teens, cars, jobs, school

[bellebud]

how does this work in your house?

teens driving... using your car? their own car? how did they get it (who paid)? a clunker or a 'safe' car? what does the teen contribute to the car? (gas/insurance/payments/mileage)

what age did you allow your teen to go with other teen/older teen drivers? (not talking 16yo's who just got their license, more like 17 to 20yo's)

 

[Mickeyluver37]

Both teens have cars provided by us and in our names. Older Honda Civics- one is a 2001 and one a 2007. The really old one might be in clunker status, but it's going strong! Hoping neither child needs a new car before graduating college and buying their own. DD19 is in college and responsible for her own spending money so she pays gas and recently bought a replacement battery. DS17 pays nothing yet, and his sister didn't while she was still in high school either. We want them focusing on grades and part time jobs they've had are for their own spending money, which they need to save if they are going to need while away at school with no job.

 

[NHdisneylover]

We only have one car, it is a company car provided by DH's work and per their rules no one under age 25 can drive it---so there is that.

My oldest does not have their license nor want one at this point, even though they are in uni in the US in an area with virtually no public transit. We did make sure they have a good bike and try to make sure they have a way to get back and forth to the airport, etc.

DS17 is in driving school now to get his lincense shortly after he turns 18 and is eligible , and we are paying for that because having the ability to drive a rental car on a work trip, etc will be helpful to his career (this will run about 2500 € in Germany) and he will be doing an apprenticeship program rather htan uni, so we are not having to pay for that. We have good public transit here and pay for his monthly card to use it. We're also willing to buy him a good bike if/when he wants one. if he wants a car he'll need to buy that and pay for gas, insurance, repairs, himself.

I trust the kids' judgement about who to ride with. Honestly, probably the most dangerous is with the grandparents---my father in law prides himself on how rarely he changes brakes-that car scares me a bit.

 

[Kae]

DS got DH's dad's jeep when he past away we pay for insurance right now storage insurance he is a freshman at college and didn't take his car. DD just turned 16 so she will get my car and I will get a new one. State law here is until 6 mths after getting license no one under 18 can ride with you except family. We let the kids ride with other kids, never had a problem.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I'm in NJ. No license until you are 17. You have to have a permit for 6 months (maybe 3??) and driving school is a requirement and about $300-500. There are also all types of rules and regulations once he gets his license. Times he can drive, who can be in the car, no minors, etc.

DS is 16 and asked me if he can get his permit on his 17th birthday in March. He asked if his father and I can pay for his driving school as his bday gift. I think we will.

His father will get him a car. It's actually an older car he has that he is willing to give to DS.

He will not be getting his actual license until he has a job that can cover gas, repairs and at least help pay his insurance. Just to add him to my insurance with NO car is around $1400 for the year. With a car, probably 3K. I would prefer to not put him on my insurance since teens have a tendency of getting tickets and accidents which raise rates. I'm still thinking this one through. I'm thinking after graduation he will get his license since he doesn't have a PT job due to sports.

We live in South Jersey/Philly area. Great public transportation. He takes the bus to school even though we are within walking distance but across a major intersection so they bus them. All extracurricular activities have a late bus. His friends are within walking distance. If he goes somewhere I'm willing to take him and pick him and his friends up. He does not NEED a car right now.

I believe driving a privilege, not a right, so he has to help with that privilege.

 

[Snowflakey]

Both DD"s got their license the day they turned 16 (they are now 23 & 20). Never did I want them needing rides from other teenagers - I was more comfortable knowing my girls were driving. With almost 30 years working in the auto insurance industry I've seen things that scare the life out of me. DH and I bought our girls their first cars - nothing new but reliable (Toyota's). From the day they started driving gas expense was theirs. However both girls have worked since the age 16. I pay the insurance. Knock on wood the cars haven't needed any major work. They have purchased their own tires (snows and all season) over the years also.

 

[VillainFavs]

Oldest DS is 16, has his permit, will get a license in the next few months. He won't be getting his own car. We have two vehicles--a minivan and smaller sedan we just bought this summer. DH uses a company vehicle for work all week, so second car just sits in our driveway most of the time. No sense in getting a third car that we'll need to pay insurance on!

He knows the car will not be his, but he'll have use of it most of the time. We'll be paying expenses for it as he isn't working now. Not going to push him to work, as concentrating on school and getting good grades is his job right now! Hoping that those good grades will translate into some money for college! He works very part time during soccer seasons--fall and spring.

Here, the first 6 months after getting a license no one under the age of 18 (except siblings) allowed in the car. He's been with other young drivers and I've told him I need him to use his judgment since I'm not in the car with them. Hoping he makes good decisions!

