I have a 2013 Toyota Avalon, brand new, 6,000 miles on it so far. I’ve had it for about 9 months, and I love it. You’d think with that big of a sedan it wouldn’t have much power but the V6, 268 hp does. (clocked in around 6.8 seconds 0-60 mph). I’m 19 years old and I go to college, and I don’t always get jealous of the cars people drive (hell I had a 1990 Camry before the Avalon), but I see teens my age driving the Mustang, Challenger, and the other sports cars. Of course I’d be the first to challenge them any day in my car, but I just feel like I’m missing something. I lost that 1990 Camry in a horrible accident which was the other person’s fault, but regardless I was still without a car. Both of my parents have Toyotas (Highlander and Tundra) and I was pretty much forced into buying a Toyota. Don’t get me wrong I love Toyota but it really narrowed down what I wanted. Toyota doesn’t make any “cool teenage cars” (not yet at least). So I wanted to get a Ford Mustang, but my parents didn’t want to pay extra on insurance.
I don’t want to sound like I was forced into buying the car and now I’m regretting it, because I’m not, but a conversation came up the other day with my Mom and I asked her if I traded in my Avalon for a sports car would she and my dad consider letting me do so. They both hate Fords due to prior experience so I knew those were out of the question. But I was looking at the Dodge Charger (either '14 or '15) and they’re around the same price as my Avalon was. According to Kelley Blue Book which I heard everyone uses, my Avalon as of right now would be priced around $27,000. I paid 30,000 for mine so it’s not too far off.
Of course it comes down to price but what are some of the advantages of buying a Charger? I live in Massachusetts and we get tons of snow up here but I don’t want to sacrifice style for snow-safety (yes I just threw my safety out the window, no pun-intended). Also is the Charger considered a sports car? I know the first thing my parents will retaliate with is if insurance goes up. If that’s the case I do have a job and I could possibly ask if I can pay for some of it. I guess the real challenge is to find ways to convince them to let me switch over. My parents act as if the only reliable car company out there is Toyota, which I guess is true in some cases but they don’t have much of a selection. And if anyone has other suggestions of sports cars within the price range of a Charger ($25,000-35,000) but much more reliable please feel free to put your two sense in.
There will ALWAYS be a more desirable car than you have. Enjoy and appreciate what you have, take care of it (don’t challenge the Mustangs and Challengers, they’re beating their cars up), and thank God every day for what sound like very giving and generous parents who are trying to teach you good sense.
When I was young I had to buy all my cars, all by myself. My first was a '61 Beetle (it was the '60s). My second, after I went in the Air Force, was a mechanically beat up '64 Fairlane.
Focus on building a career for yourself. You’ll have plenty of time later to get a snazzy car.
You’re a very lucky young man. You just need to learn to appreciate it and not covet they neighbor’s car. I know that’s not what you wanted for an answer, but I’ve been around a long time now and it’s the absolute best answer I can give you.
Teens you age are driving Mustangs and other sports cars, and being charged through the nose for the insurance. Your insurance company would be able to tell you but depending on what engine/model Charger it would cost more to insure than the Avalon particularly the R/T model with the Hemi. We only got whatever extra vehicle was in the driveway with the option to drive the newer cars to work or other important events in the evening.
You’re 19 now and an adult. Time to think about your studies and career instead of a sporty car and 0-60 times. At your age I had a ten year old Volkswagon. I used to lament the kids that weren’t paying for school and had new cars but they tended to keep those cars for a long time afterward. Priorities.
Personally, I don’t think of the Charger as a sports car even with a Hemi under the hood. It’s a sport sedan or fleet car is the way I look at it.
It may not be what you want to hear but the new Avalon you have is a very nice car and I see no upside at all into trading it in on a Charger. Not only will there be a financial soaking by getting rid of the Avalon but the great odds are that in 7 or 8 years the Avalon will outpace the Charger in value.
Lord, when I was 18 I owned a 250 dollar Chevrolet; paid for by earning 1.25 an hour working in the maintenance department at a local university. The thought of owning a new car back then was mind boggling and very, very few people around my age then owned anything even mildly new…
The Charger is just a very ho-hum big sedan, not so different from your car. There are souped up versions, but you can’t turn a big family sedan into a true sports car.
Toyota does sell one sporty car, but branded as a Scion, the FR-S. It’s not extremely powerful, but quick enough and sportier than anything else they sell. Much of the work on the car was done by Subaru, which sells a nearly identical car as the BRZ. It’s an OK little car, but don’t expect to carry more than one friend. The back seat is tiny.
Personally, I’d keep what you have. It’s a nice car and trading it in this new you take a big hit on depreciation. Truly powerful sporty cars are expensive to insure for someone your age. The V6 version of either the Mustang or Camaro are still plenty quick enough, and cheaper to buy and insure. But I wouldn’t do it. They will cost you a lot and be less comfortable, less roomy, and probably less reliable. In a few years when you’re looking again there will be different cars around and there’s a good chance your needs will have changed. Meanwhile you have one of the most comfortable cars ever made.
Don’t think so highly of these sports cars / muscle cars that you see. The base packages, the ones you’d be buying, are pretty slow comparatively. Your 6-cylinder sedan already has acceleration close to the base 6 cylinder muscle cars. Its the 8 cylinder versions that really get the speed, but those are out of your price range unless you buy used.
Given that you want to go fast, and you live in new england, the perfect car for you would be the Subaru WRX. The AWD will be helpful in the winter, and Subaru is also known for reliability, which should make your parents happy.
Back in 2006, Toyota sold twice as many cars as Chrysler, and yet in that same year Chrysler spent almost twice as Toyota did fixing their own cars under warranty. With that in mind I can see why your parents would rather buy you a Toyota than a Chrysler product. But things have changed and the reports from my local dealer are that there are far fewer warranty complaints than there were several years ago.
