Buying Your 16-Year Old a Car

We have already purchased a car for our 7yr old son...HOWEVER...it's just a shell with car parts. As a Grandfather/Father/Son project, they are rebuilding a classic car for him to drive as a teenager. It's something my husband had always wanted to do with his father as well as his own son. I think it's actually a fun project for them all...AND...it teaches patience, trial/error, and teamwork.

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Ha. my parents bought me a *used* car when I graduated from college.

My husband and I have talked about this with regard to our kiddo (currently 3.5 years). We are of the mindset that we will help him buy a car when he is of age. We'll match whatever he has earned toward the purchase (i.e. if he has saved $2500, we'll match it with $2500). And he'll be responsible for his own insurance, of course.

No child needs a *new* car, IMO. But I'd rather help him buy a newer, safer vehicle than have him spend $1000 on a junk-heap with rotting floorboards and an engine that could blow at any minute.

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I was never given a car. My mom was a single mom, so we weren't even allowed to drive it often (and for many years she was in the car with us) and to top it off, we had to pay her the difference the insurance company charged her.

My husband was never given a car, but he was allowed to buy his father's beater car for $500.00, pay for the insurance and only drive it to and from work.

I would suggest for her birthday presents, she suggest that she wants a car when she turns 16. That way, everyone can give her cash and she can start saving for one.

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I never expected my parents to buy me a car, but that's what they ended up doing. I applied for jobs the day I turned 16 and was working 4 days later. Well, 2 weeks later my we had been looking for a car for me and my dad drove to another town to look at cars and called me at work to ask me if I wanted this 10 yr old car with some damage, and I said yes.

He paid $1,300 out the door for it. I was ready and willing to pay them for it and they told me it was a gift. :) I couldn't believe it and was so excited. I do not think that any child "deserves" a car to be bought for them. I took care of all the costs and repairs for it after that point. They just helped me get going.

I am not planning on buying a car for my dd when she gets old enough. We may help, unless it is as cheap as my 1st car was. I wasn't picky and I know that my parents appreciated it.

H.

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I plan on giving my daughter one of our paid off cars and I will get a new car. Now this is years off but my husband and I have already discussed this. When I turned 16 I didn't get a car but was allowed to take my moms whenever I wanted. She also paid for everything including gas and insurance until my early 20's. My husband bought his own when he turned 16 but he had already been working for 2 years. I don't want my daughter to have to work until after college - just the same thinking as my mom's. Unless, of course, she wants to babysit or something like that. You have your entire life to work; have fun when you're young. Now, that goes along with good parenting and learning right and wrong and responsibility in other ways. You don't need to be given things, including a car, or have to work to learn these things. It's called good parenting.

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My brother gave my eldest daughter her first car. The next child I gave her a car. We did not give new cars since that is plain foolishness for someone who has just learned to drive.

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My parents did buy me a car. It was old and kept in very good condition. I was watching my niece every day after school until the got off work, so I needed a reliable car to transport her in. Using their cars wasn't an option, since they worked and did not want me to have to load up my niece, drive them to work, drop her off at care, go to school, and load my niece up to pick them up. I was also working on the weekends, and my niece had weekend sports and scout things going on. I did work and pay for all upkeep of the car.

With all that said, we will buy him one if he works and has responsibility. It will not be new, but it will be reliable.

