0utlier

I think you made the right decision too... for now at least. When I was 16 my dad bought an 83 Mustang GT at auction for me. He was unaware that is was hot-rodded, and I was too until I had to get some work done on it. The mechanic went down the list of what was done to it and was quite impressed with how fast it must be. I was wondering why nothing could keep up with me.

Moral of the story is I drove the hell out of that car like just about any 10 foot tall, made of steel, invincible 16 year old would do. By some miracle I did not die, or get any major tickets. I was VERY lucky. I'm remembering many times that could have easily turned out very bad for me. All I can think is it simply wasn't my time to die. I have no other explanation to how I made it through those GT years. No 16 year old needs a super fast car as their first car. I was cool kid on campus, but I almost paid with my life on several occasions.

I have a few more years before my kids are old enough to drive, but I can assure you neither will be getting a super car for their first. A 4 cylinder volvo sounds like a good first car.

JHowell37

A counterpoint is that if most of us look back in retrospect, we were all 16 at one time and we lived to talk about it. A kid will push limits regardless of what they have. That's what kids do. It's part of learning about life. My biggest concern about kids and high powered cars isn't what they can do to themselves, it's how they can hurt other people in other cars. The benefit to the Porsche is that it has a back seat that's not meant to hold teenagers. If I have kids, they're all getting 2-seaters. Eliminating the back seat of a car serves a few purposes. It can cut the number of bad influences who travel in the car, in half. He'll only have one retard in the car with him prodding him to go faster instead of 3. It's not often that you hear about kids killing themselves in the car when traveling alone. They always seem to have 2 or more people in it. Additionally, without a backseat, there's no backseat for the kid the respective date to retire to. Need I say more about that?

littleball_s4

Take him to the track in advance. He will soon realize street racing is no fun. I didn't drive safe until I took my first laps in the track.

OTOH, I saw a video yesterday of a lady flipping her 90hp-FWD audi over at 3mph because she felt frustrated after stalling it a couple of time in front of a laughing crowd. She stopped to open the gate, stalled it twice and smoked the tires the third time making the 90º right into his home gate, hitted it in the inside and ended resting on the roof.

The thing is you know him, you are the best to judge whether he can handle a V8 or not.

laufenOutLoud

Personally, @ 16 I drove a late model 5-speed 4-cylinder Volvo wagon and my parents both dictated that I pay for it AND the insurance. They could've afforeded either for me but I am very grateful that they didn't. Even with all of 112 hp pulling nearly 2.5 tons I still managed to get a speeding ticket of 115 mph on I-16 between Savannah and Macon, GA.

My point is: regardless of what car a kid is driving they have to make a decision not to push their limits. My parents did pretty well. I'm yet to be in a wreck in which I was the driver and I credit the Volvo for that. Did you know that you can't redline those cars? I gave it away with 390k miles to a women's shelter (still running).

Marcquito

Wow, what a lucky kid. My suggestion: He doesn't have the driving experience to handle the GT by any means, so I think that should be enough to buy him a little beater to make his way to school. My first car when I was 16 was a base model 1995 eclipse. What a piece of ****... but I ended up crashing it due to the fault of the city. A tractor mowing grass on the side of the express way pulled out in front of me and I panicked! I smashed into a guard rail on a bridge.

After that, I bought a turbocharged Eclipse GST with 250 hp. I still have it- I just have a new motor for it. -A stock one. I may sell it. Are you interested? You can buy my eclipse from me and he can drive that to school and still be in a quick car!

But yeah- anyway, something could happen in traffic when your son is driving and he wouldn't posess the powre of good defensive driving! That only comes with experience! Be careful about him driving it. Those GTs are sexxxyyyy!

Ron_H

My belief is that if you want to insure a younger person (or many older persons) will do something, prohibit him/her from doing it. And tell them you don't trust them and think they are irresponsible and can't think for themselves. Tell them you want to "protect them from themselves" and their poor judgement. Also tell them how dangerous life is, particularly something as absurd as the "danger" of driving a superior machine, (engineered and tested to be operated on public roads at up to 150 mph), at 10 mph over a limit posted somewhere in the US that is safe for that speed in a Yugo, given proper conditions. Do that to a reasonably intelligent individual youngster, and you have lost all credibility forever. And you have probably prompted them to believe your doubts about their judgement. You have certainly not raised their self esteem. And you have also likely given them a reason to believe they need to be "protected from themselves" and will act accordingly. Do YOU really believe such rubbish? Why should he, given his respect for his lack of experience which he should then be able to apply to evaluations of his competency which will temper his behavior until his skills increase? Well, first of all, if you have not questioned his ability to reason and be objective and allowed him to make such evaluations without babying or overprotecting him, he will not disappoint you with immature decisions and actions. And knowing you Doc Mirror, I doubt you have done that to your son.

He is lucky to have a father that trusts him to drive a machine so competent as a properly maintained 928. And lucky to have a father that will provide such a machine instead of a POS junk that will compromise his chances to perform well enough to keep himself alive. I would want my son or daughter to have the most competent machine I could afford to provide, not some junk idiot-mobile that couldn't get out of its own way or stop worth a crap. And you have done just that. Quit worrying. He obviously has his values together. Don't even suggest he doesn't or he may make you right. Trust and respect begets trust and respect in return. He will live up to that which you have given to him.

And if that is not enough, consider how many times you have been able to avoid an accident all together because you were in a 928 or other competent machine. He will have that edge now.

Quit worrying. Give him some book on investing to use during his long and responsible future on this Earth.

