Debate: Would you buy your kid a newish BMW?

[BM-Dollar]

I would buy it only if my kid has shown some kind of ownership of any kind of responsibility.

[..Rush..]

No.

[VisualEcho]

Sure, if you want to make him/her a piece of isht.

[wtwo3]

My parents never bought me a car and I don't intend to buy my daughter a car when she's old enough to drive. Now if she's able to afford one on her own by working part time then by all means, she can get herself a nice little civic/mazda3 etc.

[Darth One]

I forgot to mention in my earlier post that i expected the judgments to start before we got to the second page. Wasn’t wrong.

[Piper1]

New no. If we still have the TJ wrangler or e82 when he’s ready he can drive that till responsible for the e85/86, if by the time he’s ready you can still buy gas. I both agree and disagree with the “they can work to pay for their own car”. You’ve got your whole life ahead of you for work, least let them enjoy the best of the worst mistake years of their life for school years, after that yes they need to work for it. That said my first car was a ‘90 cavalier inherited from my grandfather when he passed. If I didn’t want it value on it then was 3k and that’s what I’d have if I said no. My older brother got first dibs on it and turned it down. He had no car and mooched off his g/f.

[surge98]

I don't have any kids. But if I did, the only way they would get a BMW is if it was an older one that had a lot of miles, but had been well maintained. Even then, these aren't known for being the most reliable high-mileage cars. If your child is the type who will panic when a fuel pump dies in traffic, go with a used Camry or Civic.

Grades and responsibility aren't necessarily an indicator of how a young driver is going to behave, I knew plenty of straight A students who got tickets or totaled their cars by the time they were 18.

The other reason not to buy them a newer car is that it'll prevent them from becoming too reliant on technology to perform basic tasks that should be the responsibility of the driver. Backup cameras, parking sensors, lane departure warning, and blind spot detection are all nice safety features, but an entire generation of new drivers do not have the skills to drive without them. Granted, these have been around a while and it might not be feasible or even possible to find a decent used car without them. And most parents will want more safety features, not fewer. Still, I hate to think that a young driver won't learn to use their mirrors properly, won't be able to parallel park without computer intervention, and won't know how to handle bad weather without an AWD SUV with advanced traction control.

I know some of you will say that kids should earn the money to buy the car themselves. That is certainly a valid point of view, but most parents who have the means to purchase an extra car will reason that they don't want to be driving their kids all over town. That often influences the decision more than anything else. With used car prices through the roof, it's perfectly reasonable to work out an arrangement in which the parent buys the car and the child is responsible for gas and simple maintenance.

[TAZ007]

At the end of the day, the sunk cost of the car is one aspect and the insurance is another. It truly depends on both. I will say it will be a huge decision when I get there in 3 years, again.

[Tambohamilton]

Originally Posted by IndyRed128i

16 yo driver, but very responsible, and gets straight A's LOL.

I don't have kids, but I was talking about this with a coworker looking for their kids first car.

Nope, there is nothing to debate.

[Tuxedo]

both my kids have a 228i gran coupe Xdrive, both had near 3yrs driving experience before having new BMW's. Being a dealer employee it's no brain'r when you can lease a new BMW 43k sticker for the same price as a Mazda 27k sticker per month. before being a dealer employee they drove in order of appearance- old Kia Spectra shared> new Kia Forte HS car adding a new Mazda CX-3 for College kid.

[Piper1]

Originally Posted by Tuxedo

both my kids have a 228i gran coupe Xdrive, both had near 3yrs driving experience before having new BMW's. Being a dealer employee it's no brain'r when you can lease a new BMW 43k sticker for the same price as a Mazda 27k sticker per month. before being a dealer employee they drove in order of appearance- old Kia Spectra shared> new Kia Forte HS car adding a new Mazda CX-3 for College kid.

Leasing today with kids seems to be a catch .22. Being in the motor city employee discounts tend to equal out used car payments to employee programs. Unfortunately as I’ve seen with both my nephews who now don’t get the employee discount they used to after driving for some years and having to “settle” for a good used over the new leases you see just how spoiled and of “entitled” they thought they were and now breaking them of the disposable mentality is challenging. As with life things happen and the household is now a single income and it’s much harder to teach anyone to deal without or with less when their whole driving experience was pampered.

