Teen Driver Safety Week is the Time to Start Talking Safe Driving Habits

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It's Teen Driver Safety Week! Driver education doesn't stop in the classroom—consistent conversations and the right gear can go a long way toward reinforcing safe driving behavior.

For many of us, our love for cars began in our teenage years, when getting a driver's license gave us our first whiff of freedom. During this time, we laid the foundation for a lifelong passion. However, we can probably all admit that, as teenagers, we may have made some questionable decisions behind the wheel. As adults, we want the next generation of car lovers to stay safe on the road so they too can enjoy a lifetime of driving.

Sadly, traffic crashes remain one of the leading causes of death for 15-to-18-year-olds in the U.S.—a sobering reality for the nation and the auto enthusiast community. Teen Driver Safety Week (October 20–26), supported by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), is a great time to highlight this issue. The Teen Driver Safety Week initiative encourages parents to talk to their teens about safe driving habits, and we're here to support that conversation.

We join NHTSA in urging parents to have regular, open discussions with their teen drivers. Talking about critical issues like impaired driving, seatbelt use, distracted driving, speeding, and passenger safety can help reduce the risk of injury or death on the road. These conversations should be ongoing—driver safety isn't learned in a single driver education class but through consistent dialogue and check-ins. You can find more resources and information about teen driver safety from the NHTSA.

Better still, enroll your teen in a driver safety course such as Tire Rack's Street Survival. While nothing replaces behind-the-wheel experience, learning good driving habits early builds better, safer drivers for a lifetime. These one-day classes are affordable (only $125) and take place in various locations across the U.S. and Canada throughout the year. Learn more here.

While no product can replace education about good decision-making and common-sense motoring, having a few safety devices in the car can help navigate the journey to becoming skilled, responsible drivers—and provide a bit of peace of mind to the parents of teen drivers. Here are our recommendations.

When the Gear Team tested the Best GPS Trackers, we awarded the Bouncie Best Overall because of its "effortless user experience." Designed to plug directly into the OBD-II port, the little unit provides insights into driving behavior, location, and vehicle health. Parents can receive alerts for erratic driving, impact detection, and curfew violations, which can help guide safer driving habits.

Its plug-and-play setup and intuitive app make it easy to use, prioritizing safety while respecting your teen's independence. Moreover, its prominent placement values transparency over secrecy; your kid will know they're being tracked, and that's a good thing.

This device is an excellent starting point for ongoing discussions about safe driving techniques and improvement opportunities. While maintaining privacy is important, the Bouncie GPS tracker is a reasonable and affordable device that can help everyone feel safer and more informed as teens gain driving experience.

In our test of the Best Dash Cams on the market, we found the N4 to be Best Overall, and it would be a great addition to any teen's car to help promote mindful driving techniques.

The Vantrue offers three-camera coverage: front, cabin, and rear. It records clear footage in high resolution, even in low light, and displays all three feeds simultaneously on its screen. Collision and motion detection automatically save critical footage. We love the wide variety of features and affordability, making it an excellent value for parents while helping teens stay aware of their surroundings.

The Wolfbox G900 clips on top of the rearview mirror, using a rear-mounted camera to project a wide, high-definition view of everything behind the car directly onto the mirror's display. This expanded view essentially eliminates rear blind spots, allowing drivers to see far more than they would with a standard rearview mirror.

Whether reversing or driving, teens can enjoy a clear image of what's behind the car, enhancing safety during lane changes or parking by providing a much broader perspective than an OEM mirror alone. We tested Wolfbox's G840 in our Backup Camera Test and called it our Best Overall.

The Zeus Air multitool is perfect for teen drivers. We named it the Best Combo Inflator in our test of the Best Portable Tire Inflators because it combines a tire inflator, 15,000-mAh jump starter, flashlight, and power bank into one compact device that can easily be stowed in a glovebox or trunk. It's fast and easy to use, inflating tires quickly while providing a reliable jump start when needed.

This all-in-one tool helps teens stay prepared for emergencies, ensuring they can handle flat tires and dead batteries, even at night, in one convenient package.

Getting your teen back on the road and out of the unsafe condition of roadside repairs couldn't be more straightforward. The Slime Emergency Flat Tire Repair Kit provides a stress-free solution for flat-tire emergencies, eliminating the need to wait for roadside assistance or struggle with changing a tire. In just 10 minutes, it inflates and seals the tire at the push of a button.

SAFE 2 SAVE turns safe driving into a game, rewarding users for avoiding distractions behind the wheel. Before each drive, you open the app, and if you complete your trip without using your phone, you earn points that can be redeemed for rewards at (mostly) restaurants. Honestly, this is brilliant. And motivating to teenagers, or at least it would have been to me!

We all hope teenagers never encounter emergencies that require breaking glass or cutting their seatbelt, but having the Wonder Point safety hammer in their vehicle can provide crucial support if they do.

Compact and lightweight at just 6.7 inches long and 11 ounces, this tool features a sharp stainless-steel seatbelt cutter and window breaker for swift action in critical situations.

Sometimes, it's the simple things. You are driving in unsafe conditions if you can't see through your windshield. You and your teenager should always keep a gallon of windshield-washer fluid handy so you can see the road.

Hearst Autos combines the talent, resources, and expertise of three of the largest, most influential automotive publications in the world. The Gear Team has tested a wide variety of automotive products, parts, accessories, and gear, such as GPS trackers, OBD-II scanners, and dash cams. We get our hands on each and every product we test. Most are purchased; some are supplied by manufacturers. Our recommendations are based on knowledge and experience, not hype.

The Gear Team doesn't need to game algorithms for traffic or promote lousy products for clicks. We're more concerned with our reputation and the trust that our readers have in Autoweek, Car and Driver, and Road & Track to deliver honest opinions and expert evaluations. Visit our Tested & Trusted page to see the very best in automotive gear we've tested.

Katherine Keeler is Associate Testing Editor at Hearst Autos. By day she evaluates tools for your enjoyment; by night, she Frankensteins her ever-changing fleet of rustbucket oddities back to repair. Her dream is to open a roadside attraction where the public can view, drive, and learn repairs at her emporium of curious cars.

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