914 as kids first car? :(, nervous about this one. Options

[Brian Mifsud]

Hi All,

Hypocrite that I am, I'm nervous about my kids desire to own a 914 as his first car. I bought and drove one as a "Step Up" from my hot-rodded '69 Beetle when I was 19. I just feel though that there are a hell of a lot more people on the road driving earth-moving Suburban/lifted 4x4s etc than when I was young (early 80's) and that the likelihood of getting run over/punted in a 914 these days is much higher.

Now, this has no basis on fact, just my hunch, and probably my protective instinct so...

Do you think that a 914 with these mods might be enough to ease my fears?

- Fully caged including door bars to slow down side impact incursions

- Safety harness?

- Added bright LED Brake Light bars

- Fuel Cell to minimize the gasoline-in-the lap fun of VW's and Porsches

- automatic Fire supression system

- Use a '75 or '76 model year for the honking big 5MPH bumper added safety margin

- Better than stock tires and brakes

- Driving school - (Learn to handle the car on wet curvy roads, no ABS, etc)


Okay, clearly I'm a paranoid guy... I really would have preferred that my son drive something forgiving in a crash like a mid/late -90's Mustang

Opinions?

Thanks

Brian

[356'er]

As others have noted this topic isn't new, a good recent thread included pics of 914 post accident, most all of which showed the passenger compartment fairing well.

No matter what he ends up in teach him to drive and do so by way of clinics, autocross and one day a driving school. Since he is going to do it anyway it might as well be done legally.

My son is going on year two and a half with his 914-since his 16th birthday. He has autocrossed and has shown he can manage the car right at the limit. He has felt the benefits of adding better tires and sway bars at both ends first hand and tells me he doesn't want stiffer springs in the rear (140 lbs now). He loves his car and treats it well. Just fast enough with its rebuilt motor to merge easy in modern traffic.

To me a car he loves beats a POS he is hoping will get destroyed. And a big car only gives a false sense of security and won't likely see an autocross so no real development of driving skills. But when we want him to take a bigger car because the traffic will be extremely heavy etc., he takes the old Volvo S70. Best of both worlds. I trust him to drive all our cars, to include a boxster and 356, but he prefers to drive his own.

Consider teaching your son to drive and wrench on a car worth owning. While 944's can take a really good impact, they are ugly and boring to drive in comparison, but still would be a reasonable way to start working on driving skills.

Ultimately, allow him to get whatever you can live with but make a concerted effort to teach him to drive both on the road and at the limit, continuing to drive with him in the next few years and always reminding him of the good habits until they are second nature. That will make him safe in any car, the car only can't make him safe. Unfortunately, the news is regularly proving that even Suburbans aren't safe for teens when they aren't attentive to driving safely.

Best of luck to you and your son.

Jonathan