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Talked him out of it.....I think

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Steve

Steve

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My youngest (18) came home yesterday afternoon, told me that he had just been looking at a 1981 Porsche 924 Turbo that a guy wants $2,900 for. I explained that at his age, insurance would be impossible, and that he could not afford to buy parts when it breaks.....and it's going to break at that age! The car has bee in storage too. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/nonod.gif

I suggested a 3-series BMW, late eighties or early nineties vintage, and I know that he likes LBCs, but this would have to be a daily driver. A VW Golf would be an option too.

Any other suggestions?
 
I am in the same situation with my son right now....I think we're gunna go for a small pick-up.....Probably an S10, if we can find one at a reasonable price an S10 Extreme.
 
Steve,

Heres my take,
My 19 year old is still driving his 1991 Buick Lesabre since he started driving and he loves it. I love it to because it's a boat and when he rear ended an SUV last week there was no damage to him and minimal damage to the car. There was no damage to the SUV either. Cheap parts (made in the U.S.A.) are also fairly easy to find at the salvage yards as well. SUV's, trucks, big cars with big bumpers, with small engines, along with the will to keep fixing things as they break = great education for him and some (not alot) peace of mind for me.

Now where's that insurance policy number?
raining again!
Harry, CT
 
635/633csi BMW....450/380/560SL Mercedes

Either is a solid, long lasting fun sportscar that won't be depreciating anytime soon - & you can pick up some of them quite reasonably - & you can actually work on them yourself!
 
Ahhh.... the Porsche 924 Turbo. I fell in love with that car due to the movie "16 Candles". I was just a kid back then and the guy who drove that car was the coolest guy in the world to me. Funny... for a long time I loved the 924 and thought the 911 was the ugliest car ever. Now the 924 just looks like a funky ol' 80's hatchback and ever since I rode in a 911, I can't help but love them!

Of course, when I rode in the 911 I was 18 years old, my friend was driving (his dad loaned it to him for Senior Prom) and he wound up getting a speeding ticket when we were doing about 130mph on the way to the coast. D'oh! Maybe Porsches are a bit too much car for an 18 year old.

My first car was my 1973 Midget and I think it was the perfect first car. It's sporty, but not too sporty. Chicks dig it! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/yesnod.gif Cheap to insure, cheap to fix, etc etc.

Also, another thing to consider, and this was the one of the big deciding factors for my parents, was the time and effort put into the car. Once you've put all your time, effort, elbow grease, blood, sweat and (with the MG there wa definitely lots of) /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cryin.gif tears, then how anxious are you to go out and wreck what you've just made? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/nonod.gif We did a decent but not extensive rebuild of my MG before I started driving it and it definitely made it mine. Definitely ends with more respect for what you have.

So perhaps another option is "Ok son, lets get that Porsche but we need to fix'er up before you can drive it so in the meantime we'll get you a Geo Metro"

If he wants the Porsche bad enough to drive a Geo Metro for present then you could both make a fun project of it and have some good father-son time wrenchin' on the Porsche.

Oh, by the way, I had to drive a 1981 AMC Eagle 4x4 until my Midget was up and running. Google an image of that if you wanna know what kind of pig I had to put up with before I got my MG! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/pukeface.gif

JACK
 
Anyone else notice how much talk about Porsches there has been lately?

Anyway - not 100% sure about this - but I suspect that just about anything with the Porsche Shield on it will be a big insurance nightmare for anyone under 25. Add a Turbo and it’d be a fair guess it’d be even worst.

IMHO I kind of like the idea of a VW Gulf or an older BMW (318 & 325) for a young person.

As for the 924 – originally developed for VW, at its introduction it was considered an entry level Porsche with it’s under powered 1984cc, 125HP engine. 0-60 firmly planted in the mid 7 second range. However the 924 Turbo’s had a little better numbers 170-177hp out of the same little four cylinder engine and a time of 0-60 in 5.4 to 6 seconds range. Not bad but not for a kid (or a parent /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif ) who’s worried about insurance rates & repair costs.

