Son passed his driving road test…..now I need to buy another car

[Ottakee]

My 35 year old son with some special needs just passed his road test and is an officially licensed driver.   He took 6 1:1 adult driving lessons and then I drove with him.   Examiner said he did awesome and was well prepared.

That thought now means that I need to look for another vehicle.  Mine is too new to pass down to him.   We are in Michigan so I want something decent on winter roads.

He needs safe and reliable and something in the $4-6,000 range.   It will be mostly for just driving around our small town and maybe to visit family about 25 miles away.   No real long distances, etc.

i love the Hyundai ones but they can be expensive to insure due to the tik tok theft challenge😡. But there is a new security patch so maybe???

Any ideas on good, basic vehicles?

[rebcoola]

We are looking in that range.Ive seen quite few subarus which are typically good in bad weather, reliable and half way decent gas mileage. 

[Terabith]

With the sky high car prices, do reliable cars exist in that price range?  I haven't gone looking, and I'm terrified to do so.

[Ottakee]

1 minute ago, Terabith said:

With the sky high car prices, do reliable cars exist in that price range?  I haven't gone looking, and I'm terrified to do so.

That question is yet to be answered.

[DeainUSA]

That's a big accomplishment and I'm sure will be life changing.  Congrats to you both!

[Kassia]

No idea on the cars, but wanted to congratulate your ds!  That's a huge milestone!  

[Hannah]

Congratulations to your son for passing his test - what a great step in independence.  And to you for your patience!!

[MercyA]

Congrats to him and to you!

[DawnM]

I bought a used 2014 Honda CRV during the pandemic (2020) for $12k.   I know that is more than you want to spend, but maybe you can find a deal or an older one.

We stick with Hondas and Toyotas mostly.   I had a Mini Cooper but we sold it because it was giving us a lot of trouble.   I loved that car though.

I would be worried that some that low in cost would have other issues.   But hopefully you can find something.

Oh, and we told my ASD son (25) that if he could get his driver's license, he could have the CRV.   

Edited October 27, 2023 by DawnM

[Ottakee]

18 minutes ago, DawnM said:

I bought a used 2014 Honda CRV during the pandemic (2020) for $12k.   I know that is more than you want to spend, but maybe you can find a deal or an older one.

We stick with Hondas and Toyotas mostly.   I had a Mini Cooper but we sold it because it was giving us a lot of trouble.   I loved that car though.

I would be worried that some that low in cost would have other issues.   But hopefully you can find something.

Oh, and we told my ASD son (25) that if he could get his driver's license, he could have the CRV.   

Our students with ASD are getting private driving lessons paid through MRS… our vocational rehab agency.   It helps prepare them well for driving.

[Soror]

Dh has a 07 Accord we bought it for 5400. It was a one-owner old man car and is going strong at 190k miles.

We've bought and sold 4-5 cars in the last couple of years. What we found is if you are looking for just a few years old it isn't worth it to buy used but there are plenty to be had for decent prices when you are looking 5+ years old (there are lots for outrageous prices especially on places like Carvana or dealerships but that doesn't mean they are all high). We've bought all but one of ours private party. Dh checks them out as he is an adept mechanic otherwise we'd have someone look at them. We look at what model years are good for what vehicle as even with the best cars there are bad model years. We look for cars that have few owners and good maintenance records. We used to always prefer Toyota and Honda but dd had an eye on a Mazda and when I did research it was top for safety and had great reviews for reliability. Ds bought a Subaru for his car. They have a cult fanbase but it seems the reviews are uneven but that was his choice. 

[wintermom]

Congratulations to your ds! 

 

[rebcoola]

4 hours ago, DawnM said:

 

 I had a Mini Cooper but we sold it because it was giving us a lot of trouble.   I loved that car though.

 

I just learned that like everything in the mini's is connected so even tiny problems become big repairs and issues.  I was sad because I would have bought myself a used mini and given the kids my car before learning that.

 

[SHP]

On 10/26/2023 at 7:05 PM, Ottakee said:

 

i love the Hyundai ones but they can be expensive to insure due to the tik tok theft challenge😡. But there is a new security patch so maybe???

Any ideas on good, basic vehicles?

I am not really helpful for what to buy but want to give a word of caution about the cars in the tik tok theft challenge. We use an insurance broker and learned that no one here was writing new policies for those makes and models. I would check with your insurance company or broker to confirm if they are writing new policies before looking at them. 

