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Original poster

1st car for teen - help steer me thru this journey

56 replies

ServeBacon · 03/01/2022 05:52

See what I did there Wink

Teen DD turns 17 next month and thus so will start her driving lesson journey if we can find an instructor will free slots

And so we will need to look for her first car - where to start? We really havent a clue apart from fairly tight budget for the car itself. Teen DD has saved around £3.5k towards a car and we are happy to help towards insurance - I'm guessing insurance will probably match this in her first year? Am I right ? Currently guessing wildly - asking Mumsnetters for their experiences please.

TIA

OP posts:
Original poster
ServeBacon · 03/01/2022 09:05

@littleowls83 - thankyou for your consideration - she'll have her car once she's around half way thru her lessons so we can take her out to get loads of practice in ahead of her test. We have thought this through Smile.

I think we are well placed to know when she needs her first car and the practicalities of having it, whether or not she pursues university or other avenues after college.

OP posts:
TheDrsDocMartens · 03/01/2022 09:06

I have a VW up and massively preferred it to the Aygo which was my other choice.

Dd2 drives it too but has her own insurance through marmalade.

ilovemyminicooper · 03/01/2022 09:06

Mini's are so popular at the moment with young women.
Easy & safe to drive.
They are also incredibly customisable!
Join a group like MINIGIRLSUK on fb & Instagram and she can go to female friendly car meets and get advice on car issues and help with anything really.

Oneforthemoneytwo · 03/01/2022 09:08

@Snowiscold not my experience at all. Every teen I know starts on their 18th birthday and parents very much buy the cars although appreciate that it’s v privileged to be able to do that

^In my experience, it’s quite rare to start driving lessons at 17 these days, and parents don’t get involved in getting a car*

Skoda Citigo is a brilliant option. Almost all the teens here have a polo followed by C1, fiat 500, Aygo, 107 or Citigo

Oneforthemoneytwo · 03/01/2022 09:08

I mean 17th birthday not 18th

Kjr33 · 03/01/2022 09:08

Have you found an instructor yet? That was actually the hardest part! They are all so busy, I’m finding the extra practice is so much more important because there is so little lesson availability.

MrsPerfect12 · 03/01/2022 09:08

We bought DD an fiesta eco boost 1l - I'm shocked at how fast it is.
We were1.1k for insurance and she is main drive to build her own NCD. Both DH and I are on the policy.
When we were looking, I'm sure on autotrader you'll see a chart of the specs and it will give you the insurance band. We bought from a dealer but found it on autotrader.

Oneforthemoneytwo · 03/01/2022 09:13

I also disagree that if they’re at uni it isn’t worth having one. DS is at uni and he doesn’t take it although he has taken it up overnight once. He’s home in all the holidays and he’s in his car all the time. I’m pleased he has it as he can get around without me and can help out with his siblings!

ANameChangeAgain · 03/01/2022 09:17

Watching with interest, a friend suggested applying for the license at 16, and doing under 17 obviously off road driving lessons in preparation to booking a test for just after their 17th birthday. I did read it is cheaper for you to be on their insurance than the other way around, and cheaper again is their carnis £5k +? Dd will absolutely need a car once she finishes 6th form due to our location, but insurance costs are worrying.

Qwertykeys · 03/01/2022 09:17

@littleowls83 Son was unable to go on husband's insurance , not a fancy car . Would of been over £1000 to go on mine . He has his own little 107 working out cheaper. Plus's far better he was clipping kerbs in his own cheap car than my car.

Crayfishforyou · 03/01/2022 09:21

[quote MrsDThomas]@littleowls83 i disagree here. They can easily learn to drive with their own car too. The more they drive with you as a parent the less lessons they need.[/quote]
Agreed.
I bought a car years ago when I turned 17. my pa insured it for me. He had a very powerful car and nobody would have insured me on it.
All the extra practice meant I didn’t need as many lessons.

52andblue · 03/01/2022 09:24

Watching with interest

littleowls83 · 03/01/2022 09:28

I don't disagree the practise is helpful and as I said if you have a powerful or expensive car you may need a run around for them to practise on. I would just suggest you find some way to take them out and have a go before buying them a car as you may find you can't take them out - not everyone is comfortable taking a learner out - I taught DH but my Mum just couldn't take me despite being a confident driver herself. I also knew someone at school who had a brand new car bought for then on their 17th that was then sold basically unused a couple of years later as they really struggled to learn and then went to uni at a place they couldn't take a car. Ultimately as with all things if spending the money isn't a big deal then obviously go for it, if this is a lot of money for you then I would try taking a learner out first and find out if they can go on your insurance in preference to getting their own car as its so expensive for a teen to run a car. I guess probably if you have expensive cars yourself running another car for a child probably isn't a problem.

Change123today · 03/01/2022 09:33

Polo & Yaris seemed to be the choice of cars across my daughters friends! A few boys have gone with fiesta and corsa but polo seem to be the main one.

