Model 3 For A Teenager

[Saghost]

that. Buy him a well preserved 316/318/320 E46. Good fuel economy and cheap to repair if he trashes something. Enough horsepower with the manual to not feel slow and not enough horsepower that he will do anything stupid. The 316 also gets 40mpg at highway speed.

If the OP had asked about the suitability of the 3 and alternate suggestions, I would have put forward a used first generation Volt.

They're solid, reliable cars, and it'll be an effective introduction to electric drive without the challenges of a short range EV and with options if finding charging on campus proves challenging.

At the same time, it's a car you can likely find pretty cheap, which had plenty of smooth electric power and gets great mileage on gas on the rare occasions it needs to use it.

But the OP seemed convinced that a 3 was the way they wanted to go, so I didn't bring it up.

 

[CuriousG]

500cc 2 cylinder, 2 cycle, air cooled engine with 26 hp and weighted about 1200 pounds

So it's a motorcycle with a car body slapped on it?

 

[Acho]

So it's a motorcycle with a car body slapped on it?

Motorcycle is better than lawn mower

 

[Esme Es Mejor]

Cool story. I drove a Geo Metro at age 17.

I drove my brother’s hand-me-down Geo Prizm... at 23. Until I was 29.

Less than 15 years later, I drive a Model S. Life is good.

 

[CuriousG]

The next year my brother was driving and did a jump in his Mustang and we did end overs twice. To this day I don’t know how we survived. All four of us had cuts and bruiser and glass in our hair and skin but we survived. The car looked like a ball of steel and somehow missed all the trees as we ended up hundreds of feet into the woods on a windy country road.

Are you sure you're not from Hazzard County, Georgia?

 

[DR61]

This thread reminds me of the first car I purchased at age 19. I picked it because, anticipating the central screen on the Model 3, this car had a speedometer and instruments in the center of the dash (see avatar). It had 55 hp, weighed 1500 lb, and had a top speed of 85 mph. So fun, and I learned so much about spark plugs, twin SU carburetors, distributor points, etc. I drove it all over the western US from the Mexican to Canadian borders. Glad I survived!

 

[RayK]

that. Buy him a well preserved 316/318/320 E46. Good fuel economy and cheap to repair if he trashes something. Enough horsepower with the manual to not feel slow and not enough horsepower that he will do anything stupid. The 316 also gets 40mpg at highway speed.

Only problem with that is that N5329K is in the USA so that means 323 (2.5l), 328 or 330 models. 320 (2.0l) and below are overseas (wrt USA) versions.

 

[nvx1977]

I drove my brother’s hand-me-down Geo Prizm... at 23. Until I was 29.

Less than 15 years later, I drive a Model S. Life is good.

Your Prizm was manufactured in the same building as the Teslas!

 

[Twiglett]

I think after seeing the various crash pictures and how well the passenger cell stood up, I'd rather have my teenager in a Model 3 as well.
Darn, I'll have to do another reservation.

 

[Candleflame]

Only problem with that is that N5329K is in the USA so that means 323 (2.5l), 328 or 330 models. 320 (2.0l) and below are overseas (wrt USA) versions.

what do you mean? as in you can't even get a version below a 323? That is so weird, In europe you never really see anything above the 320.

If the OP had asked about the suitability of the 3 and alternate suggestions, I would have put forward a used first generation Volt.

They're solid, reliable cars, and it'll be an effective introduction to electric drive without the challenges of a short range EV and with options if finding charging on campus proves challenging.

At the same time, it's a car you can likely find pretty cheap, which had plenty of smooth electric power and gets great mileage on gas on the rare occasions it needs to use it.

But the OP seemed convinced that a 3 was the way they wanted to go, so I didn't bring it up.

you can't get the volt as a manual though and if he is 17 he should really start with that to train his motor +multi awareness skill to not end up like the standard american on the road.
Also volt is quite expensive second hand i thought?

 

[Saghost]

you can't get the volt as a manual though and if he is 17 he should really start with that to train his motor +multi awareness skill to not end up like the standard american on the road.
Also volt is quite expensive second hand i thought?

I used to believe that driving a manual was a fundamental skill that every driver should have. Then EVs came along. There is nothing that a manual transmission does better than an EV - and several things an EV does better than a manual from a driving experience perspective, leaving all the externalities aside. I don't really think a new driver today gains much by learning to drive stick any more than they do cursive writing - the future is electric.

