School is about to begin, and I have once again updated my list of the Top Ten Cars for Teens.
We've debated in the past whether it's a good idea to buy your teen driver a brand-new car. Some say it's better to buy a used car for young drivers, while others say parents shouldn't buy their teens a car at all -- the kids should pay for their own wheels. Still, buying a new car is the best way to ensure that a young driver has the latest safety hardware, an important consideration considering that car crashes are the number one killer of teens in America.
With that in mind, I made some major changes to the list, primarily concentrating on safety. Six cars have been dropped from last year's list. Nine come with electronic stability control as standard (it's optional on the tenth) and two have driver's knee airbags. Six of the cars are IIHS Top Safety Pick winners; two haven't been tested but are likely candidates. And all are small, fuel-efficient and easy to drive. Check out the new list here.
I'm sure you folks will have a lot to say about my choices, so click the "comments" link and have at it! -- Aaron Gold
Photo © Mazda
Being as you mentioned it… I just heard a radio piece on teen deaths… Car accidents are th enumber one cause of teen deaths (at least in Canada). Number two is suicide. They didn’t mentioned the others.
More on topic, we should qualify this list as the top ten cars parents would want to buy for their teens. The top ten list of cars teens would buy if they had the money would vary somewhat.
When it comes to safety for teens, a Sherman Tank should be on the list. I totally disagree about the Smart…far too humiliating a ride for any young person. It could scar them irrevocably. I think the Golf is a better choice than the Smart.
I’ll take Don’s comment one further. The Smart is far too humiliating a ride for ANYONE!! I see a bunch of them running around Germany, but even here they aren’t terribly popular. They probably make sense to a point for some of the narrow streets here in Europe, but in the U.S. with our vast open spaces and wide streets and highways, they just look ridiculous. That, and they don’t get the best mileage either.
If you live in a big city then a Smart might be just fine folks. Besides it is European and “greenwashed”. Your tragic hipster may just love it.
Well not hate it as much as they hate everything else. They are tragic hipsters no less. A Smart will go great with a $200 backpack and a fixed gear bike.
I think the list is pretty good. I might throw in a used Honda Element if you child likes to go hiking, mountain biking, camping, or kayaking.
Also the Element is easy to clean out after a day at the beach.
The Subaru ehh.. Why not the Suzuki SX4 which also has AWD?
I live in South Florida so I don’t know if AWD is of any value here over ESC.
Also don’t forget that when you change one tire on an AWD care you must change all of them. So when you child driver over that curb and blows a tire things can get a little pricey.
AWD is probably worth it if you do not live in a place that where it never snows and it is not flat as a pancake.
I would also add in the Golf/Rabbit.
I am still waiting for Ford to make a funky cool version of the Transit.
I could see it taking on the Element in that area. Oh and put a diesel in it FORD!
Imagine a Transit with a n Element like easy to clean interior, Sync, racks for bikes and or kayaks, ,some flashy colors, and a diesel that gets 45+MPG!
I like the SX4 a lot — it was on the list last year — but it doesn’t come with standard AWD or ESC, so that pretty much bumped it off the list.
I live in Southern California, where I daresay our weather is even nicer than Florida’s.
And in my experience, all-wheel-drive makes a big difference, even when the roads are bone-dry. In my experience, AWD cars grip the road better, and can be swerved at much higher speeds without letting a wheel slip and making the transition to understeer or oversteer. I’ve hammered the crap out of the Impreza 2.5i on the Top Secret Curvy Test Road, and it’s not easy to break that car’s grip on the pavement. That’s why I like it — when things go to hell in a handbasket, the Impreza 2.5i will go where the driver points it long after other cars start to slide.
Aaron
There’s no question that Cally has better weather than Florida. We dont have a hurricane season. And more important is that we dont even know what humidity is. Just an occasional shaky shaky that usually is pretty harmless.
lwatcdr asked about the Subaru Impreza being on the list over a Suzuki SX4,, and the value of AWD in the South. While I can’t speak for the Suzuki, I do have a Legacy station wagon. There have been times in the summer in Ohio when I really appreciated the AWD, particularly when driving through a heavy rain downpour. The Legacy’s AWD grip on wet roads is amazing (significantly better than a FWD), and while it is more important during winter snow, it can be quite valuable during more temperate conditions as well. I used to live in Florida and experienced the 5 minute monsoon rainfalls that are common there, and I would think that AWD would be great in that situation.
I agree on the Subbie. Subaru has been building a car that lasts forever. Well at least a long time. And should something go wrong with a Subarus engine. They are by far the easiest engines on the planet to work on. Of course those Suzuki engines are usually long lasting also. I understand in Florida, So. calif., Texas, Arizona, ETC. an AWD or 4WD vehicle may not needed. But (as mentioned) AWD helps dramatically in the rain also. And I know Florida gets alot of rain. Subaru is also a very safe car. I think Aarons list (except the SMART) is spot-on.
Well I will take your word for it. My Mazda 3 with ESC does really seem to handle our killer storms here with no problem.
And I will add that in California you do have hills which we do not.
I just wonder about the added cost and maintenance vs the benefits here.
Any place with snow and or hills I do agree with you 100%
And I do think the SMART would be popular for any Liberal arts major.
Also the Honda FIT and Nissan Versa I think could fit on the list as well.
Of course I feel the best car for a teenage boy is…
1975 Ford Granada with a 2.3 four and the back seat welded shut and a full rollcage.
It also should be painted safety orange and have a GPS tracking system.
Having moved to SoCal from South Florida, I can speak from deep experience. Right now (and since May) it’s been 90 degrees/90% humidity in Boca Raton , my old home. Right now here in Coastal San Diego it is 72 degrees /30%. We’ve had only 1 day when it hit 80 degrees this summer. We’ll get an occaision hot blast from Mexico(Santa Ana winds and it gets up to 90 on the coast), but they usually are accompanied by 10-20% humidity.
Best of all, here in California the Mosquito is not the State Bird and the Giant Palmetto Bug (American Roach) is not the State Animal like they are in Florida!!!
@lwatcdr: You’re onto something! My first car was a ‘77 Mercury Monarch (Ford Granada). Had the 130HP V8 and a red landau roof though. But hey, I’m still here, so I guess it worked!
Thees cars are not what teens want for sure! (exept Lancer maybe). Teens need somthing more interesting more sports not a bad looking, small Ford Fiesta with few donkey powers.