Best Used Cars for Teens, Used Car Buying for Teen Drivers

Best Used Cars For Teens

Buying a car for your teenager? Because younger drivers tend to have a higher tendency to get excited and do things like "panic steer," it's important to take a look at all aspects of a used vehicle's characteristics, not just its price, size, reliability, or number of airbags. We've picked a sampling of five-year-old vehicles (with one exception) across a variety of categories to help parents decide wisely.

Safe High MPG Car: 2004 Honda Civic
Chance of Rollover: 11%
Driver Front Crash Rating: 5 star

Why We Like It: For commuting back and forth to school or running errands for the family, having a vehicle that gets over 40 mpg definitely keeps money in your (or your childÔøΩs) pocket. Civics tend to have a history of long-term reliability, too.

Safe Used Mid-Size Sedan: 2004 Toyota Camry
Chance of Rollover: 11%
Driver Front Crash Rating: 5 star

Why We Like It: The best-selling sedan in America has a reliable record and top-notch quality safety ratings.

Safe Used Large Sedan: 2004 Ford Crown Victoria
Chance of Rollover: 9%
Driver Front Crash Rating: 5 star

Why We Like It: If you think your child should have a lot of metal around them, it's hard to find anything bigger than the Ford Crown Victoria. Think of taxi cabs and police cars. Side airbags were available on some models as well.

Safe Small SUV: 2005 Honda CR-V
Chance of Rollover: 19%
Driver Front Crash Rating: 5 star

Why We Like It: Comes standard with stability control, which was ahead of its time. ESC helps drivers to regain control in the event they lose it.

Safe Used Coupe: 2004 Toyota Celica
Chance of Rollover: 9%
Driver front crash rating: 4 star

Why We Like It: Because the Celica is front-wheel-drive, itÔøΩs less likely to be involved in the type of rear-drive spin out you see on TV, yet it still has a sporty coupe shape.

Safe Used Hatchback: 2004 Ford Focus
Chance of rollover: 14%
Driver Front Crash Rating: 4 star

Why We Like It: Fun to drive and bigger inside than it looks, the Focus is a tremendous value and might prove to your kids that you're not trying to embarrass them. The Focus had an available side airbag option as well.

Safe Used Truck: 2004 Ford F-150
Chance of rollover: 17%
Driver Front Crash Rating: 5 star

Why We Like It: The F-150 has one of the highest front crash ratings of any 5-year old truck (5 stars) and since the it is the best selling vehicle in the U.S., you can bet there are plenty of dealerships and parts counters in case of problems down the road.