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When our son turned 16 and passed his test on his birthday, he started talking about buying a car. As much as we told him he had to pay for it himself, when we saw what he was thinking about buying we had to step in. He had $300 and was buying a piece of junk barely worth that. We just didint want him driving around (if it would run) in a death trap, So we went looking with him and bought a decent used small car. We might not have done that but he was working, in sports, in music and had a lot of places to be with a schedule that just made it impossible for us to take him and pick him up. I was doing daycare and was not about to be home with a house full of kids and no transportation. Dad was at work and I just couldnt get him to and from work with the kids at the hours he wanted to. So our family cars were not available for him. So it really all depends on what the child is doing and if they need their own car. If using the family car works now and then, its great, but when they are good kids, good grades, and working, you just have to reward them with something cool and hope they handle the responsibility. Our daughter on the other hand, refused to take the drivers training in high school and was willing to wait till she turned 18 and then took the test and passed. We decided to get her a small used car for her graduation gift. But, she said she didnt ever want us to be able to hold it over her head so every month she gave us the money for the payment. Geesh, it was her gift but she still paid off every penney. It was still in our name 3 years later when she traded it in for another. She paid for it too and then just recently traded it in also. Shes had some tough times this last year and we are now making payments for her car but its ok. Shes working, shes going to college, and shes raising a daughter on her own, buying a home and we just feel its right to help her right now. If either of our kids had been in trouble, or failing school, or refusing to work, I dont think we would have been so fast to buy the cars. So, it really depends on how the kid is, and if its time for a reward or gift, or if they need to learn a lesson and save to pay for it themselves.

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Our oldest turned 16 this past November and we were in the "no car" camp right up until school started in August. She is very active in cheerleading, student senate and is often in before or after school tutorials to maintain her class ranking....AND I started working part time when school started. Long story short, we bought her a 2006 Volvo for her birthday. It had a lot of miles on it, but was mechanically and visually very well kept. Insurance wise, it did increase our insurance substantially, but most insurance companies know when you have a newly licensed driver in your household and will add them to your policy regardless of whether you buy a car for them. The only way to avoid this is to exclude the driver which would leave you holding a rather large liability issue if the teenager does get into an accident.

We did the same thing that TF did when our dgtr was 11 and bought a Toyota RAV4 knowing it would be paid for by the time our dgtr was 16. I love my Toyota too much to let her have it, so she ended up with the Volvo. Everyone is happy :)

In our community it varies on what the teenagers drive. Most boys drive trucks and the girls are into the small SUVs (Jeep Liberty, Nissan Xterra) but we liked the idea of a smaller car that would be easier to manuever in parking lots (that is where most fender benders occur). In our social group, yes..the kids almost universally got a car on their 16th bday, but most were not new, but used cars.

You do have time to consider this issue, but trust me...it'll be here before you know it! Good luck!

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We don't plan on paying for my son's car when he's 16. I had to work and save to get my car.

I see so many people buying new cars for their teenager, only to have them wreck it, especially in the winter time.

We will pay for the insurance and some things but mostly my son will bear the costs involved in buying and maintaining it.

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I went to highschool in a pretty affluent area. For most of the kids, the question wasn't IF they were getting a car--it was WHAT KIND did they want! LOL
I was not one of those kids!
My parents believed in the "save for it AND the insurance before you even start looking at anything" philosophy.
I didn't have my "own" car until after college. I used my moms when I needed to for work, etc.
Now, my husband and I (son is 8) could probably afford to get my son *something* when he turns 16, but as any insurance agent will tell you--they ARE going to wreck it...it's only a matter of when they will wreck it. So....maybe help with getting a used, older car.
Some of the poorest people I know are the ones who have stupidly bought cars for their kids--even though they could in NO way afford to do so.
I think its more about the expectations your child is raised with: do they usually get everything they want when they want it? If so, a car will be no different.
A wise person once told me that the best way to choose a car for a kid is to find the oldest (but in great shape) and ugliest car you can find for what you want to spend.
A girl I worked with had her dad choose an AMC Matador and it certainly fit the bill--but it was a tank!

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My parents bought me a good, used car when I turned 17, which was a year after I got my license. We weren't "rich", but with two younger siblings it really made my parents' life easier to have me be able to drive myself to-and-from rehearsals, cheerleading practice, games, school etc. I wasn't allowed to have more than two people in my car and only people whose parents were okay with it. Everyone I grew-up with got a car (new one) at 16, so my parents were the conservative ones. They did the same with my two sisters.

