[1965gp]

Interested to hear others thoughts on this. My daughter will be driving next year and I’m starting to look around for something fun,interesting and safe. She wanted to drive the 30th anniversary but it’s in really nice shape- too nice to let a teenager tear up the white interior and let it sit in a high school parking lot.

A friend of mine has a nice 1995 Firehawk that he is willing to sell but it needs some repairs. The car is very solid, 80k miles, no rust, subframe connectors and x brace; no cracks in dash or door panels, in fact the interior looks new. The fascia of the car needs to be painted but the rest of the car is in great shape- never been in any accidents.

Here’s the situation- the car is not running and he can’t figure out why. Imagine it is the opti spark but he said he already tried that and a computer. I feel confident the car can be fixed- it just may cost some. I would start with a new opti spark and check the wiring from there.


Here’s the question- assuming the car is fixed relatively easily, is this car reliable/safe enough for a 16 yr old to drive? School is only 10 min away so she would not be driving far but this is still a 25 yr old car

[67drake]

My daughters first car was a ‘78 Chevette that we bought back around 2010. I got it running and stopping great after she paid $200 for it. Probably not the safest size wise, but it was a deal.
I wouldn’t bother repainting anything for a HS aged kid. Their first car usually takes a beating anyway.

[1965gp]

Probably right about painting it. It’s white and will look great after some effort is put into it.

I can get the car for $5500. I’m not sure I am going to find anything else in that price range that is fun that doesn’t need paint/interior.

I’ve known the car for the past 15 years the second owner has had it. Always ran great, wiring harness isn’t hacked, never smoked or knocked. Overall a very nice car that needs some love

[1969GiPper]

Originally Posted by 1965gp

Probably right about painting it. It’s white and will look great after some effort is put into it.

I can get the car for $5500. I’m not sure I am going to find anything else in that price range that is fun that doesn’t need paint/interior.

I’ve known the car for the past 15 years the second owner has had it. Always ran great, wiring harness isn’t hacked, never smoked or knocked. Overall a very nice car that needs some love

Before you buy anything check on how much car insurance is gonna be.

[455Grandville]

I would not buy a 16 yr old a high powered car for safety reasons and insurance rates.
Get a safe sedan that’s good on gas.

[Greg Reid]

Originally Posted by 455Grandville

I would not buy a 16 yr old a high powered car for safety reasons and insurance rates.
Get a safe sedan that’s good on gas.

This is my philosophy. I'd get her something like a mid-2000s Crown Vic and not care too much if she loved it or not. When she buys it, let that be the one she loves.
My son's first car was a '78 Bonneville. He beat the crap out of it, wrecked it a couple of times and bought for himself what he really wanted when he joined the Navy.
Funny, he's nostalgic about the Bonneville now and says he wouldn't mind having another.

[SRR]

Originally Posted by Greg Reid

This is my philosophy. I'd get her something like a mid-2000s Crown Vic and not care too much if she loved it or not. When she buys it, let that be the one she loves.
My son's first car was a '78 Bonneville. He beat the crap out of it, wrecked it a couple of times and bought for himself what he really wanted when he joined the Navy.
Funny, he's nostalgic about the Bonneville now and says he wouldn't mind having another.

Cheap to buy, dependable and easy to work on, Plus a safe car.

[Chris65LeMans]

Those of you saying "get a small car to limit the number of passengers" must not remember your teenage years.

2 people can ride quite comfortably in the back of a CRX, and 3 people in an MR2 was easily doable. I had a Nissan 200SX (very small backseat) and used to do 4 hour drives with as many as 7 people in there. (at 100 mph+).

[455Grandville]

Originally Posted by Greg Reid

This is my philosophy. I'd get her something like a mid-2000s Crown Vic and not care too much if she loved it or not. When she buys it, let that be the one she loves.
My son's first car was a '78 Bonneville. He beat the crap out of it, wrecked it a couple of times and bought for himself what he really wanted when he joined the Navy.
Funny, he's nostalgic about the Bonneville now and says he wouldn't mind having another.

I gave my son a rust free 75 GV with a 455 that I saved from derby guys years ago, but it’s not going to be his daily driver.
My son works and saved his money so he bought 94 4wd Dakota 3.9 V6 with a 5 speed off my wife’s family. It’ll need a clutch and some front end work, but it’ll be perfect as he needs a truck to take his motor cross and 4 wheeler out to all the off road parks down here.
Hopefully we’ll be hauling it up from Texas by spring.

[Goatracer1]

Remember the car is NOT for you. She must like it first of all but more important it has to be safe enough to take a hit. I've had 5 kids and it will take a hit. I don't know your daughter but she is most likely going to end up taking it places you don't know about. More than the 10 minutes to school. Please make sure it is reliable, has airbags and sturdy not fast or, tippy.

[1965gp]

I know- I struggle with getting her something I want. She’s going to take it all over our area I’m sure..