We went with polo & put her as a learner insurance with my husband as the main driver (he uses it for work etc) . Once she passed we just changed her as a named driver. She has now decided to take the car back to uni, insurance is due for renewal in February so we’ve said she can take after then. We will then change the insurance to her being the main driver as she will be! It’s looking at around £900 without a black box - but we haven’t really looked around properly as yet.
Husband currently driving me mad with what car he wants as we now need to buy him one grhhhh

toomuchlaundry · 03/01/2022 09:35

DS is coming up to 17 so we are currently looking into this. One issue we have is a practical one of where to park the extra car! DH and I both have cars which fit on our drive, but no space for another. We have a garage (currently full of crap!) but even if we sort that out, it is so small that neither of our cars would fit in, as would still need to store some stuff in there. I think even if it was empty DH’s is too big to fit in. Can’t really park on the street outside our house, so where does the third car go?
Also now WFH is established (part-time at least) do DH and I need a car each? Public transport isn’t great, but could we manage with 2 cars between the 3 of us until DS goes off to uni?

NinaProudman2022 · 03/01/2022 09:39

If your DC is going to Uni its a total waste of time and money for either your DD or you to buy a car now at 17 unless you are (live extremely rurally or you are loaded). Due to parking and car up keep from a Maintenance Loan.

Has she received her provisional license yet as these can take months to come through at the moment.

If she has book her theory test asap as their is a back log with these, same with spaces with a driving instructor and actual test dates are also like hens teeth.

We are fairly well off although not exceptionally so but couldn’t afford to contribute to buying DS his first car and with the insurance as well as topping up his minimum maintenance loan for three or four years so we insured him on our second car a Mini for just under a year before he goes off to Uni the cost went up by over £600 just to include him on it.

Original poster
ServeBacon · 03/01/2022 09:46

Yes to provisional licence - we sorted that in the summer as soon as we were able to.

Yes to theory, all booked and paid for.

Yes also to instructor, liaised with during the summer so lined up and in his system in time for when she turns 17 - so the lessons can be slotted into his diary at that point and, well, the test will be as and when she is ready and we can get a slot for that in the future.

Lockdown gave me plenty of thinking time on this.

OP posts:
Galliano · 03/01/2022 09:53

My DD had a Skoda Citigo at 17 - we also test drove the Aygo/c1 but found the citigo/vw up shape suited her better - felt more spacious which was important as DD is 5ft 10. Her older brothers had had a Yaris and a Fabia (their heights ruled out the tiniest cars) and it was significantly cheaper to insure DD’s group 1 car than these had been. Obviously insurance cost depends on location as well as car and for DD it was about £1200 in first year. Could have been cheaper if DD had got a policy with restricted hours for driving but she worked in a restaurant with late finishes. She’s in her third year of driving now at 19 and cost was about £500.

On the car and uni question DD is at a university one of her brothers attended 6 years ahead of her. He didn’t take his car but when it came to DD going during the current pandemic I wanted her to have the car so she could be instantly mobile if new restrictions were looming and so she didn’t have to rely on public transport. My middle DS did a degree that required him to commute to placements so also had his car at uni.

Nearly all of my 3 DCs friends learnt to drive at 17 but for my nieces and nephews (living in London and Edinburgh) it seemed to be a lot less the done thing - they didn’t learn and weren’t exceptional in their peer groups so I don’t think you can make a sweeping statement for what 17 year olds do.

SavoyCabbage · 03/01/2022 09:54

We got dd a fiat 500. She did her lessons and her test in her own car which took the pressure off trying to pounce on a test date when the instructor was also free.

Learner insurance was £300 with Marmalade and when she passed it was £1200 with admiral with no black box.

Pellewsmate · 03/01/2022 10:06

DS has a 1.4 diesel fiesta, it is 11 years old but in really good condition with low milage. He does a lot of driving so went for a high spec which included cruise control, bluetooth etc. His insurance was £850 with Churchill, he is the main driver with both parents as named drivers, adding the 2 of us really dropped the price. Look at comparison sites and play around with cars and drivers to give yourself an idea of what to expect.

gogohm · 03/01/2022 10:12

Look at insurance groups, ford kas are usually about the lowest. My dd is insured through my admiral multi car and it's very reasonable (she's a little older). Do think carefully if it's wise to buy a car yet, might take a while to pass and if they head to university at 18, many halls don't have provision to bring cars these days. Dd got one in year 2 if university when she had parking and insurance was cheaper by that age too

TeeBee · 03/01/2022 10:14

The cheapest way to get insurance is to do a multi plan policy, putting everyone in your household on it. We're with Admiral.

gogohm · 03/01/2022 10:16

Should say DD's insurance was £492, but she's 20 now, no black box. We live in a very cheap area for insurance and they then endorsed it for use at university

peaceanddove · 03/01/2022 10:18

We bought DD1 a VW UP. Very low insurance and very sound build quality.

MazzleDazzle · 03/01/2022 10:21

I’m insured through Admiral and have had a few bumps and scrapes over the years, damaging other cars as well as my own. They paid out every time without any hassle. Can’t fault them.

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