Car options

The right car can help you to drive better and maybe keep driving longer.

A consultation with Age Concern's SeniorVoice group found that some senior drivers felt they are now driving better than ever because new cars are so much easier to drive.

Better lights, computer-controlled transmissions, anti-lock braking, traction control, air-conditioning, and clearer instruments were all felt to help older drivers.

Although older drivers have fewer crashes than other groups of road users, they can be more severely injured because older bodies take longer to heal, so you probably want a safe car.

Older people are significant buyers of new cars in New Zealand and car manufacturers are designing with usability for older people in mind. You may not see this stated in their advertising though, because the fear of being considered 'an old person's car' still haunts manufacturers.

Checklist

You probably want a car that is:

• Reliable
• Safe
• Has low running costs and low emissions
• Easy to get in and out of
• But is still fun!

Resources

The answers to many of these requirements can be found online:

Reliability: Consumer says they have everything you need to know about buying new and used cars, including latest reliability figures by make and model (fee-based content) at www.consumer.org.nz

Safety, economy and emissions: RightCar, a NZ Transport Agency site, lets car buyers compare different makes and models of new cars available in New Zealand based on ratings for safety, fuel efficiency and emissions: www.rightcar.govt.nz

Used car safety: You can now check the safety rating of 349 common Australian and New Zealand used-vehicle models online, based on records from over 3.2 million police-reported road crashes in New Zealand and Australia between 1986 and 2006. The Monash University Accident Research Centre ratings are available at www.landtransport.govt.nz

Fun and usability: The Automobile Association has advice on finding a car to meet your needs on their CarFit site, and there's a wide range of road test reports available on the AA website www.aa.co.nz (some content free to all users, some content free to AA members only).