viperbob

So one hour after he first got to drive by himself since getting his license on Friday, my son had an accident (no injury) at a Burger King. Darn, and I had 7 days in the pool... Thank goodness my wife at the last minute listened to me and gave him the Durango instead of the 7 series BMW...

Dudley

The poor kid! BTDT.
(Good thinking Dad, Durango! )

ca993twin

Accidents and new drivers... its almost inevitable. Sorry.

Jim Morton

Yes, but did he hit the apex rounding the corner past the order sentry ??? ;^)

Glad to hear of no injury for your son and hopefully the Durango is an easy repair.

jackb911

Bob, if it's any consolation, many dads and moms with new drivers in the household experience this. I spent 33 years in the auto claims department of a major insurer, and you would not believe how many 16-17 year old drivers are involved in accidents soon after they get their license. That is the reason insurance rates are so high for the under-25 age group, as they have a disproportionately high accident frequency.

Count your lucky stars that no one was hurt. Oftentimes and sadly, that is not the case with young drivers.

viperbob

thanks guys... At least since no injuries and it wasn't a Porsche. The Durango is my beast anyway. Wife just doesn't want to give it to him since it has a fold down rear seat and cargo area. I told her that he won't do anything that he is already not doing at home.. Hopefully that won't include the drinking.... He doesn't like it as he likes to be seen driving a BMW around town with the friends. But mom is in charge, so we will see...

jdistefa

VB, key issue is nobody was hurt. We just lost five 16/17 year olds this past weekend. Bad judgement, pulled out to pass on a snowy road, lost control and slid sideways into oncoming traffic. No alcohol involved, but 3 kids weren't wearing belts and the driver was presumably inexperienced. Four dead at the scene, the fifth taken off life support and passed away yesterday. Your son may want to read the following link, it's rather sobering. When I think of some of the stupid **** I did in a car at that age, it's a miracle I'm here today. Keep him driving the Durango, at least it has a lot of steel around it.
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNew..._name=&no_ads=

TMc993

Bob,

I've sweated through both a son and a daughter...The daughter was by far the worst. She had a Honda Civic and I peronally replaced the front valance and all four corners of the sheetmetal on that car before she was 18. The junkyard lady knew my voice on the phone.

FWIW, Panoz has a pretty good teen driving school at Road Atlanta. They may also have one at Sebring...Two days with lots of time behind the wheel. Not a racing school...Just good instruction on technique and accident avoidance. A friend of mine sent his son and remarked that it "packed a year's worth of situational road experience into two days." May be worth a look.

Good luck and buy stock in Rolaids.

obchuck

Oh well, he's gotta get the first one out of his system anyway!

LuftKopf

you know how it happened don't you? (regardless of what he told you... ;-)

http://www.cockeyed.com/pranks/drive...vethru01.shtml (6 pages, but funny)

FlatSix911

Bob, glad to hear that your son is alright.

Let us know when you are back in the Bay Area for a garage session

Terry Adams

BTDT, 3 for 3 and no injuries to ours. And thank God, not to yours either. Our teen family training car was a yellow 1982 MB 300TD diesel. They all hated it, but I told them plan B was walk, and it gave us peace of mind.

LuisGT3

Is your truck undriveable? That sucks dude.

Mike Murphy

I will have to remember this and get my kids a beater for the first year. They won't care, since at least they get to drive! BTW, can you tell me how long it takes for these 16-17 year olds to stop having accidents? Is there a "break-in" period that you recommend? They can drive my Porsche after they have had quite some time (a few years, maybe) proving that they are good drivers...

csertich

Bob,
Sorry to hear about the accident. Glad he wasn't hurt.
I just bought my 17 year old a car and he is out there on his own. It's really scary, isn't it?
I put him in a car with as many safety features as I could (airbags everywhere), good crash stats.
It's the best we can do. Sounds like he'll be safe in either vehicle.
chuck