First Car?

[PenPoint]

So, here's the deal. I'm 15, and getting my learner's permit in May. My parents want me to find a car that's safe and fuel efficient. The car is going to be driven by my younger brother and sister when they get their permits, and by then I'm going to be out for college. So we're looking for something that will
a) Not get us killed, and
b) Something that won't kill our parents wallet at the gas station
So I was showing a few cars to my mom earlier today on the Blue Book. She liked the '99 Volvo V70, because it was cheap. I pointed out that it didn't have very good fuel mileage, but I'm pretty sure it would be cheap to insure. We also looked at an '01 Prius, because it was a hybrid (My mom's into the whole "reducing our carbon footprint" thing). But I think that there are a lot of hidden costs that come with the car. I hear that the batteries have to be replaced after a couple years (and their not cheap), and I didn't really like the hybrid powertrain. Then we looked over an '01 Nissan Sentra Sedan (my suggestion). The thing gets about 130 hp, has relatively good crash test ratings (4 Stars on most tests) and is pretty fuel efficient (29/36). I was wondering if you guys could give me any input on this, or recomend any cars to me. I also wouldn't mind the car being a little faster than the average grocery-getter, is the Sentra any faster than an Accord or something? Also, one last question, Do you recomend we start w/ a manual or automatic? I've been pushing the manual, in case we ever have to drive one (I know I'm going to) and because then, by comparison, an automatic is easy. Thanks in advance for your guys help.

[ChaunceyShives]

If your looking for a good "all around" car, I recommend the Cheverolet Monte Carlo. It's alot better looking than the Japanese cars, it has dual air bags for safety, it comes with a V6 and is reasonable fast, and get about 27 miles a gallon. They're very reliable (mine has 178,000 miles) and they have a comfortable ride and a great looking interior. With the price of Japanese cars on the rise, you get alot for the money with the Monte Carlo. Just my opinion, but I've been driving and working on cars for 30 years.

[PenPoint]

Thanks for the input, I'll definately look into it. I thought the Monte Carlo's would be unreliable and heavy. Oh, what year of the Monte Carlo do you recomend? I don't know much about the domestic scene, so any help would be great. Because I pulled up a page on the Blue Book, my favorite resource, and it gives the Monte Carlo 20/27. Plus, most of my driving is going to be through the city, like to school and round town. From what I see, the Carlo has identical safety features to the Sentra. And from how I see it, the Monte Carlo doesn't look like it's going to win any beauty pageant. I'm looking at the '99 model though... So, any more input from you guys out there?