I'm sorry but I have to disagree with you on this... Not all young drivers are complete morons who drive their cars on public roads like they stole them. There are idiots in every age groups, it's all about the attitudes...Ian Mac wrote:Just a thought but maybe insurance premiums for young drivers are so high because the insurance companies know that a daft barely 17 kid with next to no driving experience is going to drift the thing around an island, lose control, go sidewards across the pavement and wipe-out a group of pedestrians in a bus stop, any one of which could be your mother, my wife, somebody elses daughter etc etc.
I really think that as hopefully mature adults we should dissuade new drivers from even thinking about drifting and modifications until they've got a few years driving experience under their belts.
Also, to address one of the earlier posts on this thread there is no such thing as a modification which doesn't affect your insurance - ALL modifications have to be notified.
And to the guy who asked what he should buy as a first car I think I'd probably suggest a Citroen 2cv or a Morris Minor but whichever you choose I'm more than relieved that you won't be taking MY daughter out in it..
And yes, I was young once and like all new drivers I thought I knew it all. Now I KNOW I know it all I feel compelled to allow you to benefit from my experience..
Cars, mechanics and motorsports have been my hobby since I was in elementary school. I bought my 360 Turbo before I even had a driver's license but still when I got my license I didn't drive around like maniac at places where there are other people around. There are motor tracks for that.
Limiting the opportunities for young drivers to build their cars and closing down motor tracks is more of a problem than solution. If there would be more opportunities for young drivers to find their limits on closed tracks, there wouldn't be so much pressure for those who are leaning more to the idiot-side described above, to drive around like assholes.
Insurance thing.. depends where you live. Here in Finland you can build your car as much as you wan't and it won't affect your insurance, only the engineers at the MOT inspection care what you have done and check that it's legal.