Not sure what you're reading to decide Volts are expensive. I know a lot of articles claimed the depreciation was bad (by failing to start with the after tax credit price,) but overall I think it's been pretty close to average. That means that you should be able to find a typical 2011 or 2012 for $10-12k depending on the details. Considering the OP is thinking about spending $35-50k for a 3, that's cheap in my book. (And a used EREV instead of a new EV, of course. But still a great car for a college kid IMHO.)

 

[Candleflame]

I used to believe that driving a manual was a fundamental skill that every driver should have. Then EVs came along. There is nothing that a manual transmission does better than an EV - and several things an EV does better than a manual from a driving experience perspective, leaving all the externalities aside. I don't really think a new driver today gains much by learning to drive stick any more than they do cursive writing - the future is electric.

Not sure what you're reading to decide Volts are expensive. I know a lot of articles claimed the depreciation was bad (by failing to start with the after tax credit price,) but overall I think it's been pretty close to average. That means that you should be able to find a typical 2011 or 2012 for $10-12k depending on the details. Considering the OP is thinking about spending $35-50k for a 3, that's cheap in my book. (And a used EREV instead of a new EV, of course. But still a great car for a college kid IMHO.)

not sure, we dont really have the volt in europe as it is licensed by Opel/Vauxhall which means the standard EV buyer wouldnt go anywhere near that ha. whether a new driver should get a 50000 dollar car is obviously another question

It's not about that single gear EVs are the future but that it does heaps to train multitasking and awareness while driving - something which drivers who only ever drove automatics (or passed their test in an automatic only, i.e. in europe you aren't allowed to drive manual) usually lack.

 

[RayK]

what do you mean? as in you can't even get a version below a 323? That is so weird, In europe you never really see anything above the 320.

US traditionally gets larger engine displacements than Asia and Europe as our cars are not taxed based on engine size. There is something known as a "gas guzzler" tax but it's based on MPG, rather than CI (cubic inches).

Getting slightly back OT: A 323 (like my E46, which actually has the 2.5L straight six) can be too much for a teenager as a first car. I'd put a Model 3 in that same category, especially considering the raw power it has over similar-sized ICE vehicles. If you want your prodigy in a safe car, put him/her into any number of recent used Volvo, Subaru or Honda cars.

 

[Candleflame]

that's why the new BMW 316s all have twinturbo inline 3 cylinders now XD.

The E46 6 cc 320/323 really isn't that fast with the automatic transmission though. With the manual it is a lot better.
I have (had) a 318 4cc e46 with a manual transmission and have a 320 6cc e46 here with an automatic and the 4cc is way quicker. Official spec for the automatic 320/323 was like 9.3 seconds 0 to 100kmh with the automatic which by modern standards really isn't fast. And it is a massive gasguzzler in city traffic even when shifting semi-automatic.

 

[Esme Es Mejor]

Your Prizm was manufactured in the same building as the Teslas!

I’ve owned vehicles from the Tesla factory since before Tesla existed!

 

[AOK1]

"we don't want him to be able to track us" "17 year old son" with a luxury car. X_x

i realize im not being helpful here lol. At least you are not buying him a lambo.

I thought the same thing. A new M3 for your 17 year old?? Would they like to adopt me?

 

[AOK1]

In 2001 I had a 1987 4cyl puke green wagon that I was allowed to BORROW.

When I was 17 I got a job waiting tables and bought myself a Ford Pinto with 300K miles on it.

 

[AOK1]

My first car(in 2002), was a manual 1991 Toyota Tercel. I had never driven stick before getting that car. To this day, my Model S is the only car I've had that I love more than that one.

For the question at hand: I'm somewhat curious why you wouldn't want him being able to see where you are.

If for no other reason, because he would know how long he has before the party has to be shut down.

 

[Petrocelli]

Yesterday we picked up our Model 3, which is for our 17 year old son. My wife and I have an X and an S, so we don’t want him to be able to track us and/or have access to either of our cars but we want easy access to his car. I am guessing that this is not something that Tesla has given much, if any, thought to. Anyone have any ideas, other than creating a separate account for the M3?

Ideas? Yeah. Get your kid a Civic. But I guess that's parenting advice, not car advice.

 

[K6RIM]

How about him working and earning enough $ to buy himself a car?