Marcquito

There are many cars within the 2-3k range which are just as safe as a 928 which can "stop worth a crap" that is better for a 16yr old kid.

Example: Any early nineties w124 Mercedes Benz. My daily is a 93 E class. Any fine crafted European car 10+ years old is fine for the boy. Nobody wants him to drive a Ford Festiva or anything like that.

My previous post was mainly directed at traffic; his lack of experience will show when he must think within seconds, if not milliseconds to avoid somebody else's negligence.

I still say something a little more tame, yet safe... but still European should be considered.

AO

I think it's important for a kid to have a car thay can call their own. Let them learn to pay for gas, insurance (maybe), and maintenance.
When I was 16, I shared a 72 beetle convertible with my brother. It was a big POS with a rusted floor pan, windows didn't work, but it was a convertible. Oh did I mention this was in Minneapolis! OK so the convertible aspects were only cool for 3 months of the year.

We had to pay for gas and maintenance on it. Tought me a lot. It was a fun car that was mine to do with (after my bro went to college) as I liked. I couldn't really get into too much trouble (I did get a couple moving violations however). I can't imagine what I would have done in a 928.

Remember at 16 you think nothing can hurt you. You are invicible! I'd rather have my kid get out of his system on a Ford Focus than 170MPH 928. I trust my kids... just not that much! Luckily I've still got 8 years to go.

Ron_H

If he has been given the trust and opportunity to exercise objective judgement and knows the consequences of that judgement, he will not be compromised by the performance of a 928 or any other car. Instead he will apply his self appraisal of his abilities and limitations and act accordingly. He is not insane.
Ask any competent and honest traffic engineer. Treat him as a mature individual and he will act like one. Treat him as an enept child and he will surely not disappoint your lack of trust. And he will build his skills faster that way rather than by being limited to an arbitrary level indefinitely. A drivers ed class at a track would be a good start. We all think we know other people's limits, but I assert that we do NOT, and have little justification for thinking so.

Children are banned by many jurisdictions from owning or operating firearms, but I know small children who are quite capable of responsibly and effectively using high powered firearms under times of stress. They live on farms away from preconceived notions of their "limitations" and where they must possess survival skills to live and protect themselves and their families. So let's stop stereotyping children or people in general. I am not you, and you don't know me at all, though you may think you do. Only I know my abilities and limitations. And this is why the speed limits are, if set according to the law, set without restrictions visible or known by the sampled drivers in the study.

GRTWHT

Hello docmirror,
I wouldn't even consider it till he was 25. By that time he or someone else would have smashed a couple of his cars. Hopefully not hurting himself or others. How could he appreciate the 9-2-8 at that age? If he does, I'm sure half the school kids have no idea about these cars. I'd be paranoid
Anyway good on you for giving him the experience of a lifetime.

Kind Regards,
Glenn.
'81 928

IcemanG17

Its safe to say that all of us on this forum are hard core car guys......obviously we love powerful sports cars....why else would we have ended up with the 928......granted not everyone is like us....BUT you gotta think that our children are going to be LIKE US.....which means they will do all the stupid stuff we did in cars when we were 16......I look back at myself at 16 in 1989......"IF" I had a 928S4 to drive then......I don't know if both would have survived (the 928 or me or both!!)....my lowly 188hp turbo Conquest TSi managed to get me in plenty of trouble!!!

(disclaimer: I have met Mark Anderson's son & he is exceptionally responsible for a young man.....its hard to believe he hasn't gotten a ticket yet....but Mark must be very proud!!)

Mike Frye

Doc,

I think you've made the right choice. Especially if he's not really into the mechanical aspects (maintenance) of the car.

Ron_h,
With all due respect (honestly) do you have kids? I have really great kids (here on the forum all the kids are above average, right? ) but for me it's a constant struggle with myself between holding them back and letting them go. I've got three teenagers now with three different personalities and I NEVER know what is going to happen next.

They are constantly trying to spread their wings and define who they are and who they are going to become. They're scared about alot, but aren't allowed to show it (especially in front of their friends). Sometimes the boundaries we impose are almost a relief to them where they can say 'My dad will kill me if I drive his car!' but inside they can relax because they don't have to show off how well they can drive this 150mph monster that scares the hell out of them when they let out the clutch.

Your opinion is a good one and I think it is a sound one in theory, but in practice, how many 'good kids' do you read about in the paper after they made one mistake or lapse of judgement.

Jhowell, in NJ 17 year olds get a 'provisional' license for 1 year and they can only have one other minor in the car at a time. This does cut down on the 'egging on' factor I think, but only if they obey this particular law.

tv

I agree with mike and many others here, no way would i let a 16 y o have one of these.

heinrich

There is a man who really pays attention to his children

John V

Doc - you know your son better than anyone and I would trust your judgement above all else. BTW- congrats on bringing up a son with such remarkable traits.

I have 2 kids, neither of driving age yet, but it's already clear that there's NO WAY I could let my son take the 928 alone. My daughter, no problem- my son, no.

Both kids have been kart racing for a few years and have had multiple (week long) driving school camps but they are as different as they come. My son is the better "driver" but like me in my youth, the "need for speed" temptation is too strong for his will to overcome. The good news is that it's obvious to both my wife and I and we'll plan accordingly. Of course, he's already lobbying hard for the Porsche, (my daughter could care less) and I'm laying the foundations now that regardless of what he ends up with, it will have some form of governor and GPS tracking in place until his prudence catches up with his invulnerabilty complex.