What car should a young drummer buy?

onomatopoeia99

VW T4 or T5, minibus spec with a row of seats taken out (or van with a row of seats and some glass added). Seats and plenty of load capacity

If he wants to get passengers + drum kit + guitars all in at once, then he's looking at a van. If he gets a VW they have an element of desirability beyond most vans, but that comes at a cost, aka the "scene tax".

Added bonus with VW vans which may appeal to your son is the number of cheery waves and smiles one gets from young ladies also driving VW vans.

BeenThroughItAll

Another vote for a crew-cab or minibus with some rear seats removed here. A number of the chaps I work with are 'in bands' and one of the members of each seems to own a van.

Herzlos

If he's getting something to cart the whole band around, are they going to help with the cost of it?

I'd assumed you were just looking for something that would take the stuff, and someone else would drive the rest of the band.

macman

There's only one insurance risk greater than a 20 year old male, and that's the same declaring his profession as musician, journalist, or footballer...
The performance of the car is a relatively minor factor in the insurance premium here, as the main risk is 3rd party liability, and it's as easy to run down Roman Abramovich in an old van as it is in a Ferrari. Even with the lowest insurance group, it'll still be eyewateringly expensive for a year or two after he passes his test.

wba31

Herzlos wrote: »

If he's getting something to cart the whole band around, are they going to help with the cost of it?

I'd assumed you were just looking for something that would take the stuff, and someone else would drive the rest of the band.

I agree with this.

A new driver/drummer driving his own kit around could get away with anything really, I'd recommend Honda Jazz, but that is more than enough space, my mate lugs his kit around in a 207, before that he had a w-reg punto, before that a Nova.

Once you add extra people and the guitars and amps he now needs something like a peugeot expert or transit with extra row of seats, which may well suit at weekends, but what about the rest of the week? if getting a vehicle like that, surely the rest of the band should pay towards insurance etc? or your son has use of his own car to build up experience/no claims etc, and if the band want 1 vehicle to be ferried around in, they club together for a van and take the costs of the van out of their fees

loskie

first thing is to pass his test. Gain experience and competence.
remember there may be a restriction on how many seats the vehicle he drives has on his licence too.
Suss how much insurance is affordable.

You may find him in a fiat panda

Mercdriver

Do some dummy insurance quotes on comparison sites using a different address and details, insurance premiums will be huge - and believe it or not some insurance companies charge different amounts for different genres too. If he and his band gets regular work, he might also look at public liability insurance also.

SingleSue

I used to transport my son's very large kit, him and sometimes his guitarist, amp and guitar in my old Astra estate...but it was a bit of a squeeze. We'd have two seats down in the back with only the small seat left up and then everything packed around.

baza52

get a small car and use a trailer for the kit.

daltonss

All sounds like a right headache- transporting all this expensive kit. Is it really worth all the hassle and effort?