She would like a Challenger- but even high mileage ones still seem to be pricey. Since it is white and the factory Firehawk trim is teal it looks kinda girly which is why I thought about it

[necdb3]

OMG!!!Are we going to start another one of these? Soon this will be loaded with hatred towards specific vehicles, etc, etc, etc.
Hopefully this can stay constructive.

[66sprint6]

Anything that is relatively sturdy, has ABS, Air bags, etc. Sure, you want fun, but safety and reliability came first when I got my kids their first car. I won't say what brand, so as to keep this thread neutral. Good luck.

[1965gp]

Hope so- basically I am asking if the group thinks a 25 yr old car is reliable enough to drive daily.

I know some here daily drive classics but this is a girl with very little mecahnical knowledge

[goatless]

Originally Posted by 1965gp

basically I am asking if the group thinks a 25 yr old car is reliable enough to drive daily.

Maybe not the best ones to ask.
My son bought a '77 Bonneville 4 door with 29,000 miles on it when he was 14. I used occasionally until he got his license, enough to find any issues from a car that saw so little use. He learned to do some mechanical work- I had him do any work that it needed. I was there for help and advice, but he did the work himself. The car now has 47,000 miles on it.
Anyhow, he drove it all through high school and he would have taken it to college too, but we didn't want him taking a 40 year old car on the 7 hour trip back and forth to UMaine.

[gtohurstjudge]

TOYOTA COROLLA

[Formulajones]

Originally Posted by 1965gp

Hope so- basically I am asking if the group thinks a 25 yr old car is reliable enough to drive daily.

I know some here daily drive classics but this is a girl with very little mecahnical knowledge

Absolutely. As long as it's well maintained and good shape there is no reason for me to think it's any less reliable than a new car.

Like you eluded to, we are one of those families that drives classics daily. Got away from the new car stuff years ago. Quite frankly I trust the 50+ year old cars we drive more than any new car, simply because they are stupid simple vehicles with hardly anything that will go wrong.

My son drives either a 65 bug or his 89 5.0 Mustang back and forth to college, and they have been his daily cars since he was 16. The Mustang is 31 years old now and just rolled over 250,000 miles with it's original untouched engine.

I assume with your girl at 16 she's still living at home and will be driving back and forth as such. With that in mind I don't view her as helpless with a lack of mechanical knowledge in the event that the car may break down, since dad is close and always willing to lend a helping hand

[Chris65LeMans]

$5,500 is more than I'd pay for a 25 year old car that doesn't run.

If my kids are lucky enough that I buy them a car, I'll get them something slow, safe and cheap. I'm several years off, but with a $5,500 war chest, I'd have plenty of options among the Japanese cars.

[Tellyshavilli]

Originally Posted by 1965gp

Interested to hear others thoughts on this. My daughter will be driving next year and I’m starting to look around for something fun,interesting and safe. She wanted to drive the 30th anniversary but it’s in really nice shape- too nice to let a teenager tear up the white interior and let it sit in a high school parking lot.

A friend of mine has a nice 1995 Firehawk that he is willing to sell but it needs some repairs. The car is very solid, 80k miles, no rust, subframe connectors and x brace; no cracks in dash or door panels, in fact the interior looks new. The fascia of the car needs to be painted but the rest of the car is in great shape- never been in any accidents.

Here’s the situation- the car is not running and he can’t figure out why. Imagine it is the opti spark but he said he already tried that and a computer. I feel confident the car can be fixed- it just may cost some. I would start with a new opti spark and check the wiring from there.


Here’s the question- assuming the car is fixed relatively easily, is this car reliable/safe enough for a 16 yr old to drive? School is only 10 min away so she would not be driving far but this is still a 25 yr old car

The perfect car is a mid 90’s Buick roadmaster estate wagon and it has to have wood . V8 decent gas mileage goes good in the snow very stable on the road big car lots of room and usually is well option which may or not be what you’re looking for Got a 93 for one of my sons in college he didn’t like it at first but once everybody got used and the wood . It became the car to be in for his college wrestling team.

[mgarblik]

My daughters first car was a 1993 Firebird V-6 5-speed manual. She wanted to learn how to drive a stick, which made me happy. She was very responsible and had the car through 4 years of college. It was very reliable. Regular maintenance and an alternator, battery and had to work on the hidden headlights a couple of times. That's all. Overall, a pleasant experience for all involved. She moved to a Mustang next and had a fox body for 5-6 years. It was very reliable as well. My other daughter, was reckless and very hard on her cars. She had a 3rd. Generation Camaro for her first car. Pulled in front of a late model Chevy extended cab pick-up going 50-55 MPH. Totaled her car, just decimated the body. The front bumper was 300 ft. from the accident scene. The engine was pushed back so far it broke the console. She had 4 people in the car. Both doors still opened and they all walked out with minor cuts and scrapes. I was very impressed with the strength of the passenger compartment. FWIW.