Is a Porsche 911 a safe car for a first time driver?

Porsches are very safe and well engineered cars, but they are not suitable for inexperienced drivers. You will often hear the comment about "too much power" as this will be an issue for a novice driver in such a car. While you say you have no intent on speeding, how is it that you intend to manage that? While you can say you won't, the fact is that if you are a first time driver you have no basis of experience for what 20mph feels like vs, 80mph.

And while the current Porsche offerings are fairly tame in how they react, they are still likely to be a handful for a driver that makes a "panic response," which is to say, will you have the knowledge and discipline to know to get on the throttle if you lose control and the car starts to spin... or are you more likely to panic and hit the brakes (which will actually make the situation worse).

You can look at this from any angle - be it cost (I know you said this doesn't matter, but it is still relevant since you will also be learning to care for a car for the first time as well) or how it will be for you as a driver (yes, they are great cars to drive, but there is a good chance they will be more car than you can handle with your experience).

You say you do not want to get speeding tickets or crash - this would make it sound like all those people that do get speeding tickets or get in accidents want to? Many incidents of speeding are the result of not paying attention, either to your speed or to the presence of law enforcement. And accidents are almost always a result of not paying attention... you can say you intend to pay attention, but the fact is that much of driving is not a natural instinct, it is learned and takes lots of repetition to become second nature. A powerful car that can be difficult to handle at or near it's limits (for an experienced driver) is not a good idea for someone that is still learning the very basics.

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Boxster. The Boxster handles better and the S version is just as fast as a 911 Carrera Cabriolet around a race track. The Boxster is also more fun to drive. 911's should only be coupes. The car was never originally designed to be a convertible. Back in 2010, I was looking for a Porsche. I looked at the 944 Turbo, the 1st generation Boxster, and the 964 and 996 generation 911's since these are all sold for under $15,000, though it is very hard to find a 996 for under $15k. All of them were near 200,000 miles. I have test driven all of them. The Boxster was best by far so I went with it. I am still driving it 1.5 years later and I love it.

I agree with Joey. A Lot of cars are safe and efficient. A Porsche is way too fast for a young driver.

They are small, low to the ground and other cars dont see them. The simple fact that you don't yet understand that a car can be too powerful for you, regardless of your good intentions, proves that you dont understand enough about cars to drive a Porsche. Harsh, but true...

How your car looks should really be the least of your concerns. Truly, people get so caught up in their cars and how they look in them, and forget that your job right now us to practice road and driver awareness and increase your skills.

And, regardless of whether you can afford it, you could put a down payment on a townhouse or a condo with the price if a Porsche. That would be a much wiser investment. In 5 years, when you have no tickets or accidents, reward yourself with the Porsche.

So not never. Just not right now. It's seriously too much car for any 18 year old.

A Ford Fusion would be a perfect choice.

Hi Kate, so first of all these people are super jealous of you and probably just drive Hyundai's and Toyota's. Haters will be haters, forget them because they will always be miserable. If I were you I would definitely buy the Porsche 911. First of all, it is German, so it is built very well. Second of all, it is very safe. And third, it is a Porsche 911 which is a gorgeous car like you said and you get a very nice status image. The only thing is it is a very fast car, but you said you won't speed so that's fine. Just be careful. But besides that it's a fantastic car, especially to drive it is amazing. So I say buy it and have fun!

Everyone has answered this. Putting aside the trolling question and the "insurance could cost more than the car" problem ( real point), I'll assume you mean what you say about driving the car gently. These are wonderful and quite safe small cars, beautiful, reliable, and having only two meaningful seats for adults (still, despite improvements in this in the new 991) and almost no storage.

You're in High School or just starting college. You have friends, possibly lots of them. You all like to go places and haul your gear - sports gear, bicycles, etc. There is no room for this in the Porsche. You can take one passenger and luggage for a weekend, but that's about it. You can't get skiis into it; you can't get a golf bag into it; many suitcases won't even go into it!

Then there's the question of parking lot damage. I've driven and parked cars on high school and college campuses. Your new car will soon look like someone has taken a steel rod to the sides of it. Most people you park around will be driving beaters with two-ton doors that they fling into the sides of your beauty as they try to hurry to classes or dates. College is NOT the place for an expensive but safe car.

Greetings Kate,

It sounds like you plan on being a safe driver, not the type to abuse the power and mash on the throttle. A Porsche absolutely can be driven safely of course, such as the 911. The base models don't have an insane amount of power, are still spicy and can still get you in trouble if you want to, but for someone who wishes to drive it like a sane human being, it can of course be done very easily.

The problem is that a lot of people say they're going to drive a car like this safely and tamely but when push comes to shove it is really really hard NOT to drive a purpose built car like a 911 and want to drive it fast. All it takes is one time of bad throttle control around a corner and things go sour very quickly in a car like a 911.

I drive older Porsches, so my 911 isn't crazy powerful (just a tad over 200hp) but of course, if I wanted to go fast it will still go fast. Whether or not I do that is my choice to put my foot down and risk getting a ticket. I don't find it anything crazy in the rain or the snow (contrary to popular belief). In fact, with a good set of tires, it's actually very good in the snow and in the rain and is an all around fantastic daily driver. The problem is that with all the weight in the back, once the end starts to come around, if you are not very quick to act, your face is where your butt was a few seconds prior.

I've only driven a handful of watercooled 911 models, never anything on the crazy side of the spectrum, but they were definitely tame if you wanted them to be.

I think overall for someone who has a tendency to abuse the power of a car, I would say absolutely not. For someone who just wants to get from A to B in style and can exercise self control, sure, you definitely could. Recommended? Well, not necessarily since the power can get you in trouble if you decide to go bonkers and try it out and aren't ready for it. But it really depends on the person.

For a first time driver, I wouldn't recommend it. No one can really stop you from making that decision. I'd say no for the most part. But if you really TRULY can exercise self control, maybe. I have to agree on the majority of the no answers here though as they've made very good points.

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RE:

Is a Porsche 911 a safe car for a first time driver?

I'm 18, and I'm not interested in speeding or anything, I just want a nice looking car (obviously Porsches are gorgeous) that is safe and efficient. Price isn't a problem, too, so please don't bring that up. I'm just concerned whether there's anything about the car itself...

Trust me,you don't get a car that is made for something and not use it.

My first vehicle was an old ford F-150 4x4 with big ole tires,the first thing I wanted to do when I got it was put that 4x4 and tires to use!Same will happen if you get a car producing that kind of hp.

I suggest getting yourself a cheaper vehicle,I highly doubt you,at 18 can afford a 2013 Porsche,hell most 18 year olds couldn't afford the insurance on that car at 18 a car like that would probably be $1,000.My sister is paying $300 a month in insurance,she is in her mid 20's and drives a Honda civic,imagine a younger person driving a car that costs thousands more and has hundreds of more hp.

I can see your future,you're going to get it and get comfortable with it,then after you're comfortable you are going to be doing 125 mph in no time.That kind of speed gives you a rush,once you do it you're going to do it again.

Yes it is a very good car, i would love one as a first car, the reason people say its dangerous and powerfull blah blah is because when they hear porsche 911 they eutomatically think its some heavy *** sportscar like a ''ferrari'', if you've been in one you can see that its really easy to drive and very sivilised, just like any other car.

But hey i prefer the panamera :)