Best First Car

[CarEnthusiast]

I am a teenager looking at a new car. However, I cannot stand the look of today's modern cars. As a result, I have lately been looking at older cars on multiple sites. The cars that I have found are in great condition and are going for 5k or less. They are: a 1980 Buick Electra, a 1981 Mercedes 300D, a 1977 Olds Delta 88 and a 1966 Chrysler Windsor. There are others that would require a little love but I just want something that will get me on the road and won't look like a rolling white blob (we're looking at you, Toyota Corolla.) I am wondering which of these would be best for a First time driver? Which car would be the best and which car would be the worst? Thank you for looking :D

[Guilbert53]

I think these are all American cars so assume you are based in the USA.

If you look at the end of the web site address of this site it ends "co.uk" meaning it is a UK based web site.

Try a US based site

[Hopkirk]

Had you considered a Fiat 500?

[Buenchico]

In the UK you'd certainly need to consider the cost of the compulsory 3rd party insurance cover on any car you bought. I suspect that the same will apply in the USA (if that's where you're located).

The cheapest insurance cover in the UK for a teenage driver is typically around £2000 ($2800) per year, with many young drivers having to pay over £3000 ($4200). While 'classic car' policies, for the type of vehicles you mention, are available to older drivers, I doubt that they'd be offered to teenagers. So the cost of a single year's insurance would probably considerably exceed the cost of such a car.

Maybe things are a bit different where you are but I really think that you need to think about the costs of insuring your vehicle AND the costs of maintaining it (which aren't going to be cheap) before considering the purchase of a classic car. The fuel costs won't be cheap either!

[woofgang]

wherever you live, the other thing you need to consider is whether you want a method of transport or a hobby. Classic cars have a way of eating up money and time which is fine if you have loads of both and don't need to just be able to hop in the car and go. If reliable transport is your primary requirement, there is a lot to be said for blobs.

[maggiebee]

Lucky teenager to have 5k to spend on a car.

[CarEnthusiast]

Buenchico - Thank you for answering! Although know very little about insurance, I would imagine that because these cars aren't particularly unique, their insurance cost would be low? Especially for the Buick, it's probably the most boring car on the list. I do know that Teenagers pay the most for insurance, but I can't see the cost being much higher than the corolla I mentioned in the question, again, especially for the Electra. And now to answer the others questions! I have not considered a Fiat, probably because I would be pestered about it until my death. I certainly could see myself driving one if my classic car idea goes down the tubes though! I do intend to be driving this car daily, save for cold, snowy winter days (such as today where I am). I do have time, money, and a fair bit of basic mechanical knowledge so I could fix certain things. Fixing also won't be too big of a deal if I do it because older cars are easier to work on (at least from what I've heard.) And for you, Maggie - I think the currency you're thinking of is the Pound (probably because this is a UK site). But I am Canadian, so what for me is 5k for you is 8.2k. I also will be paying a minimum of 20% of the car's price. I hope I have done a decent job responding, this is actually my 1st time asking a question on a site like this. My sincere apologies for this being a really long winded response, I'm awful at making things short. But anyways, I hope you all have a fantastic day! Thank you dearly for answering my Question :)

[Prudie]

If we're talking blobs - Fiat 500s, every time I see one I think there goes a blob of ice-cream

[CarEnthusiast]

Please excuse my terrible CDN to GBP currency conversion error! I should have said 5k for me is 2.3k for you British folk. My apologies.

[EDDIE51]

Before you do anything get a few insurance quotes for the cars you are interested in. I'm sure Canada has online insurance quote sites just as the UK does. I have a feeling the insurance cost will be a lot more than you think. In the UK it is normal that for a teenage driver the insurance costs more than the price of the car often a LOT more. I don't think Canada will be different. Then as said, 'classic car' insurance is normally highly restricted in how often and how far you can drive.

[Hopkirk]

I was joking about the Fiat 500, sorry. It's tiny and the opposite of the monsters you mentioned.

Also some say the Fiat stands for fix it again tomorrow.

[EDDIE51]

The main reason for high insurance cost is not repair cost for your car. But the cost of possible personal injury compensation and medical costs for anyone that may be injured by an accident that is your fault.
I would think that will be as expensive in Canada as it is here.