As your teenager gets old enough to drive, you may be thinking to yourself:
“What kind of car should I buy for them?”
As parents, we want our children to be safe.
However, we also want to make sure that they have the capability of getting around from place to place—and that means they’re going to need a vehicle.
Driving is dangerous.
There are just no two ways about it.
However, if you choose the proper vehicle, and if you make that purchasing decision based on safety criteria, features, and statistics, you can actually do a lot to help protect your child—even while they’re driving on their own in their own vehicle.
And that brings us to a very important discussion:
What are the best cars for a new driver?
You want your child to be safe, especially with so many big trucks on the road.
Listen to these statistics from JT Legal Group:
“Much like car accidents, fatal accidents involving delivery trucks and commercial vehicles are common along the interstate highways and rural roads in California. The FMCSA prepared a report about the reported number of accidents from agencies of law enforcement and police departments around the United States. The report indicated that there were at least 450,000 traffic accidents involving trucks.”
Well, in this blog post, we’re going to explore 4 of them.
Let’s break it down and talk about some of the best cars for new drivers available today.
1. Toyota RAV4
The 2017 Toyota RAV4 earned big-time safety accolades for a range of advanced safety features.
The SE model was the leader in this safety category.
It had LED headlights, fog lights, a lane departure warning sensor, dual-zone automatic climate control, automatic high beams, adaptive cruise control, and even lane-keeping assist mode.
Plus, it looks pretty cool.
And by taking one look at it, you can see that it’s a sturdy vehicle.
This is exactly the type of vehicle that could help to keep your kids safe while also looking cool enough that they’ll probably like it.
Plus, nowadays, you may even be able to find it for below that $20,000 mark—and that’s pretty cool as well.
2. Hyundai Elantra Hybrid
The Hyundai Elantra Hybrid, especially the 2021 version, is a great option for teens partly because it gets excellent fuel mileage—and also because it has a range of amazing safety features.
For its price bracket, it’s actually one of the safest vehicles on the road.
It has lane keep assist features, automatic emergency braking, rear cross-traffic alert sensors, and even comes with blind-spot monitoring.
It can also get up to 53 miles per gallon in the city, and 56 miles per gallon on the highway.
Even by today’s standards, it’s an incredibly efficient vehicle—and your teen will probably really appreciate not spending so much on gas, especially with these rising fuel costs.
3. Mazda3
The Mazda3, especially older models which were built after 2010, offers both a sedan and a hatchback option.
The optional 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine comes paired with a 6-speed automatic transmission that works really well together, and has been proven to be a long-lasting and durable drivetrain system.
We actually recommend you get the turbo version. This is how you get the 2.5-liter engine instead of the 2.0.
With this version, you also get all-wheel drive, which is an awesome safety feature.
The interior is nice, it looks great on the outside, it handles well, and it’s firm and steady.
It’s not the flashiest car.
But for a new driver who wants something sturdy, reliable, and safe, it’s actually surprisingly well done.
4. Honda CR-V
The Honda CRV, especially the 2017 version, is very accessible to young drivers.
The EX model is going to give you the very best driver-assist features, and it also comes equipped with a range of additional safety features—so we would actually recommend that you choose the EX model.
It comes with fog lights, adaptive cruise control, dual-zone automatic climate control, a lane departure warning feature, automatic high beams, and lane-keeping assist.
It’s just packed with everything you would expect to see in a car that was really designed to be as safe as possible for teenagers and new drivers alike.
Conclusion
Hopefully, this post has shed some light on some of the very best cars that you can buy for new drivers.
Safety is of the utmost concern, of course.
However, every kid also wants to know that their new ride is going to be at least a little bit stylish.
Plus, you don’t want to break the bank on a first-time car purchase.
Keeping all of these things in mind, this list should really help you to navigate this playing field without running into too many pitfalls.
You’ve got this!
Now get out there and make it happen.
