.

 

[Rpg]

My nephew got a heavy, elderly Mercedes as his first car.

Good thing too: when he wrapped it around a tree, he walked away from it.

 

[dusty3030]

What's your budget? Compared to it's peers the Versa isn't rated so well especially in safety.
A loaded up 3 or 4 year old Civic with 50,000 or less on the odometer can be had from around 12,000 to 15,000. Would be great on safety, reliability, creature comforts, and resale.

2014 Honda Civic

Compared to:

2014 Nissan Versa

 

[doublesharp]

Honda Fit if she insists on a sub compact, otherwise a Civic is a great choice.

 

[tlawler]

What's your budget? Compared to it's peers the Versa isn't rated so well.
A loaded up 3 or 4 year old Civic with 50,000 or less on the odometer can be had from around 12,000 to 15,000. Would be great on safety, reliability, creature comforts, and resale.

2014 Honda Civic

Budget is $3200. Might be able to push it a few hundred if we find something just out of range of the budget.

 

[tlawler]

What's your budget? Compared to it's peers the Versa isn't rated so well especially in safety.
A loaded up 3 or 4 year old Civic with 50,000 or less on the odometer can be had from around 12,000 to 15,000. Would be great on safety, reliability, creature comforts, and resale.

2014 Honda Civic

Compared to:

2014 Nissan Versa

We are looking for something in the $3-$3.5K range and the Versas that she has been looking at are 2007 to 2009 and right around that price.

 

[dusty3030]

Got it. I'd still look at a little bit older Civic but would also include a Ford Focus in there, Honda CRX, and Toyota Camry and Corolla. Versa doesn't have a great resale value so that is in your favor on a budget and if you find one in good shape isn't a bad choice. Good luck!

 

[gregintenn]

Teach her how to drive?

 

[Collo Rosso]

My nephew has had a versa for a some time now. Been a good car for him. Maintenance for my nephew means counting the number of tires on the car. At least 3 and he's good to go.
For safety, teach her to really drive a car.

 

[LoboGunLeather]

There is a good reason why insurance rates for teen drivers are so high; about 1/3 of them will be in an accident each year. Statistically, it is a near certainty that your 16 YO daughter will be in an accident by the time she is 20. The smaller and lighter the car, the greater likelihood of injury. Your wish for a Hummer with full roll cage and 5-point harness is actually pretty valid, in my opinion.

I started both of my boys with mid-size sedans, total beaters. The deal was pretty simple: YOU are responsible for all operating and maintenance costs, YOU will carry your own insurance policy, and when it gets broken YOU will be walking until YOU can afford to repair or replace it. Both learned the hard way just what it takes to keep an automobile going, both endured a period or two when their cars were parked until they could afford to repair them, and BOTH OF THEM HAD ACCIDENTS within the first year.

We love them, we worry about them, we want them to be happy, we want them to develop into responsible adults, and some decisions have to be made with a cold and calculating head rather than with a warm and loving heart.

 

[rustythread]

You might want to take a look at some of the older Volvos in your price range. When my daughter finally gave away the '81 Volvo four-banger we had given her, it had over 600,000 miles and was still funning well. with mostly driveway maintenance Get one a bit newer, tho, with the air bags--a suburban soccer mom car with maintenance records .
I'd offer to sell you my '99 S70 T5 with only about 125K miles and a lot of maintenance spares, but it goes WAAAAY too fast to give to a teenager as a first car.

 

[doublesharp]

If I'm in SW Florida looking for a car for a teenage driver I'd be thinking about a blue hair's Buick. Find that 3.8L V6 and look for an estate sale. A Chevy or Ford would be ok, too but the little ol blue haired lady in a Buick is a hard stereotype to shake. Your daughter will probably hate you until she has an accident.

 

[Eagle 477]

Put a piece of 2x4 under the gas peddle that should control the chance of high speed chases

Rob

 

[ParadiseRoad]

...we've had good luck with Subaru...and Suzuki...

 

[rwsmith]

Nissan Altima.....

We have a used 2014 Nissan Altima and I only have two gripes.

The air intake is just above the bumpers so it's easy to suck water into your engine.

This may be general for all cars nowadays, but they are all so dam interlocked that anything can keep the car from starting with that button thing. Why not have a keyhole just in case? One morning the car wouldn't start. There are a lot of 'tricks' you can use to get it started, some in the owner's manual and several more on Youtube. The advice in the owner's manual? If none of these fix the problem, take it to your dealer.

When I got the car towed to the dealer, even THEY had trouble with the complex interlock. They started working back from the starter circuit following all of the error codes and finally found the problem in the starter motor. It was probably rooned when the engine got flooded.

I THINK that aside from all that it's a good car. It just stands to reason that I would pick a car for reliability and start having all kinds of problems.

 

[rwsmith]

That won't work in my Dodge van.....

Put a piece of 2x4 under the gas peddle that should control the chance of high speed chases

Rob

The first quarter inch of accelerator pedal gives full revs. The more you push it down after that, the slower it goes.

I always scratch my wheels on take off then you try to accelerate while that car is coming at you.

And if you want to pull up a few inches to make room in your driveway for the car behind you, you'll will very likely be buying a new garage door.

 

[Golddollar]

I am rather partial to the big V-8 Ford products. Find a Crown Victoria, Grand Marquis or Lincoln Town Car and there will be a lot of scrap iron around to protect your daughter in case of a problem (like deer).

 

[Okie21]

I was gifted a 94 Camry back in 2008ish. The 2.2 4 cylinders was completely gutless, but it just never quit. That car had no pep and no personality. But it was extremely reliable.

Sent from my Moto G (5S) Plus using Tapatalk

 

[GaryS]

I'd have liked my daughter to drive around in a an armored car, but that's not realistic.

