Young Driver Car Choice

chris1988uk

I passed my driving test last year now 23 only work part-time and have found it hard to get a car. Saving up looking at cars and insurance not sure what to go for.
Anyone got any opinion on a good first car for a young driver?
So far i have found a Ford Ka 1.3 standard £1500 and insurance around £1100.



MSE Official Insert:

Don't forget to read the Car Insurance for Young Drivers guide.

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DCFC79

Dont pick a car that you see alot of that are driven by by boy racers but im not sure if the Ka falls into that category.

Strider590

DCFC79 wrote: »

Dont pick a car that you see alot of that are driven by by boy racers but im not sure if the Ka falls into that category.

I find myself in agreement with the above.

Friend of mine passed his test in or around 1997, his first cars were a 1980 Nissan Laurel and a 1982 Volvo 240. Huge and very unfashionable cars at the time, but dirt cheap to insure simply because no boyracer in his right mind would buy one.

Biglad_3

Auto express just had an article on young persons insurance if I remember right the Toyota Yaris was significantly cheaper than most.

cepheus

Top five cheapest cars to insure


Ford Fiesta - Some Fiesta's fall into the group 1 category, although a more high-spec one can get up to group 6. The Fiesta is a long-term popular car amongst young drivers and parts are amongst the most readily accessible of any vehicle.
Vauxhall Corsa - The basic one-litre Corsa falls into the group 1 category, and slowly rise up the groups the bigger the engine. Insurers like it because it is safe and cheap to fix.
Peugeot 206 - The lowest group the 206 falls into is group 2, but they can go up much higher depending on the performance. Stick with a lower range one and the insurance should be relatively cheap. It's another firm bargain driver favourite.
Renault Clio - The lowest group a Clio falls into is group 2, and again can steadily rise depending on the specification. If you want a cheap insurance car it fits the bill, just avoid the suped-up ones.
Fiat Punto - Newer Punto's fall into the group 3 category and are again popular amongst newer drivers. The older shape second hand cars were hugely popular and their ubiquity is reflected in cheap insurance.
Other group 1 cars:
- Chevrolet Matiz
- Citroën C1, C2 and C3
- Peugeot 107
- Skoda Fabia
- Suzuki Alto
- Toyota Aygo
- Toyota Yaris
- Vauxhall Agila
- Smart Fortwo Coupe
Older group 1 cars:
- Seat Marbella
- Fiat 126
- Fiat Seicento
- Citroën 2CV6



Read more: http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/cars/article-1700001/Five-cars-cheap-insure.html#ixzz1VPGK9gXU

chris1988uk

Still been looking best im getting for a ford ka is £1050.
However i have recently changed checking with my dad as the main driver which i have been getting under £800 for insurance using coverbox.
Would i be able to use it putting my dad down as the main but me using the car instead?

KierNet

chris1988uk wrote: »

Still been looking best im getting for a ford ka is £1050.
However i have recently changed checking with my dad as the main driver which i have been getting under £800 for insurance using coverbox.
Would i be able to use it putting my dad down as the main but me using the car instead?

Who will be driving it the most? If its you, then putting your dad as the main driver can cause all sorts of trouble for you and your dad.

Have a search for 'Fronting'.

Its not hard to find out if someone is fronting, 6 points for you and your dad, car seized and possible convictions for fraud. Not worth the risk.

£1,050 isn't that bad really, you'll be claiming your own no claims as well, so they'll start to drop!

Have you looked at a Fiat Panda? Not the coolest, but lowest insurance group.

Might also be worth looking at bigger engine cars...strangely my 1.8 Turbo Focus was cheaper than my 1.2 Punto!

naughty_10382

chris1988uk wrote: »

Would i be able to use it putting my dad down as the main but me using the car instead?

AFAIK that's illegal and the penalties are severe as detailed above.

I have both my parents on my ins as named drivers which brings it down - if this is not possible perhaps another older relative as well as your dad might bring it down a bit more.

Arg

DCFC79 wrote: »

Dont pick a car that you see alot of that are driven by by boy racers but im not sure if the Ka falls into that category.

Another example of the silly things the insurance industry does if true.

split_second

have yourself as main driver and a parent as a named driver, i saved about £300 in the early days of my driving by letting my dad borrow my old citroen ax

thegirlintheattic

spilt second is right, I save about £200 a year having my dad as a named driver.

Pay little attention to insurance groups, for young drivers they can be misleading as the calculation of risk is based partly on which cars are involved in the most accidents (and hence which are driven by most young drivers). It can actually work out that a bigger engine or bigger car can work out cheaper to insure than a little 1 liter. Diseal for young drivers can also work out cheaper.

Avoid 206s, Corsas, Clios and Puntos - young driver cars which cost more to insure. KAs are not typical 'boy racer' cars so work out cheaper than something like a Corsa but you could probably find something cheaper to insure. Watch the age of the KA too, they are well known to have rust issues after about 6 years or so which can require expensive welding to pass an MOT.