The rule for me growing up was I always had to cover my insurance and maintenance on my cav I inherited or I wasn’t going to get it.

I’ve also seen my in-laws in-laws get brand new 80k cars for their 16 year old who totaled it in under a year and they just got her another one. Guess perks of being a millionaire no one learns from their mistakes which feeds the disposable entitlement.

[xlover]

I would not get my kid "their own" car. I plan to use a another strategy a few of my relatives have used. Tactically expand the fleet and let them drive the expansion vehicle to school/work/etc but retain status as your car and make good use of it to optimize vehicle needs

Examples:
-adding a wrangler to also double as vacation house/beach area vehicle
-adding a pickup for added utility and switching dads primary dd car from sedan to sports car

[corbinwilliams]

If I was to get my kid a newish BMW it wouldn’t be anything more than a 230/330 for their first car, maybe one with 10k miles and they better be killing it beyond straight A’s, going to work everyday after school or very serious in some type of sport besides drifting in parking lots with their friends lol

Make sure they are well aware that gas and insurance is on them, and a heads up the next car is coming from their pocket too.

[SPARTANVI]

Parent here as well, and I'll likely do the same as my parents did. I shared a relatively safe metal box with wheels whenever they weren't using it, and had to buy my own if I didn't like that arrangement. I got a job then bought myself an '05 Mustang.

TL;DR No.

[fiveohwblow]

I value my children above my money. I will be buying them a BMW, not necessarily new, but newer used. I understand they may abuse them hence it not being new, but seriously what is 15 or 20k versus their lives?

[PopsnBurbles]

First car that was given to me that I actually drove was an E90 328i (slicktop w/o any options besides 17in wheels). I got it when I was 18 years old. I learned how to drive with it. I didn't receive any tickets nor did I crash where it was my fault. Nothing mechanical in the car broke because of me or my driving habits.

It isn't about the car. It is about how level headed the kid is and how well they treat their stuff.

[VisualEcho]

THIS.

[Gregrobin]

No kids here, easy answer is No. First I would not "buy" a car for a kid. My parents made me buy my first car with money I saved up from 2 paper routes and washing dishes at a restaurant at night. I hated them for it, but I now absolutely appreciate what they taught me. Second, BMWs depreciate too much, not a good lesson to teach a kid and the maintenance as a daily driver is costly. Unless you are going to make them pay for it, No.

I'd go with something more reliable, an 8+- year old Toyota or Honda. And if you want to help, then don't :-)

BTW, they also made me pay my own way thru college as well. There was one semester I needed some help so they paid for it. I worked 40+ hours at nights to pay my own way thru.

I have never been a fan of "buying a kid a car" or "paying their way thru college". Help them. support them yes, but you are not teaching them any valuable lessons buy doing this for them.

[Gregrobin]

Originally Posted by VisualEcho

THIS.

This +1 - thank you!

[whyzee125]

Hell no

[dscabra]

I'm really surprised by the immediate "No" responses. My kids are grown and on their own now, but when they were living at home and starting to drive, my first and foremost concern was for their safety. Both of my kids were "nerds" by pretty much any standard. My oldest is now a Civil Engineer with her PE, and my youngest has a doctorate in neural psychology and is a director of a research lab. I tell you this for context. I bought both kids their first cars. My oldest got a fully loaded Toyota Solara, and my youngest got a Chrysler PT Cruiser. Had I found a BMW or Mercedes at a reasonable price at that time, I wouldn't have hesitated putting them in one. Cars don't make kids into "shits".

[CTinline-six]

No, but I'd encourage them to work a job and save up money to buy their first car like my dad did. My parents paid $0 of what my first car cost, but they did help me find work at a young age to save up money. Kids need to understand the responsibility of owning a car, and how to take care of it.

I obviously wouldn't let them buy a junker, and would thoroughly check it over to make sure it is safe, as well as teach them how to maintain the vehicle. I would rather pay for a defensive driving course than for a first car.