Cole

2012 Toyota Camary V6 is 268HP. More than any factory 944/951/968. And smokes them in nearly every performance spec.

I doubt anyone would advise against a Toyota Camary as a reasonable car for a kid.

Just saying

mfyoung1086

I would advise agaisnt a toyota camry for anyone!

mfyoung1086

Not saying they are junkers, but that car in Aus could probably fetch 20k. Just saying a normal used 944 with service records and the lot goes for pretty much 10k all day down south

Tom R.

i wouldnt. The Camry is a great car for what it is.

mfyoung1086

A camry 10 years ago maybe, a new camry no

This is the worst camry Toyota has ever made, in terms of build quality (which is what you pay the toyota premium for) its VERY run of the mill and safety wise it's towards to bottom of the pack!

So I'm a good friend and I would advise no one to get a camry still haha

I think if we really wanted to make a point about how slow an N/A is compared to modern cars, you could point out the fact that a minivan would smoke it

Cole

Yes, I could have used any number of modern basic cars to put the performance of the 944 in perspective. I just chose a specific example of the Camary. Any minivan or econobox probably would have done fine.

MAGK944

As responsible 944na owners I think we all have a duty to let Camrys, minivans, etc smoke us, especially this time of year. It's a good thing for those drivers to have the occasional brag about smoking a Porsche. For the most part their lives must be really boring. Spread the joy!

944Ross

I see parents (wealthy suburbanite types mostly) buying nice cars for their kids' first car all the time. I had three boys, all mechanically inclined and "generally" responsible, and saw their friends' parents doing that. It rarely turned out well. I would figure on any teenager wrecking their first car within 2 years, no matter the cost or condition of it. Compared to 1968 when I got my first car, there are almost 3x the number of cars on the road in the US. Probably half of them are driven by people incompetent in one way or another, and now distracted by cell phones and MP3 players. The odds are stacked against anyone without experience in dealing with those hazards. Let the kid get some miles under his belt before spending the money on anything, and preferably make him earn at least a part of it.

AKCJ

Probably couldn't duplicate that car for 10K, but I would have to say that does not make it worth 10k.
OTOH I over paid for my car and have never really regretted it. For the right owner, that car would be fantastic.

As far as buying that car for a kid - there is no way I could recommend that. Kids need a starter car. Something they can learn on. Something that you're not upside down on. I get that it's harder than ever for kids to buy their own first car and I'm not opposed to helping a kid buy one. But to give a kid such a pristine car like that is just not a good idea. The idea of helping a kid get a car is so they have transportation to work, no so they can have the nicest car on the block. YMMV

karlfrevans

^ The market determines fair prices. The 944 is not as desirable as a 911 and purchase prices reflect this. However, labor and parts availability for 944 and 911 are similar, because built quality and engineering are similar.

In life you get what you pay for-- and a cheap to purchase 944 provides certainty that you will pay quite a bit to keep it running. I prefer to buy a nice car and maintain it.

I have owned and maintained my 45,000 mile 951 since 1995 (14k miles), and I bet I have less in maintenance than those who bought their cars for next to nothing.

As Milton Friedman always said "There is no free lunch".

BobSantos

Just trying to get some posts in and wanted to say I completely agree with the above statement.

If it were my kid I'd get him a well worn 300D, a set of tools, and let him get some experience.