18yr old son's 1st car??

[ebxr8240]

Two thoughts ??? A cheap-sh car he may not respect ??
A good or new car he could abuse etc???
I must say though the latter fwd cars have way better safety features and have
5 years warranty..Paying one off I think they look after better??
If they accept the responsibility...
He CANNOT drive a V8 or TURBO car !!!
A 4wd ?? Another meaning for fourplay Lol....

[V3RSAC3]

i'm 18 ... i'd suggets go European? SAAB, ALFA, a Golf even, they are sweet and you get heaps of cred in one ...

althou myself im a for boy, if i had $25K too spend on a car, i'd prob go an AU Fairlane? WH Statesman ... or even BA XR6 ... you will be happiest with some of these ay

[ebxr8240]

More backseat room ??

[bingoTE50]

Well I got a sixteen year old looking at the moment . I was thinking a late eighties bmw.I know you discounted it for your daughter , but there are some good ones there if you look hard . Twin cam Corollas maybe , but he won't want that. If he is against rice ,he has really restricted himself . If he wants olderschool, what about a XD/XE , I have seen some nice S-pacs on here . Maybe a Eb-ED XR6 .
What about a old Merc ... In general they are looked after and don't pull big dollars.
Say a 190 0r 230 ...4 cyl ..economical and go ok.

[ebxr8240]

Some Euro cars are exy on parts..

[Wally]

and there interiors don't hold up well.

[WILDB]

I would suggest NOT to buy an Alfa as finding someone who can properly work on it and parts can be an extorsionate task $ wise. This comes from someone who bought an Alfa and found out the hard way. I wouldn't buy a Corolla or Pulsar or any of those other rice paper small cars. I had a 4x4 Rodeo and an EF before my BA and wouldn't hesitate to recommend either.

I would also not recommend buying a late model Commodore as the insurance costs (particularly for the sporty models) are massive. If he really has his heart set on a late model car, I would have to agree with XRated and say to get something like a Focus and save on fuel for something better.

[V3RSAC3]

Originally Posted by ebxr8240

More backseat room ??

definatly ;) ;)

[Zed7fiddy]

Tell him to buy mine!

[snappy]

i try to get him to lower his standards a bit if he wants a holden let him get one. no one would of convinced me to by a holden instead of a ford . i think that if you can get him in one that is a bit earlier in the years maybe dressed up a bit to appeal to him and he would not blow 25k on something he may destroy or be unhappy with even a nice vt or somthing along those lines. good luck mate youll need it

[bangm001]

Yeah tell him a BA MK2 XR6 Non Turb, lower it, throw on some 18s/19s, ALARM it! And all will be sweet, plenty of room for the boys, big back saeat, plenty of power, can tow a boat/trailer etc of he has to, and most importantly isnt a girly fugly car like already suggested.
I have been through a few holdens now, a nice first car would now be a VY2 Calais?? Has the doof doof sound system, nice wheels as standard, plenty of room, power etc etc. Not too bad on fuel, even the 5.7L arent too bad on fuel (insurance is another thing).. And wont be too bad on insurance and theft as they arent all that targeted providing it has alarm, lock nuts etc etc.

If insurance allows?? I had a VY1 SS as my first manual car and all I can say is I was pretty lucky, the car is pretty much fool proof to drive and very controllable- You need to be doing something really, really stupid to lose control of it.. These are fairly cheap now, only problem is theft, i had rims (brand new 18s at the time with 4 bridgestone potenzas! pricks!), also badges etc stolen..
Depends what he wants, if he is after a more performer or smaller ecomomical thing..??

[XRQTOR]

Let him buy something he wants, that way he'll respect it as it's HIS weather it was a good buy or not. Both my sisters had their cars (New Rav 4 & New beetle) bought for them & they were treated as bumper cars & maccas bins from day one. If he saved the money himself he'll respect the car & look after it, if you choose the car for him he'll hate it and treat it like shiit. I bought my own first car & for the first 8 months i washed it every morning lol, when i bought my MKII xr8 new i dont think it went longer than 5 days without being washed dirty or not.

[davonafairlane]

My first car which I still have is a 1987 nissan pintara, medium size 5spd manual, 4cyl, easy on petrol not a cop attraction. Thats the sort of thing, I don't think "small" cars are the way to go at all, yeah easy to park but not real inspiring and hard to get a good "low k's" one and they don't do the high k's.

A reasonably powered medium size mid to late 90's is probably the way to go
Toyota camry
Mitsubishi Magna

[bangm001]

Originally Posted by davonafairlane

My first car which I still have is a 1987 nissan pintara, medium size 5spd manual, 4cyl, easy on petrol not a cop attraction. Thats the sort of thing, I don't think "small" cars are the way to go at all, yeah easy to park but not real inspiring and hard to get a good "low k's" one and they don't do the high k's.

