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by Anton Bekerman on October 29th, 2003

Anton Bekerman

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What would be the best car for a beginning driver? And how can I learn more about cars?

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  • by 8 Jan 2004-10 Dec 2009 on January 21st, 2004

    8 Jan 2004-10 Dec 2009

    The best car for any person will be reliable,.relatively affordable, and within the abilities of the driver to control.

    For a beginning driver, these will usually be used foreign FWD 4-cylinder compact cars. They are forgiving in the snow, easy to manuever in traffic (especially parking lots), and available at quite reasonable prices. A bonus is if the car is cheap enough that wrecking it won't cause undue financial strain. I flipped a $3,000 used car before and it hurt a lot less than it would've to have flipped a $22,000 car that I'd still be paying on after the insurance company gypped me.

    Heck, I'm an experienced driver and I drive a reliable 1989 VW Golf that I picked up for $350 and put only another $70 of work into. Before that, I drove a 1987 Toyota Corolla I picked up for $500; those things are virtually indestructable.



    I learned a lot about cars through hands-on experience and the Haynes and Chilton manuals for the cars I've owned. With just a book and some basic hand tools, I changed my own rear struts for $45 (parts) and actually managed to do a head gasket (minus the machine work, which wasn't necessary in this case anyways) for under $50 instead of the $550-1200 most places charge. Sport Compact Car has also taught me a lot, especially the "Suck, Squish, Bang, Blow" series of tech articles they ran a few years ago.



    Response to detractors (past, present, and future) - I am merely answering this question based on my personal experiences. Like most people, beginning drivers are NOT always made of money so they may want to start inexpensively. If you (or your millionaire parents) can afford ANY car you want, you can afford a driver for it too.
    Unless you wish to donate a vehicle that meets YOUR appproval to me, absolutely free, taxes paid and fully registered, and repair it as long as I own it, then I would appreciate it if you refrain from such derogatory behavior. This includes all of you snobs who have more dollars than brain cells.
    On second thought, just refrain from such comments and allow me to exercise my right to have different tastes and opinions than you, and give me a job that pays $2.4 million per year.

    Comments

    • I dont like any of these cars, besides all the chit chat about your mechanical skills has nothing to do with the question.

      Astaroth

      by Astaroth on May 18th, 2004

    • Yes, but the ? asked how to learn about cars. Hands on is the best way. First sentence sums it up nicely too.

      Andy Is Wicked Married to Penal Colony

      by Andy Is Wicked Married to Penal Colony on June 26th, 2004

    • We don't care about your fleet of P.O.S. junk autos.

      DARON J

      by DARON J on December 6th, 2004

    • I would only take your advice if I was on a budget. I'm NOT, so I won't! But good advice for poor people.

      Answers101

      by Answers101 on March 3rd, 2006

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