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Deal of the Week

Should Cato buy his kid a car?

JEREMY CATO AND MICHAEL VAUGHAN

Globe and Mail Update

Latest comment posted at 8:37 AM EDT 24/05/08

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  1. Daniel Sturgis from Rabat, Morocco writes: I have to wonder, what percentage of Globe Readers can afford to buy their children brand new gas guzzling SUV's? I felt lucky when, as a teenager, my family inherited an old car. It was never my car, as it was insured under my mothers name, but it was an extra car we kids could use for our 5am activities.
    As for safety, I sometimes wonder whether a small, low power compact might be safer than a huge, powerful SUV, particularly for someone newly behind the wheel.
    While protecting your child's safety is admirable, the personal safety of the rest of the driving public has just decreased by putting someone inexperienced behind the wheel of a powerful machine!
    The smart car, for example, has a very high safety rating, won't burn a hundred bucks a week in gas, and probably won't kill me when it side swipes me after not paying attention to a red light.
    One last word - Hyundai Tucson's start at $17,420, with an additional $1000 cash back in the US.
    That's a lot lower, even with all the confusing rebate math you put into this article.
  2. Vickky Angstrom from Canada writes: Thanks Daniel -- I agree. This kind of cloying infomercial just degrades the credibility of the G&M. And the car is an environmental catastrophe like all SUV's except the hybrids.
  3. Albin Forone from Canada writes: Also disappointed - both these guys can evaluate cars, but nobody cares if either one of them can or can't afford the wonky "email math" discount from MSRP on a $27K car. I'm reminded of certain pretentious half-drunk cocktail party conversations with pretentious bozos whose kids apparently hate them, but who are still bloody determined to prove they can buy that damned dope-smoking, porn-watching, school-flunking, fornicating, pimply kid anything that kid wants, so long as the kid wants him to to buy it ... maybe.
  4. bill johnson from Quebec, Canada writes: This series is one big infomercial as noted by my esteemed colleagues. Too bad.

    Now, since they won't do it, perhaps we can enlighten little Cato.

    I would recommend a Maxda 3, if he likes sporty rides (0% financing even), the new Corolla if he wishes to snooze, or the new Vibe/Matrix twins. Both have lots of room and all can be had for <$20K. Civic is always a good choice, Fit is better, and the Mitsu lancer or Hyundai Accent are good affordable cars. Finally, Chrysler dramatically dropped most prices a few weeks ago, and for this reason alone he should look what they offer. Their Compass etc sell well. There. Easy. And Free.
  5. bill johnson from Quebec, Canada writes: My son is Cato's kid's age. I can afford to buy him a car, but will not do it, least of all a new SUV. He might get a leftover car, but the insurance is just too brutal. Let the kid drive the family car for a couple of years till his personal insurance rate comes down.
  6. P Martin from St. John's, Canada writes: Buy a SUV for my teenager...you have to be cracked. That is one of the most outrageous things I have heard. I think the GaM is losing its marbles. There are any number of cheaper, safer and more environmentally cleaner vehicles than this monstrosity.
  7. Mike L. from Canada writes: I can't friggin' believe I'm reading this garbage in a national newspaper.

    Might I suggest, before going out on a limb and buying your teen an SUV... that you first contact your insurance company. We have an old (4-cyl) minivan (rusty) that our son drives. No collision coverage, so the insurance is relatively cheap even though he had a minor fender-bender.

    It is getting costly to repair so I looked at getting him a used Golf... basic model, manual, roll-up windows, no A/C, VW certified so it has a warranty, for $8000.

    It was going to cost $3000 a year to insure the thing!!! That's 6 times more than he's currently paying. A $27k SUV? What are these guys smoking? The fuel and insurance costs alone will make this prohibitively expensive.