I worked and paid for my gas. My parents paid my insurance through college. I had to maintain straight A's or the keys were turned over. I had to keep my job or the keys were turned over. There were contingencies that came along with the responsibility of having/driving a car.

I hope to be able to do the same for my children, if they have the maturity to handle it.

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We have quite a few years before we have to deal with this, but we have talked about it. We agree that we will buy them an inexpensive car or let them "have" one of ours and we'll upgrade. If we "own" the car, then we can take it away. My parents had to take mine and my brothers away a few times for being a smart mouth or not being responsible. I think my first car was like $2,500. When I began college I bought my own used car and my Dad let me use the $ from my old one as a down payment.

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My dad bought me and my brother our 1st car, but we had to pay for insurance, plates, gas and up keep. My car sat in the garage for almost a year before I could "afford" to drive it. My oldest has been told that unless he has a job out of town, he doesn't need a car. He has been mowing yards to earn money to use towards his car or whatever else he thinks he needs. They just don't have the "cheap, reliable" used cars like they use to when I turned 16.

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Lol..when my twins turn 16 maybe I will ask them to buy me a car! I hope to be able to help them buy their first cars but they will have to have jobs and pay for at least half. They will also have to be able to afford insurance, gas, maintenance & repairs on their own just like I had to.

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We collected used cars from family relatives by paying the value of the car back to the relative not able to drive anymore. We covered insurance. Husband redid the brakes or other work that needed doing and explained about basic car maintenance to each of our three kids. It helped us to have kids drive themselves to high school activities and lessons and practices. The used car went to second year of college (not the first year!). BTW our nursing school student was expected to have a car during second year of college for clinical work.

Our oldest is 5 so we have a few years left for this :-). Going on the basis that we are where we need to be financially (we're almost there!!), we will match. Our intent is to match them dollar for dollar on the money for a vehicle. If they save $2.00 we will give them $2.00 - not gonna buy much for $4.00! After that they will be expected to pay for their own gas, insurance & maintenance.
My mom put the down payment on a car (used) for me when I was 16 & I had to make the payments & take care of all the other expenses. I worked & had already been driving for a couple of years (we lived in the middle of nowhere).
Side note: our 5 year old is already saving for all of the protective gear he will need for a motorcycle. He wants one of those little 50cc ones & we told him if he gets the money to buy all of the gear we will get him one for Christmas or birthday (used & a deal...I don't buy anything that isn't a deal)!

I drove a purple dodge neon that my parents bought me. I was required to pay for gas, oil changes, etc.. We also had an agreement that they would buy me (and my brothers) 1 car and if we were ever in a car accident the next car was on us. My senior year of college I was in an accident ANC my fiancé bought my new car.

My son got a $500 Toyota Corrolla when he had a job. He had to keep it running. He didn't ahve the moeny to pay for it so that's what he got. He was 17.

My daughter is 16 now. She wants a Slugbug. We told her that we are willing to fork over $500 for a car. $500 does not buy much. She has saved for 4 years of babysitting money and has a nice down payment if she wants. But she now doesn't even want a license, driving in NoVA scares the daylights out of her.

My ohter two were told we would give them $500, they had to earn anything over that. THey are walking the neighbor's dogs this summer to earn some money.

When my daughter was about 12, she asked what kind of car she was going to get when she got her license. I told her that she could have any car she wanted, provided that she could pay for it and insure it with the income from the job she would have by then.

When she got her first job, she had her permit, but not her license, so I drove her to work and picked her up. Once she had her license, I let her use my car to go to work, and she had to cover the increase in my insurance for adding her to my insurance policy out of her wages, plus return the car to me with the same amount of gas it had when she took it.

Her dad used to work for a courier company, and when they sold off some of their fleet, he bought her a 10-year-old Honda Accord with over 300,000 miles on it - I think he paid $600 for it. She had to pay for her own insurance and gas on her car. She drove it for four years, and it was still running when she sold it.

Yes. Our daughter turned 16 in December and got her license.