A reasonably powered medium size mid to late 90's is probably the way to go
Toyota camry
Mitsubishi Magna

OKay mate, probably a smart move, but tell me how many camries and magnas travel our roads that actually look inviting for another 18 year old las to cruise in.. They just arent cool cars, practical maybe, but practicality would not be anywhere on his list of priorities when buying his car..

[blackers10]

in repsect to safety features..
japanese cars are very world class with that stuff

can pick up a 1990 celsior or Chaser with low kays.. for around 10k-15k
these were 120k new... absolute luxury (were branded Lexus in australia)
usually 6cyl turbo or V8(some are NA 6).. VERY classy car for the $

my 1st car was a KA laser.. learnt mechanical on it.. looked after it.. didnt matter if somthing broke as $50 fixes everything or $500 buys a new one

2nd car was a ZL fairlane with dual fuel
learnt RWD and LSD handling

3rd car NA fairlane ..was a dodgy purchase so traded it for my 4th

my 4th is my AU lane.. get looks from people in AMGs and M3s... so cant be that bad

cruise thru the city and people always look at fairlanes with young people in them

you have to think of hte repair costs and insurance before buying a car..
especially imported ones(more so euro cars)

my brother spent 3k fixing up his E30 and its NEARLY ready for RWC.. and it wasnt a BAD one either.. mostly just getting a new 323i motor etc..

in short...
if the boy wants a VZ commodore.. let him get it.. just make sure he has full comp insurance for when his foot goes further than his skills do

just do LOTS of reading of the cars before you make a choice..

[Pinch]

Damn, the 04 BA XR6 I sold in March for $18K with traction, premo audio and other goodies would have made a decent first car, way better than my first efforts. $7k would have run it for a few years too. Plenty of similar ones out there if thats the thing. Traction only standard on Mk2 onwards for the non-turbos.

I did write off a ground up rebuilt VC Commo when I was 20. Hit a 'roo at a fair clip. Would much preferred to have trashed a $5000 jobbie than something I spent multiples of that on.

My younger brother just got an 02 Forester as a first car. AWD, some off road ability, decent handling, good 4cyl economy but not overly slow, and first class safety... not much insurance (for non turbo)... and he can tag along with me in mine out to Newnes or up in the Watagans. 6 months and he is loving it.

[fordon]

maybe a datsun 180b.....

wont speed and wont have a car load of people as no one would wanna ride in it, :

[Jock260]

VX S Pack 5 speed Getrag. Good looks, its a commo, safe. Put an SS kit on it and delete the rear spoiler and he has a sleek, reasonably fast, safe first car.

[XRQTOR]

Originally Posted by fordon

maybe a datsun 180b.....

wont speed and wont have a car load of people as no one would wanna ride in it, :

These shiittas tend to be the ones wrapped around trees more often, they push the cars harder to get a thrill and beyound both their & the cars ability.

[BlackLS]

Its his money if he really wants to get a Holden let him. For that money I'd look at a 03 onward Stato or Caprice. A nice cruiser.

How about a Nissan Maxima? Probably the world's most underrated car.

[old-jim]

A wise man once told me -"Lots of people can afford to buy buy a BMW, but nowhere near as many can afford to maintain them".
Old BMWs and Alfa can be bottomless money pits. (Then again - I would love an early 70s BMW 3.0 coupe)

No Rice - But how about a Honda Prelude or Integra if you can find one that has not been the subject of any attempts to resemble the Batmobile.

ED Fairmont - You should get a really good one for $4-5K, and it will have ABS. Tell him if he still has it in 12 months he can buy what he likes provided he can insure it.

[GTJOHN]

Nah dont by a commodore...get him to buy something good

[blackers10]

a WK caprice would fall nicely in the 25k range..
20s and some lowered springs would be perfect!
BUT the rear suspension loves inner tyre edges

[JACK250]

Don't ask me I spent my life savings on an XY when I was 12! haha

[jweb]

Maybe along the lines of an accord vti-l or V6 depending on if he wants manual or not.Or even a Honda civic sedan,not hatch as hatch are considered "rice".Old Honda legend is a good buy as well.
Focus would be a good buy 1st gen sold in australia,not many 18yr olds like the Lt looks.

[rodderz]

Let him get a customline like you used to have charlie!

[Mongoose]

Fairlane or Statesman (2000 onwards) decent set of wheels, lowered with exhaust. One of the best cruise cars you can think of (apart from mine of course :P) They have to be some of the most ungirly or unricey cars out there.

[Ives]

Originally Posted by old-jim

A wise man once told me -"Lots of people can afford to buy buy a BMW, but nowhere near as many can afford to maintain them".

The same wise man told me that too.

[falzoony]

Mondeo xr5 turbo?

[XR6_661]

Originally Posted by ebxr8240

More backseat room ??

Not in a BA XR6 :

ANYWAY

How about a mini trunk? Like a hilux or triton? Something that already has all the work done, paint, wheels, air bags, etc etc. Can get one pretty cheap.