    These guys are really a poor excuse for "journalism". They rather sound like a Hyundai commercial.
  8. Jay Dela Cruz from Canada writes: This article makes me dislike Cato and Vaughan even more

    I'm 21 and I just purchased my first car (08 Passat). I think parents should stop buying their kids stuff (whether you can afford it or not)and let them grow up. Why? cause it builds great character and second independance maybe I'm bitter but whatever.
  9. the vegan ninja from Canada writes: Get him a new bicycle.
  10. Peter The Not Quite Great from Edmonton, Canada writes: If you want to buy the kid a Hyundai why not buy the Accent for under 10K?
  11. D K from Canada writes: I'm sure he got it free or at a greatly reduced price after this ad.
  12. Western Observer from Canada writes: Let's try something that's a bit more realistic for someone his age. I'm in the same age group and there is no way that I would purchase a $25,000 SUV when fuel prices are skyrocketing, insurance rates on SUVs are terrible, and there is a growing sense that Canadians should be responsible consumers with environmental awareness. Put all of that together and just what makes it necessary for a single male (or female) under the age of 35 who lives in the city to own an SUV? Talk about conspicuous consumption.

    First of all, why isn't this about purchasing a used vehicle? There are plenty of those on the road, available at dealerships, and usually much more within the price range of first time buyers, or the parents who are footing the bill for these purchases. Private buyers aside, looking at how to manage purchasing a >3 year old vehicle would be far more realistic to the majority of Canadians and probably your readership who doesn't happen to feel like adding $30k of debt to their household expenses is reasonable.

    There are plenty of non-gas guzzling vehicles out there for easily half the cost of a Tucson available used. New, the market is a lot tighter for reasons that are frustrating -- a Volkswagen Golf/Passat, Mazda 3, Nissan Sentra, Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla and other similar vehicles shouldn't cost $20k. But, regardless, that's a lot easier to digest as an initial payment and their upkeep is far less.

    Instead of this article, I heartily recommend Phil Edmonson's Lemon-Aid car guides -- the Used and the New both offer comprehensive lists for vehicles, especially for young drivers. Spend $20, get informed and save yourself $10k right off the bat!
  13. S G from Mississauga, Canada writes: If the kid wants a car, let him buy one for himself. No money? Go get a job, kid.

    The last thing that should happen is his parents buying a (well-advertised) SUV for him. What the heck is that, his parents have some need to provide him with a status symbol? And who's going to pay for the gas?

    If he must have a car purchased for him, get something used, small, and fuel efficient. Actually, if he's capable of being on a competition rowing team, he's capable of riding a bike or taking the damn bus.
  14. Joel S. from Toronto, Canada writes: Tell your kid to suck it up. I biked to my 5 a.m. things.
  15. d p from writes: I would make the kid read the Globe and Mail. Maybe the writers of the article should read it more too. The kid and his parents would find out that: He shoud have invested the money for a new SUV in oil stocks. I did, you could see it coming. ""We have been believers for a number of years ... that we are in what we call the peak oil scenario, where the prices will rise essentially forever because the world needs more oil than it can possibly produce and, in fact, production will go lower" http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080521.RENERGY21/TPStory/?query=peak oil Oil prices topped $133 http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080521.woilprices0521/BNStory/energy/home SUV's are a bad thing to buy: ...small car price has gone up 2 per cent, from $9,278 to $9,470, according to wholesale auto auction data...the increases are in contrast to used full-size sport utility vehicles, whose prices have dropped $1,600 to $2,000 in the past year... http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080521.wh-smallcarprices-0521/BNStory/specialGlobeAuto People are starving. "Critics say so much corn is being used for ethanol that there's less available for people..." http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080521.wethanol0521/BNStory/National/ Rowing really isn't that important. People will lose jobs. Perhaps even somebody he knows. There are more important things to focus on.
  16. D K from Canada writes: " I have my good reasons for thinking about a car for the kid. One has to do with sleep. He plans to keep rowing for the next I don't know how many years and that means 5 a.m. starts on the water. Five days a week in the spring and summer. If there is a car for him to drive, I get to sleep"

    What about the car you already own? Oh I see, you want a FREE car.

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