We are planners and look ahead and we knew she would get a car. Our theory was to get the safest car we could find. Giving her keys and letting her drive off is HARD.

In 2007 my husband gave me a Mercedes CLK 350 and daughter was 12 at the time. She loved the car and he said "if you continue to be a good, responsible teen maybe it will become yours". She held on to that idea!!

Now some may say that is extravagant, however, it is a very safe car, 4 yrs old, 20,000 miles and you could not buy it used right now for more than 25,000 and you can't buy a new safe good car for 25,000. So yes, she got the CLK 350.

As for insurance, it was more economical to tag her to my husband's car a 2010 Mercedes E350 because it is the cheaper of the 3 cars we have to insure. I drive a Mercedes SL 550 sport 2 seater convertible and it is the most expensive to insure. Still, our insurance went from $1200/6 months ($900 if you pay in full which is what we do) to $2000/6 months and we still get a substantial discount over $300 to pay in full vs making payments or splitting the bill and paying 1/2 and 1/2.

These cars are safe and built to last. We keep our cars a long time and this car should get her through college.

I don't know about your area but for us, her drive to school is a solid 20 minutes each way plus she has cheerleading which keeps her either at school late each day or heading to the training gym each day. So far she has been good to stay in touch and let us know what's going on. of course, this is a priviledge that will be taken away if her behavior changes and she knows that.

Most of the 16 yr olds in my area do get cars for the 16th bday. A lot of hand me down cars and a lot or new or used. The student parking lot is an assortment of Mustangs, Lexus, Mercedes, BMW, Honda and Acura.

We would never go into debt to give her a car. She knows this is it for her car from us because we are also providing her college education so she will not come out of college in debt. She is a well rounded girl with high goals, good grades and stable family.

In my opinion..A kid first car should be used because they dont know much about taking care of a car and they are inexperienced drivers. This car will teach them how to take care of a car. Teach them how to keep oil, water and just keep the car up. If the teen is a boy, this car will even teach him how to work on cars. I think every man should know about cars.

My son bought his car from my parents for $1. When we went to insure it, they told me to put the car in my name to keep the insurance costs down. We insured it as a "pleasure car" because it was cheaper. The car might have been purchased with his $1, but it is insured with my many $$. I control the car -- if he messes up, he loses the car privilege. He's not lost it since he forgot to call upon arrival to a rehearsal 2 years ago. (I took it for 2 weeks.) He always calls and he is very careful.
Our high school is 20 miles away. It is far more convenient for me if they drive themselves. Alas, my youngest is still on a permit... she won't have her license until the middle of the fall... It's going to be a LONG year driving her around next year. At least she'll be able to drive during her senior year. :-) And she'll be driving her brother's $1 car.
YMMV
LBC

It was not an option to purchase a car when my sons became driving age. They didn't even ask. They both were allowed to drive both of our cars. One child stayed here to attend a local college and we had to purchase a car for him to drive to college. The cost of the car was a trade-off for the cost of paying tuition and room and board if he went away.
Our car insurance rates with teen age drivers sky-rocketed - esp. with a few minor car accidents.
Warning - never, never buy a car and put it in their name - your car insurance rates will be astronomical!
Also, if your child goes away to college - over 120 or 150 miles (dep. upon your insurance company) be sure to tell your insurance company and your rates go down while they are away - assuming that you don't send the car to college with your child.

Talk to your insurance agent about how to keep your rates the lowest - they will usually tell you to add your child to the policy of the oldest car in your home. They are allowed to drive both cars; their name needs to be on one of the cars.

Make sure you know the rules of your state for new drivers - each state is different - how many people can be in the car of a new driver and what
ages those passengers must be in their early driving days.

Call me crazy but I planned for mommy's taxi service to be over when she turned 16. With my job it was simply too difficult to get her to all of her activities and then work. My time is $$$. My daughter is turning 18 at the end of the month and I bought her a new 2009 California edition VW Jetta when she was 15. She did not expect this at all and was kind of embarrassed by the whole thing. Her dad and I both drive company cars and she is not permitted to drive them. My daughter pays for her gas and car washes and will probably pay for insurance in the fall (maybe, but she is a such great saver and I might prefer her to continue that).

