16 Year old drivers....Grrrrrrrrrr

126coupe · 126coupe's Garage

One of my best friend's father was killed sunday riding his bike in the neighborhood just down the street from my house.
The driver a 16 year old female. he was such a nice gentle old guy, very tragic. No skid marks, just plowed into him.
is 16 is too young for someone to have a license?

dhoward · dhoward's Garage

Yes.
Unless it was me when I was 16.
Sorry to hear about your friends father.

livi · 03-14-2006, 10:55 AM

Just awful.

Yes, in my (somewhat segregated) opinion, girls 18 and boys 25. At least (racist opinion) boys from East European and Arabic cultures. They always seem to drive the cars that flies by you, cut you off and rear ends you - hanging on the horn. Something religious I presume - if Allah wants me to die today, so be it..

legion · 03-14-2006, 10:56 AM

I don't think 16 is too young.

If you pushed the driving age up to 18, you'd just have equally inexperienced 18 year olds.

I didn't get my license until I was 17--a year after I took driver's ed. My parents took me out ONCE to practice driving. When I took my exam, I failed twice before passing--mostly because I hadn't been behind the wheel of a car in a year at that point.

I think I really learned how to drive after I bought my first car and had my license. I drove my whole senior year, then went away to college. I drove only when I came home from college (2-3 times a year) and over the summer. Senior year of college I brought my car down with me. I don't think I was a mature, considerate driver until I was 23 or so.

masraum · 03-14-2006, 11:15 AM

Yep, it doesn't really matter, you're going to be screwed when they get a license and are inexperienced. Unfortunately the world is going to hell in a handbasket. Kids are bad enough drivers until their mid 20s already, and now we have thrown cell phones and text messaging into the mix. 10:1 she was on a cell phone when it happened. And the 7 year difference between boys and girls isn't necessary. Girls are just as bad as boys these days.

Porsche-O-Phile · Porsche-O-Phile's Garage

That's horrible. I'm sure the girl doesn't feel good about this either. . .

I agree though, 16 is too young to drive. Hell, 18 is probably too young to drive in a significant number of cases. Attention span, ability to focus, division of attention, etc. are still quite undeveloped at that age.

notfarnow · 03-14-2006, 11:46 AM

16 is too young. There is no way I should have been driving when I was 16.

stevepaa · 03-14-2006, 11:55 AM

some years ago when the drinking age was 18 in NY, the driving age was 18 also. go figure.

I tell my kids to get off the road or use hands free if they need to use the phone.

scottmandue · 03-14-2006, 12:05 PM

Do they still teach driver ed. in high school? When I was a kid (when buffalo roamed the plains) we sat through ten weeks of classes including a couple of weeks sitting in a dorky simulator then the instructors took us out and let us drive a real car. And of course the obligatory bloody training film.

FrayAdjacent911 · 03-14-2006, 12:07 PM

I think with social influences, and technology mixed in, driving is just something most young people can't handle responsibly.

I almost got hit by a young girl in my parent's neighborhood when she completely MISSED the big red STOP sign in front of her. Too distracted by her four friends in the car. I blow my horn at her and she just throws her hands up like the girl that dropped the ball during a game of kick ball.

What I really think needs to happen is more parental responsibility in teaching their kids safe driving habits. But then, many adults don't have safe driving habits anyway.

masraum · 03-14-2006, 12:14 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by FrayAdjacent911
What I really think needs to happen is more parental responsibility in teaching their kids safe driving habits. But then, many adults don't have safe driving habits anyway.

And that folks, is...

....the rest of the story.

FrayAdjacent911 · 03-14-2006, 12:18 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by tcar
Happened here - Denver suburb a couple months ago.

Kid (17, I think) was TEXT MESSAGING while driving 60! Went onto the bike path and blasted a guy w/ wife, kids... wonderful guy. In 50's, I think.

