At my sons school I have seen students driving 911's, a G wagon, and lots of Beemers, benz's, Camaro's, and the like. Not sure what the parents are thinking.

Yes. I see the same in some cases in my son's high school. Dont get it either. Wonder if parents are making up for themselves driving beaters back in the day.

My boys do all the preventative maintenance and repair on their cars, under my supervision. They take an ownership stake in operating an automobile. Its hugely important to me that they know how things work, that they have the capacity to maintain something mechanical, the feel for tools, and the humility and perspective that comes with being a mechanic.

None of this can occur if a kid drives a new/ish car under warranty or if the parents write a check for yard work, oil changes, home repair, etc.

A good reliable 8-10 year old pickup would be my suggestion. My kid got his license last year, and we took our time and found a well kept F150 for him. I would think any brand of well kept vehicles would get a kid where he needs to go.

old and cheap first, thank me later.

How about that Blue Bronco with the hood up at Seniors shooting range??

Hey I was gonna call dibs on that! That’s a 92-96.

I’m trying to be less judgmental, these days, but moves like that make it hard to keep my mouth shut.

Creek’s Bronco would be a cool start.

I bought a Jeep JKU in April...what I learned from that is the insurance is almost 1/2 what my SuperDuty truck is and it’s a dog. It really might be the perfect first vehicle for some kids. Funny thing is I had no idea when I bought it that would be the case. I asked the agent about it and he said they don’t make a “fast” Jeep and parts are generally modular with lots of aftermarket options if he keeps the damage to the frame at bay.

Good luck Chad.

My ex moved my two little girls from a very poor, almost inner-city, Christian school to one of the largest Christian schools in the area on the north side of San Antonio. Kids were driving brand-new Hummers when they were all the rage, and other high-end cars. Talk about culture shock. My oldest one got a used Olds 88 (in white) from me. I do believe she quietly hated me during that period.

I got my son an 89 f150 3 speed with a straight 6. Good running truck.

Or.... everyone will be taking a turn because he's the only one that has one?

That was my experience anyway lol

Yes, I'm amazed at some of the vehicles the teens are driving. Multiple new vehicles, BMW, new Chevy trucks, and such. I, 100%, will not spend money on anything close to that.

this.

My brother and I started driving in the early 2000's. Brother got a '93 2wd chevy 1500 single cab used with 150,000 miles on it. It was a good truck few issues and he sold it with well over 200k miles on it.

I bought my dads current truck a '94 chevy 1500 2wd with 140,000 mile son it and drove it to 265k miles with very few issues.

Brothers was a $3,000 truck at the time and needed nothing. Mine was worth maybe $4,000 at the time.

You gotta pick what you want, is it a play toy or a means of transportation? Ours were manual locks crank windows 2 wheel drive basic vehicles with moderate miles for their age. As long as they haven't been neglected they will run a lot longer than many give them credit for.

The boy got a '77 Pontiac Gran LeMans in baby poo yellow. Lotta steel right there and a couple years older than he was. He loved it.

Daughter got an 11 year old Cadillac Tank in sickly yellow. I was not her hero and I still hear about it 24 years later.

Son got a 12 year old Jimmy and rolled it. I guess he learned a lesson...has not had a wreck since.

Nephew got his only child son an almost new jeep which he rolled within a month. Nephew did not learn. Jeep was replaced by a new chevy pickup which was wrecked within 3 months.

may want to take a look at the used truck market.

Obama and his Cash for Clunkers program got rid of a lot of good older vehicles, and Mexico got most of the rest.


You have to go out of your way to find most of these vehicles ya'll are describing as being fit for kids.

a 10 year old truck is still a 2010 model. In our area, and i see alot of miles, i really have to look pretty hard to find a vehicle much older than 10 years on the road today.

a 10 year old truck is still gonna be much nicer than what we had available to us as well.

I had a 2011 Ford F-150 that would still drive today. It was a nice ride. A 1994 model F-150 or Chevy 1500, which is what i would have had in high school, would pale in comparison in terms of amenities. Its also hard to find a truck today that isn't a crew cab. Not nearly as many reg. cabs on the road and ext. cabs are a thing of the past.

My first vehicle was supposed to have been a 68' K5 that me and my Dad did a frame up on. I am not exactly sure how much he had in it - but aside from paint and sand blasting he/we did everything ourselves (he bought and sold late 60-80s pickups as a hobby/extra income...this was late 90s early 2000s). I say supposed to be - a guy saw him leaving the tire shop and followed him home and made him an offer he couldn't refuse. I think it was somewhere in the 12-13K range - which in 2002 was a chunk of change for that...now one in that shape would likely sell for double.

He made a pretty much barn find on a 1984 K5 that was as close as flawless as you could get. Old man bought it for hunting new and it had 30K original miles on it. I think he gave $1,500 for it. I spent probably 1-2K of my own money for bigger tires, sound system, and I scrounged a few junk yards and got a factory roll bar so I could look even "cooler" with the top off. I think my Dad spent 1-2K on headers, exhaust, bigger carb, and few odds and ends to bring the engine to life. It was dang near a showpiece. I never had a single problem with it other than needing a new starter. I drove it all over Texas my JR and SR year of high school.

A good square body, with an LS swap and body/paint can be had for about what a few year old Tacoma will cost. And unlike the newer trucks, will only appreciate in value. LS swaps are not that hard, most kits now are "plug and play", and good engines from wrecked vehicles aren't that expensive. Find one that is rust free, and do a project with your son. If the body is fairly straight, lightly sand iit down and clear coat it for that rustic look.

You might want to consider Gary's 07 Toyota RAV 4 in the classifieds.