A recent Detroit News article cites an AutoExtra.com survey that 75% of driving-age teens are driving their own vehicles and half of these vehicle are purchased by parents.
An August survey by AutoExtra.com found that three out of four driving-age students own cars, half of which were purchased by parents. Of the 500 parents polled in the survey, 82 percent said they bought used cars and most of them cost under $10,000.
Fall is a prime time for teens' first car purchases, especially this year, as July's record high auto sales led to a surplus of cars from trade-ins, which means there's more selection and lower prices on used car lots. But while they were looking for less expensive cars for their children, 90 percent of parents polled in AutoExtra.com's survey cited safety and reliability as their biggest concerns.
The article says that when parents go for safety in a vehicle they sometimes choose SUVs which are not the easiest vehicle for new drivers to handle.
As a general rule, safety-conscious parents tend to focus on car size, said Jonathan Adkins, communications director for the Governors Highway Safety Association. Adkins said parents often buy SUVs because they think bigger is better. But only the newest models of SUVs have electronic stability control to prevent rollovers and many parents can only afford the used models.
The article also points to the DaimlerChrysler's Road Ready Teens website which includes information and a free online game teens can play to improve their driving skills.
