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Smart Shopper Best Car for a new teenage driver
554 messages, Last post on Nov 08, 2009 at 7:33 PM
You are in the Smart Shopper Forum. Your Hosts are kirstie_h & tidester
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Hey there, My son is going into his senior year of high school and he has had his license since the end of his sophmore year. he currently drives a 1991 Buick Regal Coupe. Unless you really need AWD then a large front wheel drive car should be enough. AWD does have its advantages and it really does work in bad weather, however many cars that have it are undesirable for teen drivers. If you don't mind putting your daughter in an SUV then that is fine. I see many teen girls driving in Grand Cherokees or smaller SUVs like Honda CR-Vs or Ford Escapes. If AWD is a necessity, than i would suggest you look at a Subaru Impreza 2.5 (Non WRX) or a small SUV such as a CR-V but no larger than a Chevy Equinox. If you find that you don't need AWD, then i would suggest looking at post 2000 GM W-Bodies (Regals,Impalas, Grand Prixs, Monte Carlos), Honda Accords, Nissan Maximas, and Toyota Camries. If New England snow storms are any indication, large, V6, front drive cars should be enough to tackle mostly any weather.
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Replying to: exo425 (Aug 26, 2006 6:45 pm) how reliable are those cars? Given how much money I'd save by buying a used GM, I could afford a few repairs.
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I'm not sure about the rest of the GM lineup, but Buicks have very good reliability. One of my sons' first car (actually second, as he totalled the first one!) was a 1988 Buick LeSabre which was still in good condition when he sold it years later. He then bought a 1998 LeSabre which has also held up very well.
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| I'd bet you could pick up a new base model Subie Forester for under your 20k limit. Has AWD, a few power goodies , good safety ratings and enough go under the hood to keep her out of trouble, but not in trouble if that makes sense. | |
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Replying to: alp8 (Aug 27, 2006 8:36 pm)
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Replying to: suydam (Aug 28, 2006 5:11 am) |
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Replying to: exo425 (Aug 28, 2006 8:26 am) 
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| The best car for a teen in my opinion, given a $20k budget, would be an '03 or '04 Volvo S60 (non-turbo of course). I think these are the ultimate in safety, yet still stylish enough. | |
Good clean used ones. Sure they are high mileage, but their engines are bullet proof. I'm really thinking about getting me one for a work car or to redo and keep as a hobby car if I can find me a very clean one.  I've always loved them and my best friends mom use to own one and we called it "The Jet" Both are pretty inexpensive to buy and would make good teen cars.  Rocky |
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I know I'm VERY late to this discussion but we have a top 10 list on Edmunds of suggested "cool" cars for teens if you wanna buy new, that is. The aim of the list was to pick affordable cars with qualities teens/young drivers hold dear: stylish looks, sporty handling, great fuel economy, abundant safety features and a first-rate sound system. Top 10 Cheap Cool Cars for Teens for 2006
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Smart Shopper Best Car for a new teenage driver
