The thing is that a major failure will cost too much to repair. Heck, a starter could cost a ton of money compared to a Chevy of that age.
Thereâs no way of anyone knowing whether or not a car that is a quarter of a century old is going to be reliable or not. Tacking the Porsche badge on just worsens the situation along with increasing the financial hit due to any repair costs.
Buying a car like that for a first timer is a believable story to me. Thereâs too many examples of kids getting far more car than they need.
The 17 year old girl in CA a few years ago who rammed here 100k dollar Porsche into a bridge abutment on the way to school one morning and the local kid here whose parents bought him a beautiful '70 Chevelle SS and then tacked on a NOS system a few weeks later.
The parents must have spent a fortune on rear tires and NOS bottle refills.
About 20 years ago a brother in law by marriage decided that he wanted a Porsche 944 after getting rid of his Corvette. About 6 months of in and out at the shop along with the outlay of a lot of money for repairs that were much, much higher compared to the Chevy cured him of his old Porsche fetish so away the car went for sale; possibly to someone buying it for their kid as a first carâŠ
Iâd still love to meet this kid who wants a 928. How many teens even know what one is, much less want one? Itâs ridiculous to think his parents would approve, but I want to know how he fell for this car, out of all the possibilities. Maybe a middle-aged neighbor finally got tired of its care and feeding. I guess a car nut needs a first love, too. When I was his age teenage boys had Countach posters on their walls (though I doubt many expected to drive them).
We know nothing about the OP. Maybe he can afford this car and all the repairs. At least he knows what to expect and can make an informed decision.
One of my dadâs friends owned an auto dealership. This friend originally had the Desoto/Plymouth franchise, but after the demise of the Desoto, he picked up the Studebaker and the Morris, Austin, MG and Checker line of vehicles. In 1962, when I had graduated from college and headed for graduate school, my dad was at the agency talking to the owner, I was drooling over a 1956 Porsche on the lot that had been traded for an MG. The owner of the agency came over and said, âThis isnât the car for you. It will take twice your assistantship stipend to maintain itâ.
I didnât have the money for it anyway. I plunked my âlife savingsâ into a 1947 Pontiac which cost me $75.
I guess OK is kind of on spot there. There are some people who like to live vicariously through their children. Maybe said Porsche was his dream car when he was younger.
1987 Porsche 928 S4 0-60 mph 5.4 Quarter mile 13.7 with a 316hp 5L V8
If the porscheinsurance.com site was any indication, then the Porsche would have to be classified as a pleasure vehicle, with limited miles allowed per year.
I agree with all the previous replies, especially the one from @texases, where he writes:
Your can rely on it to bankrupt you and likely kill your son.
Todayâs USA Today has an article titled: âBest cars for teens are big, slow and uglyâ
âBig, slow and ugly.â Thatâs what parents should keep in mind when considering what car to give or buy a new teen driver, says Adrian Lund, president of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
Being a teen myself, I think a better choice would be small, slow, and ugly. Wouldnât a small car be less likely to be crashed (because it would be easier to drive)?
It depends on the car, if there is a Taurus or a Corolla already in the family fleet it would be the best choice to start out with, even better if a few more scratches or dents wonât make a difference
Bigger is safer typically, the vehicle that weighs more is less affected in a crash.
At least everybody agrees on slow and ugly
Yep, 4 doors and 4 cylinders.
Unfortunately most of the time it just comes down to the driver paying attention, A month or two ago there was twin brothers driving to school, the big safe 2004? silverado the were in went off the road for an unknown reason, flipped, ejected the passenger and killed him and hurt the driver really bad.
There was no alcohol or drugs involved as is usually the case around here with single vehicle wrecks. It was never said if texting was involved, but due to a series of bad choices, now the driver has to live with the fact that his twin brother is no longer here, They were good kids,model students and good role models for fellow students. But they should have wore their seatbelts, rumor has it if they had their belts on the driver would have walked away, and the passenger most certainly not have died, probably escaped with minor injuries. It was an absolute shame, the parents are good people and were the type to drill responsibility in them, why could they just have not put on their belts?
I will argue that a teen who pays attention, puts down the phone, stays off the swish before driving, and is attentive would be safer in a porche 928, than a kid in his moms taurus who is on the phone, driving, singing along to the radio, and god forbid is on the way home from a party after having done a beer bong.
It all depend on the person, I mean you can go way too fast in almost any car or truck, even slow ones. Not to many cars are terribly slow these days anyway, most will pull off sub 11 second 0-60 times.
That being said the 928 is a terrible choice for a first car, unless daddys rich and donât mind spending the money to keep it going. Then I say go for it. But make sure Junior knows his limits and adheres to him.
I think most (unless they have a disability that prevents them) kids should have to learn on a manual transmission, and probably drive one for the first few years, they force you to pay a bit more attention.
Regardless of money the Porsche is a bad choice. Teenage boys are naturally âadventurousâ and a 928 will quickly get them over their heads.
I agree, but the same could be said for a camaro or mustang. For some drivers any car is a bad choice.
I was just trying to play devils advocate since people have stated in other discussions they would rather have highly skilled drunk drivers on the roads vs inexperienced teen drivers who are distracted. I sort of agree.
I would rather have neither.
I see what you mean. I wouldnât (and didnât) get a Mustang or Camaro for my son, either (even though my first car was a '65 Mustang). I would have been called a âgood kidâ and I remember how hard I drove it, luckily it was just a 6. Sure some kids survive getting a fast first car, but why push the odds?
@ texases
I totally agree, I had a camaro before I was mature enough to have one, and I had some close calls.
Bad part is, once I was mature enough to handle the camaro, it was nowhere near as fun.
Its too much work to simultaneously look for cops, look for other cars, look for pedestrians, look at your gages, shift, listen for odd noises, steer, power shift all at the same time.
Now I am excited about a 1990 caprice road sofa, a pickup and a prius. Oh how times change.
There was one time I damaged someones property with my camaro, I was doing a fishtail around a curve around 11pm one night (no I wasnt drinking or high) and managed to clip a mail box. I went back the next morning at 7am ( this was an area where you donât go the 1/8 mile up the driveway unannounced at 11pm if you didnât want a shotgun at your head) and told the home owner. He was so tickled that I actually stopped and offered to pay for it or fix it he told me not to worry about it. He said it had been hit several times and I was one of the few that ever stopped.
He flat refused any money or to allow me to fix it, he was retired and said it would get him out of the house. Of course I didnât tell him I was power sliding thru the curveâŠ
If you want to have some fun, go to a track. There are grudge match nights at drag strips and anyone can race for a small fee. Maryland International Raceway charges all entrants $20 for their Speed Unlimited series. Any street car can run in the Super Street class, and they have other, faster classes, too.
âBeing a teen myself, I think a better choice would be small, slow, and ugly. Wouldnât a small car be less likely to be crashed (because it would be easier to drive)?â
The issue is more what happens after the crash. Teens have little experience and are much more likely to get in an accident than adults are. Larger cars protect the occupants better than small cars. Maybe having a large car will shame them into not driving their friends around. Lots of friends (read: distractions) also make accidents more likely until a driver learns how to deal with the conversations in the car.
Our neighborâs son just got his driverâs license and between a paper route and some other work he was able to pay for half of his ânewâ car. Iâs a 2003 Ford Focus with a stick shift and no extras, not even A/C. Itâs bright red and looks sporty. He looks like a responsible kid, and learned to drive in his motherâs Dodge minivan.
I think he has the right kind of car.