 

[soccerdad72]

Oldest son turned 16 back in September and got his license a couple weeks later. We went and got a reliable, reasonably priced car (Toyota Corolla) for him to drive. He has some restrictions and we have certain rules in place (e.g. letting us know when he gets where he's going). He's only allowed by law one non-related passenger right now, but most of the time right now, he just uses the car for going to and from school and soccer practices. He doesn't have a regular job, but does do some refereeing right now. We pay for most of the expenses, but gas is his responsibility and he pays for a portion of the insurance cost.

He's been pretty smart about who he rides with as well - I know there's a couple soccer teammates of his that he won't ride with because they're notorious for being dangerous drivers.

 

[xlxo]

Depends....

• do you live in an area that has decent transit (15 minute frequency)?
• do they have a job? Can they afford an accident in the first few years?
• operating costs vs time saved?
  • Gas (SUV vs hybrid vs electric)?
  • how much is daily parking at school and/or work?
  • How much is insurance?

 

[bellebud]

OP here... our dd17 has been the chauffeur to all her friends (none have a car to use), with the car we pay for (like most of you, wanted her to concentrate on her education, and she works part time in our family business). Her car is a 2016 Subaru Forester (we use it 1 day a week for our business, the rest of the time it's hers to use). We had an older car for the business, but upgraded when she got her license. All was good with this arrangement until we realized how many miles she and her friends were putting on the car. 282 miles last week, just from her driving around, going to see friends, taking them to the mall, etc. We live fairly rural, her friends house is 12 miles from ours, then the mall is 11 miles from there.

We told her that this arrangement wasn't working, and if she wanted to drive her friends all over, she'd have to pay for it. We figured she has to pay 50 cents a mile. We fill up the tank once each week, if she uses it all she has to put more gas in. We pay for everything else for the car. So 282 miles last week, and I deducted 50 miles for her going to work, etc. So 232 miles equaled $116 for her to pay for 1 week of driving. It's a lot. But we don't know what else to do. She's not getting the fact that it's expensive to run a car, she can't say yes to every friend request, or she has to ask them for some money to chip in. Something...

 

[xlxo]

@OP.... some ideas....

• what about reducing the frequency and the amount you fuel up? She needs to fill the tank with her own money if she wants to drive.
  • Kinda risky in winter if you run out of gas stuck in traffic
  • fuel pump needs to be submerged to keep cool. Running the tank below 1/4 risks shortening the fuel pump life.
• need to think about hybrid or electric to save money? Going electric (like a used Nissan Leaf) means she needs to get home to recharge.
• how is your school grades (study time vs mall time)? Has the vehicle improved the school grades?
• what about pimping the vehicle in some undersirable way to her friends? Perhaps a car wrap advertising for the family business? How about a vehicle with safety or educational messages around it?
  https://www.google.ca/search?q=undesirable+car+wrap&tbm=isch
  https://www.google.ca/search?q=disney+car+wrap&tbm=isch
• What about installing dashcam with audio? You get safety and the audio recordings will creep out the passengers.
• How about adding an asset tracking device? The creep factor in knowing where she or the family vehicle is going. http://www.findmespot.com/en/index.php?cid=128

 

[Hikergirl]

My dd18 has a car that we purchased. It is not a clunker, but it is an older, safe and hopefully reliable car. She pays for gas and will pay for maintenance, or parts if dh does the work.
We got her the car towards the end of her senior year of HS because I was not going to be driving her to her college classes. Before that we allowed her in her friend's cars at 16. She worked with one of her friends and her friend would drive her.
My ds is 16 and just got his permit. He can't get his license for 6 months but he will not get a car right away. We will probably do the same for him as we did for our dd. We do have an extra vehicle (dh's truck) but not sure if ds will want to drive that to school every day, not sure if dh will let him either LOL

 

[indimom]

We live in a rural area, so no public transportation at all.
Both kids got their license at 16. Both drove right away on their own.
I never had any concerns about them riding with friends, but I've seen nothing to worry about.

We own the cars, the kids get to use them. If my car is in the shop, 'their car' belongs to me and they have to find alternative transportation.
We cover the costs, except gas when they use the car for "going out".
The cars are old, but still reliable. Hopefully they will last through their college years.

Personally, I couldn't wait for my kids to get their license, and take the burden of transportation off my shoulders.

