is an ls430 a good kids car?
 

I was talking to my neighbor. His son is 15 and will be driving soon. we were talking about cars and drinking a beer the other night. I told him he should look at this 2002 ls 430 up at our lexus dealer its only 11k. It is in his price range, reliable, safe, and wornt draw attention to him like sports car would, or get him in trouble.

Now, I know you guys like to make a fun of me and that is ok, but seriously I would like some help on how to advise this guy.

First, this kid is going to make a lowrider. All of his friends drive lowriders. So I am sure he will. he is always going to car shows and stuff and working on his friends cars.

Should he get one with air ride? they are less reliable, but maybe easier to make a low rider?

All the lowrides I see over there are strut cars (acuras, hondas, bmws so forth). Will the big beefy wishbones hurt his ability to make the car he wants.

Do you need to put some skid plates or something under the car? does anybody make them or is this something I will have to fabricate.

I will probably help my neighbor with working on the car, so please keep things as simple as possible.

Thank You!

I know you're not a VIP kind of guy, Scott, so props to you for making such an awesome suggestion for the kids ride. The VIPsters around here should be able to give you some low-budget advice and the kid'll get some serious cred rolling with those lowly Hondas & Acuras. (Yeah, I know, I sound like an idiot.)

First off, great suggestion. You should probably tell the dad to avoid air suspension if he wants to avoid heftier repair bills down the line (I chose normal coils so I won't have to make my parents pay all that $$ for air, plus I feel coils are more durable anyways). Secondly, I doubt the kid will have cash to drop his car (I know I don't), nor will his parents approve (like mine when I casually mentioned it:p). Plus once he realizes the comfort of the ride, I doubt he will complain much. Props to suggesting the 430 to a younger crowd, big flagship luxo barges are the way to go!

The only concern I have is giving any car with a V8 engine and costing more than $10K to a new teen driver. Think Impala or Taurus. (So much for my cool suggestions.)

A 15-year-old and a 290HP V8 don't good sense make.

Think "bicycle" ... and maybe an inexpensive subcompact if the kid keeps a straight-A average and is a member of the honor society -- when he turns 18 and heads off to college, which of course, he will pay for himself.

Before doing anything, check with your insurance agent to see the cost of insurance. Some cars are significantly less expensive to insure for teenage drivers, such as Ford Taurus, older Accords or Camrys. My agent suggested cars that had large volume sales to relatively safe drivers (like the aforementioned) are the least expensive to insure for teen drivers. Insurance costs for teen drivers vary widely and can be significant.

very interesting that you would be making the skid plates for a neighbours son's car ?

Who buys any teenager an LS430 ?
... and what teenager wants an LS430 ? Not that many.

I think is a bit silly to buy a young person an LS430 but maybe thats just me.
Perhaps someone with far more money than common sense, lol

Ah, good thinking. I was not surprised when my monthly premium jumped almost $90 over my '03 Accord when I bought the LS430. I can't imagine what it would cost to insure one for a new driver.

my first car was a 69 charger rt with a 440 mag and 396hp,i made it ok.granted i was in the airforce and 18 years old and making car payments,something todays kids perants make for there kids nowadays.

Personally, I think it would be a great investment, the car is very reliable, takes very well to modification versus their counterparts such as vw/honda where oil pans are the lowest point and always break, whereas on the ls platforms, the subframe is the lowest point. Second, if he really slams it and wants reliability, factory air will not suffice. As stated above, you need coilovers or aftermarket air ride.

For me, being 23, I love it, and i do get comments on it being a grandpa car, but not now that I dropped it.... a lot.

Milan, this is a random question but do you possibly go to oakland university? I think I have seen your ls there once when i was dropping a friend off... I stopped to take a look at the rims on your car I am pretty sure.

I bought a ls430 when I was 22(do I still count as a kid? :D). The LS is a great car without a doubt, the only thing (after insurance) I would worry about is how much money is going to go towards gas. If that's not a worry for your neighbor, (make the kid pay for gas) then I wouldn't have any worries.

Either way, if the OP neighbor's son is out doing donuts, drifting etc... the tires are going to be wasted pretty quick and the miles per gallon will significantly drop. Should be pretty easy to tell if hes out hooning the car

Sorry but I have to rant a little here...

IMHO an LS430 for a 16 yo boy as a first car is completely ridiculous. What kind of life lesson would that be?

Instead a semi-beat but very reliable late 90's 4 cyl 4 door Accord or Camry for under $5k is a lot more appropriate for a brand new 16 year old male driver. Comes with great MPG and low insurance costs, low costs for tires and maint.

When he proves he can take care of the beater car, and that he can drive responsibly for at least 2-3 years, and after he has EARNED and saved some significant amount of his OWN money to put into an upgrade, then and only then, maybe Dad helps him with some extra $ to upgrade to something better he can take to college (or trade school). That's a life lesson that makes sense.

Rant off.

The LS is going to be too easy to speed and wreck. I would try an accord or civic, get the skilz down, then upgrade later. You start with the best, where do you go from there?