I bought my own 1969 VW in 1981. I paid my own expenses right away.

My Mom got me a car when I graduated high school because I was living at home for collage and had to have a way to commute to campus.
It's not likely we'll be getting our son a car of his own at 16.
He'll share our cars till he really needs one (and if he goes to collage and lives on campus, many won't let freshman have cars till they are upper class men).

my mom did end up buying me a car but i was almost 18. it was NOT the day i turned 16 and/or got my license. and it was with the understanding that i would get a job. i had it pretty good :) i didn't have to pay for the car or insurance (as long as i stayed in school, a rule that followed me to college as well), but i did have to pay for gas and upkeep. and it was a poop-brown beater (not blue, *sigh*) and i think they paid a total of $500 for it. not much even 15 years ago lol!

My almost FIVE year old said something similar to us, but it was she wants a red jeep for her 16th birthday! We both laughed. Then explained to her that she has to work for a car AND has to show us she is responsible enough. She said ok, we will see what she thinks about that when she gets older. As of right now she is headed down the right path to being trustworthy and responsible.

Hubby and I have already said that when she gets to driving age she can use the older of the two cars. If and ONLY if we are looking at buying a new car around the time we are ok with her getting a car she will have the option of having/buying the old car from us. Of course if the car is really not safe we will let her use it to trade in for a USED car. She will be paying for gas, oil changes and a little of the insurance. With car repairs we are going to discuss that on a need to bases, depending on the cost we may help out. As always there will be addtional rules on when she can drive it, where she can drive it and who she can have in the car with her and so on.

if i can my kid will get whatever i am driving and I will get the new car!

Haaaa ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Out of all of my friends in high school, only one was given a car free and clear as a birthday gift. The rest of us peasants had to use the family cars, and only with permission. Even most of the "popular" kids whose families had a lot of money had to use family cars with permission. I was working part time and had to pay for my own insurance and clothes.

I didn't get my own car from my parents until I started college. But I had to pay for my own insurance and I had to give my parents $100 a month on top of it to pay for the car. In addition to that I was paying for a phone line (this was pre-cell phones) and rent while attending full time college and full time work.

There's no way in he-double hockey sticks that my kids are getting their own car when they turn 16. It's just not happening. We're not made of money and money doesn't grow on trees. They're going to have to earn it themselves or use the family car, but I'm leaning toward not allowing a license at all until they're 18. My state is constantly talking about raising the driving age to 18 anyway. I'd rather they focus on studies.

My parents bought me a good, reliable, used car (7 year old nissan maxima) for my 17th birthday (in NJ we didn't get licenses until 17). I would like to do the same for our children. My husband is of the mindset that if they want a car they can take their money and go buy one. We'll see who wins out when the time comes.

Uh no - maybe if my 2000 Neon is still around then (it's getting ready to turn 100,000 miles) I might buy myself a newer car and hopefully she'll inherit the Neon. But that's still 4 years away. Otherwise, we'll be sharing!

My son turned 15 yesterday, so we have been having the "car" talk for a couple of years. My vehicle will be paid off next summer, so I have told him I will finance something under 3k - anything over that, he needs to figure out how he will pay for it.

My father provided cars for my sister and I to drive - he paid insurance, maintenance, everything, until we bought our own cars. I would love to do that for my son also, but I simply can't afford it.

I have two teens 16 and 17. They will save money to buy a car and pay for insurance too. If we had the money we'd probably help with insurance some and have an extra car for them to share but it would be ours. But we don't have the extra money.

