i know this would be differant depending on each person, but as your first reaction in reading the poll question..what would be the right age in your opinion to have your teen: have/own/drive one?

thanks for your opinions

A car he or she built or one Daddy bought for them?If they built it they will care for it and it will mean more to them.Store bought gets no respect.

if they can affored it and like american muccel why not

bought mine at 15,,, didn't get it on the road till I was 24 though (last summer) don't really understand what age has to do with owning a classic car though, maybe I misunderstood the poll?

don't really understand what age has to do with owning a classic car though, maybe I misunderstood the poll?

I think is has to do with someone 16 years old having a clue as to what these cars represent, or the bygone era from which they came. Certainly "some" younger people (such as yourself) do get it. I do not however think that even a fraction of the kids I teach everyday would view my car as anything but a way to get to the next party.

I got my Camaro when i was 19. 1 year after I got my liscense. I probably could've gotten one earlier, but didn't have the means or funds to own a classic. It's been hard these past 6 years putting every spare dollar in my cars. Not going out and blowing it on bars, clothes, and stuff like that. Most young folks won't make that sacrifice. But since I put most of the money in it myself, I take much more pride in it. It adds a certain responsibilty when you're younger. And my "daddy" didn't just give it to me. I guess it just comes down to character, and can you trust your kid with a Muscle Car?

Here's a story for ya. A friend of mine in High School had a 69 Camaro that her dad got her. They fixed it up a bit over the years. She went away to college, and left the Camaro behind. She came home one day from college with her boyfriend to visit. It had just rained. She took her boyfiend for a ride in it, loses it around a corner, and pretty much totals the car. And her dad had gotten laid off, so he couldn't afford to keep the insurance up. What a bummer. She's lucky she didn't get killed frankly. But she vows to fix it up when she finishes college. I told her i'd buy it if she didn't though. ;)

Maturity will be more important than age, and one doesn't always follow the other.

hmmm unless u built it, earnt the money to get it, u dont deserve it.
Geeze all my children have and will save up for and get their own car regardless what it is...
the closest any one of them have got to use buying a car for them is a Daughter at full time universty plus working, we financned her into a car.
She is preety broke so we have a deal, she does the housework (doesnt live at home) once a week.
Our youngest son just scored a mechanics appreciship cuople months ago...already his tool box and basic makes mine look bad. he Paid cash
With them all knowing what is ahead...the sod had a after work job, bloody miser...didnt know he had saved up a few $1000s and hes aready got a few more grand for his 1st car!!!
He had (like most sons) no respect for my tools but I do admire the respect he has for his stuff...

"How old do u have to be?" wrong question should be "Should yopu have to earn/save for a 1st gen?"
I dreamt of owning a muscle car in my teens, what with family/home etc I was 28 before I could buy one...for cash...no way do I 'rent' money to buy stuff...If u cant pay cash or havnt earnt it, its not yours..period

I bought a '68 327 Camaro when I was 18. And yes I drove it like a maniac. But I drive my '69 like a maniac sometimes too and I'm 33.

My camaro was the first car I owned... but there isn’t a nut or bolt or any thing else for that matter that I didn’t install or fabricate. It was a major basket case and I did a frame up build on it. The car is my blood sweet and tears.
My camaro has made my life, gave me allot of my skills, it made me choose an automotive career, gave me allot of my work ethic, got me close with my old man, basically its part of me. so if you think your kid would be about the same then I say go for it. It sure helped me become a man.

I dont believe it has to be a camaro though, the key is sparking a passion

My car will be handed down to my daughter. My son wants nothing to do with it. In everyday life, my kids will buy their own cars, and pay their own insurance. We have a rule in place for drivers training and such. The kids MUST be carrying at least a B average in school before drivers training starts. After that, they must maintain that B average thru the balance of highschool or I take the licencse (sp?) and/or car.

Maturity will be more important than age, and one doesn't always follow the other.


You're right, but the two are a fairly good indicator if you have nothing else to go on. Ever notice how we are surprised when a young person acts like they are much older than they are. I don't think it is a flaw for a kid to act immature, but I think it is a "given" in some circumstances, since by definition, kids are not mature. Oh to be a kid again. :)

over the last 17 years Ive bought my son at least 6 motocross bikes to race and he never really appreciated what i had to sacrifice to keep him in all his toys and hobbies.
i know for a fact he will never care for any thing he has not paid for by himself.
so if they have the maturity and funds to buy one @ 16 ,then fine id support their decision.
one more thing id consider is the restrictions classic car insurers have on anyone under 26, i cant see risking a classic with out the ability to properly cover it...
so maybe it should be at least 26...
also with age come maturity ( at least to a certain extent! )

any age that you can actually afford it

My son is 15 and I already gave him a 69 RS Z .. we come from a car family , it's in our DNA .. he is a good kid and is responsible and respectful and I believe he can handle it... we are all car people here and regardless of our philosophy as to age and when and how... we all have an idea whether or not a person is a "car person " or not... I would rather my kid have my RS Z that some guy who has money and is just breakin leather because muscle cars are in vogue,.. like in the mid 90's when everyone wanted a Harley . Age and money to me have nothing to do with it... it's about responsibility, respect and passion for the cars and the hobby.. so when the kid turns 16 I hand him the keys because he exemplifies those values and traits ..

