v8_ranch

Jay,

Yeah, I wish you had one a bit closer... We homeschool our kids and so driver's ed is more like "mom and dad ed"

nh7cy

oh.. i guess that cancels out the whole getting your car keyed in the school parking lot thing.

which reminds me, having school parking permits in sticker form really makes it annoying when you switch cars often..

V2Rocket

I don't drive to school (I walk the 20 feet across the street to get there), but one of my teammates from lacrosse recently got his dead grandma's white 86 auto. He drives it every day and hasn't gotten damage...but I don't want the risk

Jay Gratton

Is that legal? I know in NH you have to take DE if your not 18 and you want to drive. I am sure if you looked on the net you could find a defensive driving school for her.

v8_ranch

Tennessee is a non DE required state, at least for now. You cvannot have passengers after dark if you are under 18 though... The schools here give the homeschool families a deaf ear on the DE. Some states require the public schools to let them (homeschooled kids) into the DE programs. I am basically worse off than the guys complaining that they have no children and still have to pay for the school! Only I get to pay twice essentially. Homeshooling isn't that cheap either after you buy what you need. Anyway, back on topic... I will have to look around for something like your school Jay. How long is yours? Is it an intensive, or over time?

V2Rocket

in CA for the first 12 months of licensure you cannot have passengers under the age of 20 and also cannot drive between 11:00PM and 5:00AM.

nh7cy

Geez, I haven't gone back to look at it but when I got my license it was no passengers under 20, no driving between 11pm and 5am for the first 6 months, for the next 6 months after that you could have passengers but you couldn't drive between 11pm and 5am. After that you were free to do whatever you want. Of course, everybody who knows of the new restrictions will happily tell you that "the police can't pull you over just for that" then they speed off, and get pulled over for going 20 miles over the limit..

Will Feather

on the topic of insurance, i only pay $1300 a year (about 150 a month). And happens to be $30 lower than my sisters 1987 accord!

Jay Gratton

Our course is a 5 hour course, however we keep in contact with all of our kids with newsletters, e-mails and phone calls. We even get a lot of parents who bring their kids back once a year for a refresher. Our course is all hands on with 1-on-1 instruction. All of our instructors either race in the SCCA, SCDA or Porsche Club.
I can't believe your state doesn't require DE. I thought NH was terrible, but that is down right dangerous. I am sure you will get your daughter ready properly, but I am sure a lot of parents just blow it off and get their kids on the road with out any training. Just because of that I would get your daughter in a safe car with lots of airbags and ABS.

alordofchaos

Y'know, since you are home-schooling, and she doesn't need to rely on the car for work/school, a 944 may not be so bad... as long as you take your time looking for a good example, get a pre-purchase inspection (PPI) by someone that: 1) knows the cars, 2) takes their time and looks closely.

Especially if you have a course or parking lot that you can drive on when it's wet, and there's nothing to crash into. Or if you go with a SCCA driving school.

OTOH, clutches are expensive, so a 944 may not be the best car to teach her to drive a manual tranny.

I feel your pain - $600 in books and we're not done yet...

Not only do you pay twice, you do all the work - and can't work outside the home.

1pcarnut

Interesting, thanks. An SUV was on her list of cars since that is what her sister got for her first car. I kind of like the SUV for the better protection/substance in case of accident. OTOH a 944 might be better at avoiding an accident in the first place... and so on.

Jay Gratton

I would stay away from an SUV. I wouldn't want to put a new driver in a SUV. They roll over to easy and they don't handle as well, so they can't avoid an accident as well. Most SUV's don't meet roll over standards and they can't support their own weight and that is why people die in them so often because the roof caves in on them. Get her a 4 door sedan (Jetta, Accord, Camery, etc) Good luck.

nh7cy

+1 on the avoiding an suv part. although i'd have to say that my 4runner is surprisingly stable. i've taken it into corners that i didn't think it could handle but it took them without a sweat. of course, a friend of mine, a new driver, somehow managed to nearly flip it (she tried to do a u-turn at 15mph).

V2Rocket

I can do u-turns at 30...

nh7cy

v2, for one we're talking about doing this in a 4000lb truck with a 3" lift and mud tires, and number two, we're talking about a first time driver doing a sharp u-turn, no swinging right then left, more like, turning the steering wheel until it locks and hitting the gas. you're free to come over and show me any time, and maybe show her what a pro you are at driving, but if you break it you buy it btw.