Good question. My husband and I have discussed the same question and brought it up to our 14 year old son. I also spoke with my insurance agent..because we KNOW insurance will be pretty high. We've decided to have our son use his father's old car...just to get the feel of driving and learn to appreciate it. We've told our son that if he would like a NEW car..he would have to save up for one. He would also need to help pay for his insurance. When I spoke to my insurance agent, she advised me NOT TO BUY them a new car. She said it's a HIGHER chance they will wreck that car and car insurance goes SKY HIGH with a new driver and a new vehicle. Made sense. I was also advised to add our son on the oldest car for insurance. She also told me that laws have changed. If they were driving at 16 years old...a person over the change of 25 has to be in the car while they drive..no one under.

Anyhow, like you mentioned....you can help her buy one in later in the future...but have her work for it as well. I don't believe in "giving" kids anything..especially a car...it should be earned and learned how to appreciate things and how difficult it is...money does not grow on trees. Good luck!

Our 2nd daughter just got her license. Both of them could not drive OUR vehicles until they paid 50% of our increased insurance payment. When they are older and/or have enough money to purchase a vehicle we will allow it or help them should we see a big enough effort from them.

I may be considered a prude but I don't see how parents feel that a sixteen year-old should be 'given' a car merely for being. I think it sends a bad message that they can get anything they want without putting forth any effort. And I don't mean good grades are an effort that should be rewarded as such.

Some kids complain that they can't get a job bec of sports or other activities, but they made the choice to participate in these extra activities over working to earn money for a car. We are lucky enough to be able to afford a third vehicle they can use - but it remains ours and they must have permission and insurance to be able to drive it.

My parents bought us cars but dad did car mechanics so he could buy a 100 dollar car and keep it alive forever. The rule was that we got a car but we had to start running errands for mom and dad. It is amazing how many times your mom will need to have you get a gallon of milk or little sis needed to picked up from some friends house. The 2nd rule was if it got totaled, we bought the 2nd one.

And as much as men should know about cars women should know more...

We plan to if he deserves it. 16 is 8 years away for my oldest though. Once he starts working he can put some of his money towards that. If not at 16 then most likely by 18.

My mom bought me my first two cars but that was because I had got money from two different legal situations that I let her use to help the household catch up on bills and so she repaid me by getting me two cheap old cars. The first one was awesome and cheap but I was T-boned by a drunk driver and it destroyed my car. The second was very nice and not as cheap, but my mom was trying to make it up to me that the cops screwed us on the destruction of my first car.

Anyway, I had to have a job that I was regularly working, and getting good grades before I got either car. I had to pay for insurance on the car, gas as needed, and all repairs. The car was in my mom's name so she could take it away if I messed up big time.

I plan on giving my son an old family car to use but he'll have to pay insurance, gas as needed, and repairs. So he'll need a job before he gets one and he has to keep his grades up or the car will go away and he'll have to find an alternative way to work like his bike.

My daughter will be 16 in 10 days, and NO. Just no. We're still deciding if we'll let her get her permit right away. We have no money to buy her a car of her own, and if we did, it would surely not be a new one. Tweens get this impression from watching all those Disney Channel teen shows, that teens get brand new cars.

We have little kids (3 and 1) so we won't have to worry about this any time soon, although my hubby and I have already talked about it. Since my first car was actually a hand-me-down from my oldest brother when he got a newer one (an '84 Honda Accord that didn't like to stay running at red lights! *LAUGH*), and I paid for my second car myself by working two jobs when I was 18, and my husband always bought his own cars as a teen, we decided that it wouldn't be a good thing to just buy our kids cars. We think it would be better to help them get cars, but nothing brand new.
It seems like the kids who have their parents just buy them cars, don't really respect them or take care of them, at least in my experience.

My daughter will have her sweet sixteen party and that is it. A car is a luxury not a need that she can purchase with her money. When you spend your own money you take care of things a lot better. In this economy and the cost of insurance for a teen driver. There is no way I am getting my daughter a car, she can ride her bike or get a ride like she has been doing.
BTW I got my first car when my mother passed and I got her car, I was 23 at the time. Since I am an only child there was no arguement as to who got the car. So when my boys were old enough to drive I told them I am not dying to give you a car.