She should be charged with negligent homicide, or at least manslaughter. She couldn't say she thought text messaging while trying to drive was a perfectly good, safe idea.

yellowline · 03-14-2006, 12:21 PM

No. My senior year of HS was excellent, due to a license. The amount of freedom was unparalleled - the entire portion of the world I frequented was open to me. I didn't have a phone, though.

Then again, my one accident was at 5 mph and due to me watching the other lane of traffic-the cop didn't find it worthwhile to write a ticket. My parents also pretty much beat into me the need for responsibility, the cost of a big enough mistake, etc.

RickM · RickM's Garage

Quote:

Originally posted by scottmandue
Do they still teach driver ed. in high school?

Holy Cow, I remember Drivers' Ed. We shared a car with two other students and the teacher. When this one chick tried to navigate on an oval she weaved from one side all the way to the other.....curb to curb.....over and over and over. The other student and I did all we could to contain ourselves.

Seems having a go cart really prepared me quite well in understanding the mechanics of driving. Too bad it didn't help with maturity.

svandamme · svandamme's Garage

kids beeing given cars , that's the problem

i had to buy my own , get my own insurance, and pay my own road tax and fuel...i had a mk2 golf diesel

i see kids , they turn 18 , and daddy buys then a spanking brand new car
usually something small and nippy , like a peugeot 206 or a ford focus

those little hatchbacks go to fast to easy for inexperienced drivers

mine wasn't fast, and i was carefull with it, didn't make enough money yet to just go buy cars whenever i crashed one

i did have a couple of accidents though , but none were my fault
just minor dings... i've always had the habit to learn my cars before driving fast in them...

jkarolyi · 12:43 PM

>Do they still teach driver ed. in high school? When I was a kid (when buffalo roamed the plains) we sat through ten weeks of classes including a couple of weeks sitting in a dorky simulator then the instructors took us out and let us drive a real car. And of course the obligatory bloody training film.

Nope. Driver's ed is now taught by private institutions whose first incentive is to get the kids to pass the lame drivers ed requirements as fast as possible. I'm a libertarian at heart, but this is a serious matter that belongs in public high schools.

And no, with proper training, 16 is not too young to drive. I got my permit the day I turned 15 (in 1989 in North Carolina) and my license the day I turned 16. I was properly trained and, knock on wood, haven't had an accident with over $1000 damage in 15 years of driving!

Raising the driving age is merely scapegoating around the true problem: lousy training. If we're truly concerned about safety, we'd adopt a European model for licensing.

masraum · 03-14-2006, 12:33 PM

Yep, I saw a kid driving a WRX sti in my neighborhood the other day. An accident waiting to happen, but the real problem is the lack of training, not just of the mechanics of driving, but also of the responsibility.

jkarolyi · 03-14-2006, 12:46 PM

>Yep, I saw a kid driving a WRX sti in my neighborhood the other day.

That's the other problem...what responsible parent buys their kid a 250+hp WRX? My first car was a 115hp '77 924

I'd be all for an HP limit for teenage drivers.

126coupe · 126coupe's Garage

I just found out that the girl was arrested last night and charged w vehicular manslaughter. Apparantly she ran over my friends father and instead of calling 911 she called her Mom who arrived at the accident scene and they both fled. The CHP investgated the accident and were able to match the cars paint to the bicycle. Great Parenting?

tobster1911 · 03-14-2006, 12:56 PM

Anyone here notice that these issues seem (to me anyway) more prevalent in cities? I grew up in BF Colorado and was driving WAY before 16. Not on public road as my parents are nice law abiding people but on our 20 acres. When I hit 16 and got my license, I already knew how to control the vehicle. I just had to learn how do deal with other vehicles, lights, and such.

I agree with what people have said, It is the time spent behind the wheel that counts. There is no magic age where you would suddenly be OK to drive.

10+ years driving and Zero accidents on the road. (have had a few off-road accidents)

P.S. I also had a go-cart that I built myself with every penny I could save up. That thing was a blast on my home-made track. I had been driving that thing since I was 8.