<prompt> Human: So heres my situation. I am turning 16 in October and getting my license so I am thinking about getting a car. I am looking for a job for this summer and hoping to make a decent amount from that. At first I only considered getting any old used car for a couple thousand. After some thought, I considered whether it would be a good idea to get a new car on a monthly payment. My parents have been kind enough to pay for necessities like college and housing after graduating high school, so I wont exactly be struggling to stay alive if things go bad. After talking with my dad for a bit, he offered to provide me with a safety net if I cant pay off the car for some reason. I will obviously need some car by the time Im in college so my logic is that a car I get may as well be something that will last me at a decade rather than a used car that may break down in a year or two. So the plan is to save a few thousand once I have a semi-steady income from a part time job I can get a new car for 200-300 monthly and be able to consistently pay for it. Is this a good idea or should I just buy a cheap used car instead. If not, what are my alternatives? As someone who has very little experience in finance, I would appreciate ELI5 answers. Thank you! :Edit: The basically unanimous consensus is that I should not get a new car. I seem to have completely forgotten about insurance which while take a huge chunk out of my budget. There are a whole lot of things that I overlooked. Thank you reddit for saving me from a potential headache.  <response>: No, it is not a good idea for a 16 year old to have a new car. And its a terrible idea for a 16 year old to finance a new car. Even if youre a great driver, which is improbable given your limited experience, your insurance is going to be through the roof. And even if you can afford 200-300 a month in car payments plus insurance, youd get a much greater return on investment by just saving that money for college and related expenses. 