Toyota is the way to go. A Camry or Corolla. Personally, I like the Camry a bit more, but the Corolla is pretty much indestructible in terms of reliability.

Right now new Camrys are a glut on the market, which might well depress the cost of used ones.

As far as crash ratings, all of them are pretty much the same. They'll all claim they are better, but that's just advertising.

I've never had a Nissan, but a close friend has and he's had great success with them. An Altima would be equivalent to a Camry.

Stay away from any German car. Everyone one of them costs a fortune for even routine maintenance. For the purpose of this discussion, Volvo is a German car.

Avoid Fiat. New or used.

Without wanting to start yet another pointless "US versus foreign" car debate, avoid Ford, GM, or Chrysler. Especially Chrysler. Their build quality is mediocre and reliability is horrible.

Just note that I went through this with my two kids, just about the time your daughter was born. No doubt others have as well.

 

[URIT]

I'd opt for a 2000s era Toyota Corolla CE. This car does not die. Its engine is simple with no expensive service intervals, has room for 5, uses cheap tires, cheap fuel, parts are plentiful, and it doesn't look half bad. This car is below budget and rivals brand new Toyotas for reliability.

It's the most dependable car possibly ever made, and a shining example of why people should never, ever go into crippling debt for a car they think is reliable and safe when you can get this car for 1/10th of the price of new. -Jalopnik

 

[chaparrito]

Son's first car @ 16 was my 84 Mercedes 240D, a car so slow it can't get out of its own way. He learned to wrench on it and driving 18 miles one way to school, he saved fuel money as it gets 36mpg. Safe, heavy and simple. It now has over 400K miles and purrs like a kitten. It's a euro taxi model, not one of the tarted-up models designed for the U.S. market. Crank windows and a 4 speed. He still drives like your grandmother and at 25 has no tickets. They've gotten very hard to find these days and mine's not for sale.
If he was 16 today, I'd have zero qualms putting him in my 04 Honda Element with 206k miles on the ODO. Great IIHS crash tests, reasonable economy, bombproof reliability and huge space in the back.

 

[tlawler]

I'd opt for a 2000s era Toyota Corolla CE. This car does not die. Its engine is simple with no expensive service intervals, has room for 5, uses cheap tires, cheap fuel, parts are plentiful, and it doesn't look half bad. This car is below budget and rivals brand new Toyotas for reliability.

It's the most dependable car possibly ever made, and a shining example of why people should never, ever go into crippling debt for a car they think is reliable and safe when you can get this car for 1/10th of the price of new. -Jalopnik

Funny you mention the Corolla CE. When my son started driving 3 years ago, he had about $2K saved up and I had a former Co-worker that had the proverbial "little old ladies car" it was a '99 Corolla CE with right around 60K miles on it. He had picked it up cheap and was trying to flip it for around $3K. He let my son have it for the $2K because we are good friends and he knew Josh was college bound. I'll have to say that was the best $2K we ever spent! He has put almost 30K miles on it and driven it between Tallahassee and SW Florida at least 10 trips and the thing has run great with nothing but GTO...(Gas, Tires, and Oil). Faith doesn't like it because it "looks" too old, we had knocked around the idea of her "inheriting" it so Josh could get something else, but she was having none of it. I think I might try and steer her in the direction of a Corolla or Camry.

 

[tlawler]

Boy, she is picky! I just sent her a few CL links of private owners Camrys in the 2004 to 2006 range that are within her budget, and she replied "they're so old looking"
I have another question about the Versa. I think the new ones are all CVT, but in the year range she is looking (2007 to 2009), were they normal automatic trannys?

 

[acco40]

Toyota Avalon. My brother in-law had two of them that both went over 300K miles without an engine or transmission problem. Wouldn't hesitate to bit one with 200K miles on it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[kozmic]

I've had great luck leasing cars for my 2 boys. My eldest is on his 2nd Chevy Cruze and has been under warranty for everything (3/36k leases). He gets 36 mpg and both have been extremely safe, technically advanced, reliable and comfortable. All important when he is away at college. My youngest is in an Equinox and has had no issues with his although his mileage is close.
If the numbers and terms works for you, leasing isn't a bad route to go. It has proven to be the right move for us.

 

[Farmer17]

We bought a red Dodge Charger for my wife when they first came out in 2006 and was one of the first ones in Oklahoma City and we got more compliments on it than any other car. Gave it to my daughter when she turned sixteen and she will be finishing her masters next year in Occupational Therapy. I don't think the car has been cleaned or washed since the day we gave it to her except for the few times I did it. People have hit it a few times and someone tried to break into it through the sunroof and it looks really ragged now, but still running with 190K miles and it has been a good car. My wife's 2008 Buick LaCrosse was babied and well maintained and we got rid of it at 150k miles because it was costing way more to keep running than buying a brand new car and we would have been money ahead if we had got rid of it a lot sooner.

 

[URIT]

Have your daughter go online to Autotrader and punch in your zip code, budget, and wants to see what is available in your area. This should give her an idea of what she can and cannot afford. Plus, she needs to talk with the insurance man to determine how much car x will cost her over car y. Let her do the legwork (online browsing) and have her present you with her top three picks. Then, you get to have your input and a test drive.

 

[vonn]

Condition is everything when buying used cars,have whatever you are looking at checked over by a good shop from top to bottom and expect to pay at least a couple of hours of labor time. A good condition anything is better than a preference that is in poor condition.

 

[Kernel Crittenden]

If safety is a top concern look at Subaru. I have a friend that's firefighter and he said they almost hate doing Subaru extractions because the car is so over built it can be difficult for their cutters and jaws-of-life to pry open. With most Japanese and American cars it's like a hot knife thru butter. Subarus take some effort.