[Sneezyone]

Both my kids have had great luck with used Hondas from the mid-late 2000s. Dd has a 08 Fit (easier to find, maintain and repair b/c it’s a stick shift) and DS has an 08 CRV.

[Ottakee]

9 hours ago, SHP said:

I am not really helpful for what to buy but want to give a word of caution about the cars in the tik tok theft challenge. We use an insurance broker and learned that no one here was writing new policies for those makes and models. I would check with your insurance company or broker to confirm if they are writing new policies before looking at them. 

Yes, we had that with my daughters sante Fe.   Great car but harder to insure.

I need to check with my Insurance agency

[Sneezyone]

On 10/27/2023 at 7:39 AM, Ottakee said:

Our students with ASD are getting private driving lessons paid through MRS… our vocational rehab agency.   It helps prepare them well for driving.

Can you tell me more about this driving support? DSs driving is coming along much slower than DDs. He has his permit and has ample opportunity to practice but neither DH or I have felt comfy getting him out on the highway even after 6+ months. He’s very (too) tentative and slow with his decision making.

[Lecka]

Here it is through VR (vocational rehab) and students can apply for VR at age 15 1/2.  There is a VR liaison for area high schools.  The VR liaison coordinates with Special Ed teachers.  
 

My understanding is that every state is different.  
 

Locally, most students who qualify will be in Special Education, but there are also students who qualify who aren’t in Special Education.  
 

I asked about this and was told the liaison can/does meet individually with those students, but it’s harder to arrange than for Special Ed where he can arrange with teachers to go in.  
 

My son has ended up being in Special Education in high school, so I can remind his IEP case manager (and science teacher) when it’s my son’s 15 1/2 birthday, and he will help us with it at that point.  I just asked about it at Parent-Teacher Conferences and he said not to expect it to be overly difficult/bureaucratic.  
 

For the driving support, my memory is that they can start working with students once they have a learner permit (long story but there’s not a written test required here).  Then they can approve blocks of hours for more driving practice, and then re-approve more blocks of hours if the instructor feels like it’s possible the student will be able to get a driver license.  
 

Edit:  I just looked at a flyer about it in my email, and it’s called DRS on the flier, but I have never heard anyone call it DRS.  Department of Rehabilitative Services.  

Edited October 28, 2023 by Lecka

[Idalou]

You're probably looking for cars made around 2010-12 for that price range. The Subaru Impreza is a decent sized, safe car, maybe look at Edmund's online for your area

[City Mouse]

We purchase/drive older cars. I have found that in the last few years the vehicles that meet our needs and standards are $5-8,000 instead on the $3-5,000 before the pandemic. I find most of our options on local Facebook groups buying from individuals.

[Terabith]

What is this TikTok theft thing???  Does that really influence auto theft rates to the extent of affecting insurance???

[catz]

We bought a vehicle last year and my young adult son bought one last month.  Supply of new and used vehicles continues to be an issue and prices are jacked up for used.  So my advice would be to remain flexible.   My son ended up in a Mazda basically because that is what he could get into within a few weeks.  

[Ottakee]

6 hours ago, Terabith said:

What is this TikTok theft thing???  Does that really influence auto theft rates to the extent of affecting insurance???

Yes as the tik tok video/challenge greatly increased the thefts of those cars

[Ottakee]

We ended up with a 2011 Nissan murano.    Praying it was a good decision as any used car is risky.

[KSera]

10 hours ago, Sneezyone said:

 He’s very (too) tentative and slow with his decision making.

Does he have ADHD by any chance? We found those two things related. It was one reason for deciding to go ahead with medication before independent driving. I read research indicating drivers with ADHD have lower accident rates if they are medicated for it. 

[Lecka]

Congratulations on finding something, I hope it’s great!!!!!

[Ottakee]

11 hours ago, Sneezyone said:

Can you tell me more about this driving support? DSs driving is coming along much slower than DDs. He has his permit and has ample opportunity to practice but neither DH or I have felt comfy getting him out on the highway even after 6+ months. He’s very (too) tentative and slow with his decision making.

As someone also mentioned, rehab services can help with 1:1 driving lessons with an instructor that is experienced with learning challenges.

[Sneezyone]

58 minutes ago, KSera said:

Does he have ADHD by any chance? We found those two things related. It was one reason for deciding to go ahead with medication before independent driving. I read research indicating drivers with ADHD have lower accident rates if they are medicated for it. 

No, not that we can tell.