Best car for new teenage driver.

[mumtimestwo]

I’ve been kindly given £5000 to buy a car for my DS who just passed their test by a relative. (They are insistent it’s for a car as they never had one. Money also has been set aside for uni hopefully next year)
Anyone got any recommendations. The money would also have to cover some insurers costs so I think am looking for a car around the 4k mark.
we live relatively rurally, although flat and I imagine he will go in a car sharing group with others to college so looking for one that will fit 4/5 tall boys and has a bit of power.

I had originally thought a fiesta but read here about the problems with a wet cam belt (every day you learn something new!)

his sister suggested a fiat 500- I think because she likes the look of it - but I don’t think that seats 5 although it seems you get a newer car for your money.

would it generally be better to prioritise lower mileage or newer car?

many thanks.

The insurance group means practically nothing for premiums for young drivers. It is maddeningly impossible to predict. I have just swapped insurance for a learner and a new driver from a 10 year old Audi A1 worth £4k with a 1.2l engine to a 1 year nearly new Ford Puma worth £17k with a 1.5l engine and I got a £100 REFUND on my insurance. Why? The Puma is about 6 insurance groups higher.
It seems from my quotes before purchase that anything which is commonly driven by young drivers has a sky-high premium and anything less commonly driven does much better. The Puma is relatively new on the market so maybe that’s why. But it’s impossible to know. They might just pick a number from a random generator for all I know.

My DD has a Toyota aygo. Insurance isn’t too bad, easy to park and only had 25000 miles on the clock (7 year old car).

I appreciate this is an older thread but we went with a 5 door fiat Punto, side and front airbags, Bluetooth and plenty big enough for 4 teens.
I believe the rear doors make a huge difference for the passengers.
The money saving expert also has in our experience the best comparison tool. Daughter couldn't find any insurance for less than £2k last month. The comparison tool came back with Tesco insurance, black box and having a clubcard got the total cost down to £850. That with me and her as named driver and her the main policy holder.

Can I also implore you to buy a seatbelt cutter and windscreen hammer? It's been my go to gift for everyone passing and I insist it's kept in their door pocket, as I've said to them, this isn't about anticipating them having a crash, but also being first on scene to a crash.
Tragically 2 people lost their lives recently after going into a water filled ditch, no guarantees the hammer and cutter would make a difference but it brings me peace of mind knowing they have everything