buying a car for my son

[Uncle Benz]

With those mods it has probably been owned by a young lad, and might have been driven hard to match the show with the go. Make sure the engine is not on it's last legs. The 1.4 vw engines are known for valve train problems, knackered catalysts and some have gearbox troubles too.
Beware of "system too lean" fault codes, if you get that deep...

 

[MissyD]

Thanks guys for all your comments. I'm finding it quite stressful, Im not technically minded which makes it hard. The few cars that I have bought have been from people I've known and so have felt confident about the history of the car. One positive point is that he has been hankering after getting a motorbike (his brothers influence!), so at least he has decided on 4 wheels

 

[superharrio]

For what it's worth, the difference between Gp1 and Gp3 (for example) is minimal insurance wise, but they are generally more robust and better specs. Aviva did a thing a while back for accelerated NCD for teens. It panned over 9 months not 12. My daughter now has full NCD at 21 for £235 with protected NCD.
If you look to the next 3-4 years cost-wise it can be more helpful than looking at the cheapest product for the here and now.

 

[paul hayward]

Thanks guys for all your comments. I'm finding it quite stressful,

You got good old Cole to help you Sarah.....no stress !!

4 wheels always better than 2!!

 

[MissyD]

You got good old Cole to help you Sarah.....no stress !!

4 wheels always better than 2!!

Yeah, but he is a busy boy and 120 miles away

 

[yorkshire1]

car

I have a son and daughter both with VW polo 9N 1.9 SDI s (non turbo) about as cheap to insure as other small cars, reasonably nippy and cant be beaten for economy,and easy to work on

 

[roop_the_loop]

He is 18, I know insurance is going to be high.

I'm in the same situation with my daughter. I've told her she can have any car she wants as long as it's insurance group 1 or 2...

And not older than ~5 yrs, so I don't have to keep taking it to the garage every other week!

 

[SL63 Mark]

Landrover Defender

Mic

^+1

Insurance is lowest possible (group 1) on ours, easy and cheap to work on, and loads of street cred. Also, it's hard for a youngster to drive too quick in one ....

Good choice.

 

[SL63 Mark]

he has been hankering after getting a motorbike