Teen drivers have crash rates nearly four times higher than drivers 20 and older, and the problem isn’t going away. Total traffic deaths have risen in recent years after decades of decline, and teen fatalities have followed the same pattern, rising 11% from 2020 to 3,058 in 2021.
But teenagers often drive older, less crash-worthy vehicles.
A new list of 46 used and 16 new vehicles for teens, published last week by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and Consumer Reports, aims to make it as easy as possible for parents and teenagers choose a vehicle that is safe, reliable, and affordable. The recommendations are aimed at recent high school graduates and other young drivers, safety groups said, but can be a resource for anyone.
“It is unfortunate that in recent years we have had to relax our price limits for this list, but we will not budge on the other criteria,” said David Zuby, director of research at the Insurance Institute, in in a statement, noting the “stubbornly” high price of new and used cars. Unlike in previous years, all but a handful of the vehicles on this year’s annual list of recommended vehicles for teens cost more than $10,000.
“With road safety statistics headed in the wrong direction,” added Zuby, “it is more important than ever that young and inexperienced drivers have vehicles with a high degree of occupant protection, as well as good emergency handling, braking and reliability”.
The list of recommended new and used cars excludes sports cars and other vehicles with excessive power, as they facilitate speed and can tempt young drivers to show off, the researchers said.
And size matters. Moderate-sized vehicles provide a better balance between crash prevention and crash protection and are a better choice for teenagers, safety groups said. Cars that are particularly small and light, such as minicars, do not provide enough protection in multi-vehicle crashes. Large vehicles generally offer more crash protection than small ones, but if they are very large, such as an SUV or a large pickup truck, they can be difficult to handle, often have longer stopping distances, and pose a greater risk for others on the road. including pedestrians, cyclists and people in smaller vehicles.
This year’s used vehicle recommendations were chosen to offer standard electronic stability control, performing well in four crashworthiness tests that assessed levels of front, side, roof strength and headrests) emergency handling, braking distance, reliability, as well as four or five. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration stars (if rated).
The recommendations are presented at three levels. Two categories of used vehicles: the good options, which start at $6,600 and go up to $14,500, and the best options, ranging in price from $7,800 to $20,000, offer a level of security that is a little higher based on additional safety testing and injury insurance claim rates. .
The new vehicles, which cost between $23,000 and $39,800, were selected based on additional criteria, including additional crash tests such as front crash prevention (including daytime pedestrian detection), headlight effectiveness , injury claim rates and ease of use of its controls.
The new vehicle section is particularly useful for parents of younger children who are considering purchasing a vehicle for their own use with the intention of handing it over to a new driver in the future.
“If you’re spending the money on a new vehicle that’s likely to be in your family for many years, we want you to have the most security available,” Zuby added. “This means the highest scores in our latest set of tests.”
Parents can’t control what happens on the road once their teen driver pulls out of the driveway, Jennifer Stockburger, chief operating officer of Consumer Reports’ Auto Test Center, said in a statement, ” but we have some say in the type of vehicle they’re driving, and that can make a big difference. This list can help parents find vehicles that tick all the boxes.”
For more information on the ratings and details on each of the vehicles listed, click here.
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