Learner Car Suggestions

[jamie-hw314]

Id like to get a small car suitable for my 17 year old son to learn in but also one I can help take the load of my RS Audi during weekday commutes. I dont think S1s or Polo GTIs would be suitable for him (which is where i keep drifting for me), Thoughts on Seat Ibiza 1.2s etc - would i find it fun and/or a mare on the mways??

[mikeyr]

What's your budget Jamie? Believe that insuring a owner on 'your' car is pretty reasonable price wise but work considering how much insurance will be once they've passed.

https://www.admiral.com/magazine/guides/car-insura...

[jamie-hw314]

Budget is as little as possible upto £7k i guess. Citroen C1s look funky, but are they like driving a biscuit tin?

[67Dino]

Got my son a sensible Polo 1.2 (70bhp 3 cylinders), assuming it wouldn’t be exactly fun to drive. Bit of a surprise: lovely peppy little car. In fact, the wife and I keep stealing it instead of using our own cars. Bit of a lesson about how raw power isn’t the be all and end all.

[anonymous-user]

Just bought a Fiat 500 for the daughters. Surprisingly good fun to drive around town. And mysteriously doesn’t use petrol (at least compared to a FFRR SC and a V12 AM!).

[Alan16ac]

Maybe a MINI Cooper or One? Still get reasonable insurance for a younger driver, they're not too slow. But they're an absolute hoot to drive in the bends, so definitely wouldn't be boring for you.
For other suggestions I'd go for the smaller turbo engines like the 1.2 TSI from the VW Group, still decent insurance for a young driver on the 90bhp versions, but they don't feel gutless like their NA alternatives as they have mid range torque. You can look at A1s, Fabias, Polos and Ibizas with this engine.

[Dicky Knee]

I had my eye on a supercharged Mini Cooper S (mainly for me) but insurance killed that dream.

I ended up with a Ford Fiesta 1.2 Zetec. It cost me £6k (2 years old, 15 000 miles, private sale) a couple of years ago. My thinking was cheap to fix if he has a scrape in it and cheap to service.

It is a pretty good drive although obviously not particularly powerful. The only thing I miss is the speed limiter I have in my Merc although the engine acts as a speed limiter anyway.

It also has the advantage that most of the driving schools around here use them so the controls are familiar.

[kurt535]

VW U or Seat, Skoda clone/ any 1.0 toyota or Suzuki

[kieranblenk]

My suggestions on any new driver threads are always the Skoda Fabia or Suzuki Swift.

[oop north]

I got a 1.0 60bhp Polo for my daughters to learn on. Can’t pull the skin off a rice pudding but otherwise surprisingly pleasant to drive - did a 400-mile round trip in it to see a client and found it entirely acceptable as a cruiser. Rather impressed with it

[ZX10R NIN]

Alfa Mito they come in a range of engines 95/105/120/140/155 the insurance numbers are normally sensible all are decent on the motorway go for the one that's the most decent on insurance, you can also pick up a good one for sensible money.

95

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

105

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

120

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

140

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

155 I doubt you'll be able to get sensible insurance numbers on the 155 but I have had a few clients that have.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Mazda2 Sport

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Suzuki Swift Sport these aren't coming up as insurance friendly as they used to.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Punto Evo Sporting

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

[jamie-hw314]

Thanks for the suggestions, the last few really didnt even figure on my radar. Surprisingly the Mito 1.4 comes up very competitive on the insurance and some good choice of cars in the market to.

[SWoll]

Yes, found the same thing when I was looking for a possible purchase for my daughter when she passes her test. Had a quote on a Mito 1.4 16v Veloce (95bhp) of £1k fully comp which I thought was pretty reasonable for an 18yr old new driver. Very funky little things and a lot more interesting than the standard Mini/Fiat 500.