im 19 and own my 68. its my favorite car and i will go to the grave with it(trust me!). I dont think age has to much to do with it but id rather see an owner that loves the car and treats it well than to see a person who owns it and lets it go to crap.

under 20
Although it really depends on the person. Funny thing is before I was 18 I was a better more cautious driver than both my parents. Then again I was living on my own. (long story) I was very mature for my age. The problem was after being in the army you start to feel invincible.:clonk: Even though your not.;) So I say it depends on the person. My brother on the other hand.:confused: No way in HECK I would ever let him behind the wheel of anything with value or power at any age.:sad:

My son is 15 and I already gave him a 69 RS Z

Thats one lucky kid.:eek:

My son is 15 and I already gave him a 69 RS Z .. we come from a car family , it's in our DNA .. he is a good kid and is responsible and respectful and I believe he can handle it... we are all car people here and regardless of our philosophy as to age and when and how... we all have an idea whether or not a person is a "car person " or not... I would rather my kid have my RS Z that some guy who has money and is just breakin leather because muscle cars are in vogue,.. like in the mid 90's when everyone wanted a Harley . Age and money to me have nothing to do with it... it's about responsibility, respect and passion for the cars and the hobby.. so when the kid turns 16 I hand him the keys because he exemplifies those values and traits ..

I can be adopted at 43 Van!!!!!!!

I can be adopted at 43 Van!!!!!!!

I already tried to adopt you and you chose Buck over me.... see , you missed out ! :)

And actually I feel like the lucky one.. when I hear about the things young kids are doing today, the way they are acting. I feel fortunate I have a good kid. He isn't perfect but he is has got to be in the 99th percentile in comparison :) ...and he got his hands dirty on the car and did some really nice work detailing the front sub and engine compartment.

I bought a 69 x11 project ten months before my daughter's 16th birthday.
She picked the color (garnet red),interior (white houndsyooth)and decided to
clone it to an SS. For those ten months she,my father and I worked every
minute we could to finish it on the saturday before her b'day. I have to say
that was one of the best decisions we have ever made. That was three years ago and she drives it everyday.She takes better care of her camaro
than most people do their children.I feel you should base your judgement on
the person not the age.


Mike B

I.I feel you should base your judgement on
the person not the age. Mike BI agree, judgement should be between parent and young adult.

Only the two of them know where the young adult stands.

My first '69 was my first car at 15 years old, but it had a six cylinder. To me, if my son (in the future) wants a Camaro or any other musclecar, it will have a inline six with 4.56 gears. That way he'll stay out of trouble, since it will top out at 55 MPH!

Seriously, the minute I put a V8 in there (at 17), I did things I shouldn't have. My kids sure wont have a V8 car...and many people considered me to be mature for my age. Today it scares me to think of what I've done, and I'm seriously against street racing!

first of all i want to thank everyone who posted here, i wanted to start this thread to show my teens some of the + and - were on owning a Camaro at such a young age and with some of your threads they read here maybe this will help them understand these aren't just classic Muscle Cars they are history and they should understand when you drive them, they where basicly built to go heads up with any other street machine at that time..i have three son's..from my oldest he has the 68SS and he had already lost it once, but was ok and it was fixable second son..im starting on his restoration he also will have a 68..it is true that maturity will be more important than age i know even at our age i have almost lost it..and i don't drive the Camaro so hard because it will get away from you when you give it that little extra i thought i could handle..;) ..and when i was in my teens even though i never lost it..i did drive it like a teen..or for most of us who drove like that..these Camaros are worth a lot more then they were 10-15 years ago..and i want to make sure my teens understand they are getting something we have been building for years and some of us are still working on and that they are the true Muscle Car of all times and should really respect them..thanks for your input..Chris..

This is a favorite topic of mine...my oldest (daughter) did learn to drive using my '68 Camaro 383, then my '67 Camaro RS/SS...with me riding in the passenger seat of course. She's never driven it far, not at highway speeds (as far as I know). I agonized about the pros/cons, and I finally decided that I'd feel just as bad if she were to have a fatal accident no matter what car she was driving, in fact she'd be more liable to drive the family car at a high rate of speed...so she drove the Camaro during her high school years. She's now in college, drives a '98 Malibu, but we have the irreplaceable memories of cruising... Major drawback was the accelerating speed of gray hair appearing on my head.
Now, my son (now 13) is another story, he's a camaro fanatic but he'll have to earn my confidence that he'll treat the car as a piece of history. I think his fear of wrecking my camaro alone will keep him from abusing it (remember Ferris Buehler's Day Off??).

All that being said, I am against letting teenagers do 'road trips' in a classic car, too much can go wrong...in other words, I wouldn't just 'throw the keys' to my kids and tell them to go have fun in the Camaro...

http://home.comcast.net/~tmannett/summer2003%20012.jpg

Bought my '68 at 15 years old... just before the prices started skyrocketing!

Can't buy even a shell for that price anymore!