While far from the best Porsche (or even it’s best Front Engine RWD setup) – it wouldn’t be my first choice. However I kind of like the 944 as it saw great improvements over the 924 and might consider one someday. In fact I saw an immaculate specimen a week ago (black on black) but the only drawback was that it had an Automatic. Otherwise I might have made an offer.

But regardless I much prefer the 928s.
 
Sure they do. My 15 year old son wants a Jeep. Then he wants a BMW. Then he wants a Motorcycle. Then he wants.... Notice a trend? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif
 
[ QUOTE ]
...Then he wants a Motorcycle. Then he wants.... Notice a trend? ...

[/ QUOTE ]

Heads, a flat fender Jeep; Tails, a Model A pickup; On the edge, a Royal Oilfield Constellation bike... Yeah - I can relate.

Steve - has he driven any of these (not the above - the BMW and others he was considering)?
 
He has driven my 5-series, loves it, despite it being the wagon version and automatic. He remembers my 325is, although he was too young to drive when I had that. He has driven each of the VWs we have had, in fact his regular driver was a Passat with VR6 engine, until the tranny started playing up. He has never driven a Porsche (unless he drove that one he was considering).
 
Scirroco?
 
I like the Golf, Jetta, Scirocco idea (if you can find a decent scirocco).
Tough engines, fairly inexpensive to repair and operate and decent mpg. My son dragged a 4x8 U-haul from New York to Seattle in 3 days with his '87 Jetta. It had about 130,000 miles on it when he started out.
 
I'm 30 and I'm dying for a Jeep (and of course the freebie CJ5 has just come around again)
I absolutly love our 91 318is BMW. It's a wonderful little car. (now I wanna M3)
and I've driven several Porsches. I'd take 'em all If I could afford 'em
 
[ QUOTE ]
I'd take 'em all If I could afford 'em

[/ QUOTE ]
And there’s the dilemma for a lot of folks. You’re 30 & say that – imagine what it’s like for the late teen starting out or an early twenty something.

As my 15 year old reminds me everyday – I’ve been scanning over the classifieds for possible “starter” vehicles for him. Truthfully I’m considering a lot of vehicles but I’m siding towards something that’s safe, reliable of & cheap on gas. Like a Saturn or a Honda. But then a part of me wants to give him something that would kind of force him to “learn” about how to do more than just put gas in the tank, and would require some responsibility on his part to maintain it. I’m not saying I want him to be a mechanic but way too many people don’t even know how to take care of the basics on their vehicles.

How many times have you have seen a shinny new vehicle stranded on the side of the road. With the owner standing next to it scratching his head staring at a flat tire with his cell phone firmly affixed to his ear? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif
 
Guy I ride to work with was telling us his son, an Army lieutenant, has to have the brakes on his Dodge pickup redone & its going to cost him $1,000! (Can anybody say "rip-off?") Kid doesn't know anything about cars. I asked my friend if the son knew what an 'auto craft shop' was? Friend is also retired Army & knows what they are (a place on a military base where you can take your car & get help doing the repairs yourself while you learn how to do your own maintenance)....kid does but "doesn't have time".

Methinks many times we don't want to "have time" when we become adults to pick up new skills we should've learned as young men.

Other guy in car pool told about when his sister needed a new clutch in her car while they were in high school. His dad took him out to the garage, got him started, and told him to come get help if he needed it.

Definitely buy a kid something he can learn to work on as his first car....neat thing about old Scirrocco's is they really are sporty cars but are simple to work on; & his firned's will be envious of him even in their 'ricers' because its the German version of a 'ricer' - IMHO, they are the last VW's that a kid can learn to wrench on!
 
Good point Tony, I like that idea! Mind you, he does his own wrenching, unless he needs my help. In fact, his friends call him to come over and fix their cars! I taught him to swap out brake pads, or even a caliper if needs be, he changes his own oil and filter, but a good DIY car is always a bonus. A 318 is still not out of the question, depends what I can find around here, they don't come up that often, at least not anything that's any good.
 
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