As far as trading the Avalon for something more fun, if you have the financial ability to do so, I say do it. You’re only going to be 19 once, and the last thing you want is to be 50 years old and be regretting all the things you didn’t do when you were young. Your attitude seems different than many young people who point at shiny pretty things and say “I want that.” You seem to have thought through the fact that it’s going to cost more money and that it probably isn’t going to be as safe as an Avalon in the snow.
In my opinion, an Avalon is the kind of car you drive after you’ve had a Charger.
Stop worrying about cars (they are unimportant and chicks don’t care) and start worrying about your education which is far more important…On your campus, take a look around and observe what the Korean and Chinese kids are doing…You will have to compete with them for a job…Mammy and Daddy are not going to carry your water forever…
Daemones wrote:
Of course I’d be the first to challenge them any day in my car, but I just feel like I’m missing something
This is a good thing. Here’s your motivation to do well in college, keep the Avalon in good shape, save a chunk of money during your first two years of working, and then buy a nice used car that you like. You’ll feel a sense of accomplishment that way.
Keep in mind that you’re already driving something nicer than most of us had at that age.
Sure, the defects and compromises of a Charger would have me checking out an Avalon at replacement time. The Charger is not a sports car. It is a big family sedan with the name of an old muscle car. It can also be bought in a high performance version, but it is still just a fast big sedan with improved handling. It’s not ever going to be a sports car. The Challenger is slightly sportier because it was intended to be a retro muscle car. Unfortunately, it’s built from the same basic components as the Charger and Chrysler 300. While it looks like an old Challenger, if you put them side by side you’d see that the old ones were much smaller. The Mustang and Camaro are much more legitimate muscle cars. The V6 base models are far more powerful than the V6 models if a few years ago, and olenty quick enough for ordinary driving. However, the sportiest variants come only with the hotter V8 variants. They would be ridiculously expensive for you to insure. Another mentioned the Subaru WRX, and I agree that’s a very suitable sporty car, especially for cold climates. It’s not truly a sporta car, either, but it has performance to compete with them, and you still get a practical, roomy, and economical car to go with the peerformance. Insurance is still liikely to be expensive, but less than things like the Mustang and Camaro. Many people in New England buy the WRX as an ordinary car, a step up from the basic Impreza it’s based on. I would much rather have one of these in that climate. They’re just far more practical.
if you take care of the Avalon and save your money, you will soon be able to walk in and buy what ever you want for cash and not have to ask anyones permission or owe anyone money. your parents have given you a huge head start, take advantage of it
You know what, you guys are right. Apologies for my teenage mentality yesterday. The idea came to me and I instantly came here to see what everyone would say. Hell you guys are right, a lot of kids my age don’t even have a car. Don’t want to make this sound depressing or saddening but my parents didn’t buy me the Avalon, well, not technically. My grandma set aside money for both my Mom and Aunt and after she passed I got 1/3 of my Mom’s share of the money, and this happened around the time I lost the 1990 Camry. So the money was used for buying the new Avalon. Got the XLE Touring for $30,000 when it was originally priced at 36,000. Thought I was going to get a used car but I guess my parents didn’t believe in inheriting other people’s… well, to put it mildly, “mess” (no offense to anyone who sells their cars), and I’m very grateful for that.
I plan to keep the Avalon for a long time. Toyotas last a long time, I have first hand experience with that. Like you said Wesw, I’ll be setting aside my money now for later. I’m hopefully (knock on wood) going to major in nursing. Thanks again for everyone’s input, I really appreciate it
On a related note, I would safely venture that most of here anyway have committed automotive sins in the past and are speaking from experience with the intent of trying to keep someone from doing something they may regret later on. Any finger pointing can be done at me first off…
Just for kicks, head over to a dealership lot while they’re closed, so you don’t have to deal with pushy salesmen. Walk around the lot with a pen and paper and write down the VINs of some of the cars you’re considering, then head over to your insurance office with your list and tell them you’re not buying, just pricing insurance and are considering them. Make sure you’re sitting down because I’m sure the cost will surprise you.
It IS a good idea to do this regardless if you’re planning on buying or not’ it’s how I weeded out a couple cars when I was shopping awhile back. No use buying a cheaper vehicle if you’re just going to pay the difference with insurance costs
@Daemones–I committed one of those automotive sins at one time. I didn’t have a car when I was in college, but I bought a 1947 Pontiac for $75 in 1961 to go to graduate school. I was on an assistantship, in graduate school and thought I ought to have a better car. One trip that I made back home in the old Pontiac (I usually took the train), I found a 1955 Pontiac that had just been overhauled by the local Rambler dealer, so I traded. The 1955 Pontiac had a manual transmission, which appealed to me. That 1955 Pontiac turned out to be a real money pit. On the 1955 Pontiac, the oil filter was an option and the one I bought didn’t have that option. I had problems with the rocker arms which were mounted on stud and oiled by oil flowing through the stud started chirping. I had a terrible time trying to clear up that problem and I never got it fixed completely. The bearings had to be replaced in the transmission. I got out from under the problem because my parents had a Rambler that was totaled in an accident. A replacement was found by the insurance company at the Rambler dealer. My dad was ready to replace his 1954 Buick that had gone 120,000 miles. I was home at the time and the Rambler dealer offered more on a trade for the 1955 Pontiac than they would give on trade for the 1954 Buick. Hence, I traded my dad the Pontiac for the Buick and he traded it to the Rambler dealer for a replacement Rambler. I learned a valuable lesson about really checking out a car before buying it.