 

[njmom47]

I saved my kid's birthday and Christmas money from the time they were little. They each ended up with around $2500-$3000 which was used to buy their first cars. They did not work until they got a car because DH and I worked so they had no way to get there (although ds did have a little side job but the guy who he worked with would pick him up). Once they started working, they paid for gas, but to this day, only one pays her own insurance. Their first cars were between clunkers and safe cars....they did not go far (to work, school, friend's houses, all in our town). Ds turned 17 right before Sandy, so when it was time to look for a car, it took us almost 3 months to find something! It seemed everyone needed cheap transportation.
In NJ there were (and probably still are) strict laws so I like to believe my kids followed those laws about what age/how many kids in the car ratio.

 

[mickeyboat]

The plan was for DD16 to drive our 2006 Toyota Sienna, but she ended up driving our 2013 Nissan Sentra because I prefer to drive the van. We pay for insurance, gas and car repairs, but it is with the understanding that she drive her sister wherever she needs to go, because DD17 has a vision problem and is not able to drive. We live just two miles from school, and not to far away from shopping, so we really are not putting too much gas in it. She is not working now because of school and sports and volunteer commitments, but she will work over the summer. If she starts driving more for her pleasure (and less for MY convenience), she will be asked to contribute to the expenses. She understands this is OUR car and that we are letting her use it.

 

[SC Minnie]

DD paid for most of her car she got at 16 (it belonged to my coworkers grandmother who had passed away). The car was older that DD but was in good shape and served the purpose for getting to school and around town. DD had a job at Chick fil A. She paid for her own gas. It didn't take long before she started charging her friends for rides home after school because she was using more gas.

 

[bjscheel]

Sorry, OP, sounds like a hard situation for you. 50 cents a mile is pretty steep for a teen, too. But I don't know what to suggest.

We've bought two vehicles for our girls and we pay all expenses. DH uses those vehicles for occasional running around too, and I didn't want to make them pay for his use, nor did I want to keep track of it. Oh, and there are lots of times she drives her sister somewhere, such as the 70 mile round trip to drivers ed several times last summer. This is also our way of letting them save for college, since we don't have college funds for them. But they don't abuse it, either. If they were putting on the miles your daughter is, we would have to come to some sort of compromise. We are rural, too, it's 11 miles to school and their friends are all at least 11 miles away, some up to 25 miles away. And I don't want to "punish" them for being country dwellers by keeping them home when their friends go out. So far their driving has been within reasonable limits. DD18 is one of the oldest of her grade, but until recently she had a very small friend group that didn't do much outside school and no one was asking for rides. DD15 has a lot of friends but is one of the youngest, so by the time she has her full license, everyone else will have their license already. So I guess we lucked out.

We have a 1999 Dodge Dakota ($3400)and a 2003 Jeep ($6800) so they are older but we found them with low miles so we hope they last a long time. Problem is, the Dakota is RWD with a big engine so it's terrible on snow. DD18 can use the Jeep in winter weather while she is still living at home, but next year we have to decide if she needs AWD/4WD at college. The Jeep will stay here for her sister. If we decide to get something else, we will probably pay for the 4WD for DD18, and her pickup will stay here for DH to use. We were thinking an older Equinox or something that can serve her well at college and beyond. She loves her yellow pickup though!

 

[jt'smom]

When my son got his license, he paid off the 7K balance of our SUV, with some money he inherited from his grandmother. We only had one car, since my husband has a company car for his use, and I wasn't going to be left without a car all the time for him to drive to school and work and such. He got a good deal on a late model used SUV, and I got to buy a cute little car for myself. We do keep the title in our name though, because we keep him on our insurance policy. He pays all his maintenance and gas. When he graduates college in 2 years, he will have the title transferred to his name, and have to get his own insurance, but by then, his insurance will be a lot lower than when he was 17.

 

[wishesuponastar]

Our 19yo daughter got her license at 17. At that time, we had her pay $25 a month for insurance but then somewhere along the line my DH told her she didn't have to pay anymore. She did use our car because she can't afford to buy one and every once in awhile we made her put gas in it. Now she is away at college without a car but the college has excellent bus system.

 

[tvguy]

DS got my 13 year old Mercury Sable with 100,000 miles on it, and I bought a new car.
4 years later the now 17 year old Mercury Sable with 130,000 miles on it was passed on to his sister, and we bought him a 1 year old Taurus from Hertz with 25,000 miles on it for $9,995. That was 9 years ago, he is now married and still driving that car.
DD was in a minor fender bender when the Sable was 18 years old, and had 140,000 miles on it. Minor but not worth fixing, it was towed right to the junkyard and we bought her a 1 year old Taurus from Hertz with 29,000 miles on it for $9,500. She is still driving that car 8 years later.
We paid everything until they finished college. Just like college tuition, we felt that was a parents responsibility.