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Any thoughts between Car & Driver Vs. Automobile Vs. others for him?
They are just as boring as Motor Trend. I subscribe to Motor Trend and Car & Driver. They are almost half ads. I think those types of mags will be boring to a ten year old. They will be in the recyle bin two months after they come in the mail.
I suggest getting some nice car books. These kind of books are sold inexpensively in the bargain section of Barnes and Noble. Here are some online suggestions for bargain car books.
For magazines I suggest a single issue of the Consumer Reports new car magazine. This is not for younger readers but it is a good reference guide for the basic specs of every car made. It also has no outside ads and can be found at Barnes and Noble.
I started getting Car and Driver when I was 10, Road and Track and Motor Trend I believe came shortly after, around my 11th birthday. This would have been circa 2003 and a lot of the adult content went "over my head" then, I'd have to say the worst thing I saw from that era was a cover that said "Fourgasm". They had some minor swearing, hell and damn type stuff but no F-bombs or S-bombs. They also had ads for male enhancement products in the back, but they were pretty mild. I would call the magazines low-end PG-13 and I would suggest maybe reading through them to see if you take issue with anything. They do seem to be a bit edgier now.
Any thoughts between Car & Driver Vs. Automobile Vs. others for him? Make believe your 10 and into flash.
I've subscribed to Car and Driver, Automobile, and Motor Trend, for many years.
These are all magazines for people with adult reading levels. My 9-yr old son pages through them and looks at the pictures, but does not read anything. I'm not sure what reading level your son is at, but I'm willing to bet that much of the prose will be over his head. I'd say that Car and Driver and Automobile are targeted to an older audience (40s+), but Motor Trend's audience is younger. As far as "girlie-pictures" are concerned, you don't have anything to worry about. There may be 2 or 3 small pictures in the back of the issue, mainly associated with advertisements for "mens' enhancement" products, but that's it.
My suggestion would be TV shows instead of magazines. My son also likes cars, and we watch "Graveyard Cars", "Fast and Loud", "Roadkill", Top Gear", and a few other shows together. He has just discovered "The Fastest Car" series on Netflix and enjoys watching that as there is always a supercar featured. Just watch out for the language though. It can be VERY rough at times.
I read Car and Driver and Road and Track when I was that age. I still think they are the best choices for a 10 yr old. Automobile is a great magazine but I'd also call it a bit more upscale, with language that is equally more adult.
If your son likes supercars, then Road and Track should get the nod, their coverage of exotic cars generally beats Car and Driver.
Hot Rod or any of the other muscle car mags will have at least one bikini issue and their advertisements will usually include girls posing as well. C&D and R&T largely stay away from that, they don't have a bikini issue, and their advertisements generally don't feature women to sell a product.
I think you've gotten some good advice about the magazines, all have somewhat similar content, but not likely any hold a typical 10 year old's focus for a while. I get all 4 of the big ones. Some deal with social/political car related topics more than others, but similar features and test across them.
I personally don't think Car and Driver is for kids. Language is worse and they seem to get a kick out of using it lately.
Road and Track is becoming less interesting. I would go Automobile or Motor Trend for a kid, if you feel like they would really even read it. Nice thing with those two is if you get the print subscription, the digital edition is free so the kids can read it on an ipad which they may like more.
My dad would take me to the library when I was a kid and I would head straight to the magazines and pick up the latest Car and Driver. C/D was really funny back then (and still is, to a degree). I still have a sub to the 3 major mags but never have time to read them. They pile up in my office until I flip through them and recycle.
My 8 yo son voluntarily watched his first episode of Motorweek this weekend. Progress!
I think you've gotten some good advice about the magazines, all have somewhat similar content, but not likely any hold a typical 10 year old's focus for a while. I get all 4 of the big ones. Some deal with social/political car related topics more than others, but similar features and test across them.
I personally don't think Car and Driver is for kids. Language is worse and they seem to get a kick out of using it lately.
Road and Track is becoming less interesting. I would go Automobile or Motor Trend for a kid, if you feel like they would really even read it. Nice thing with those two is if you get the print subscription, the digital edition is free so the kids can read it on an ipad which they may like more.
I noticed that too, when reading one at the dentists office. Every other word was not PG13. Very surprised and I think it has cheapened the magazine a lot.
another bit of advice is to match the magazine choice to his preferences in what kinds of car he likes. if he like trucks, then go with truckin, pick up van and four wheel drive, classic trucks, etc.
if he likes hot rods, then street rodder, and others in this category are ones to go for.
if he likes mustangs then there are a bunch of mustang dedicated magazines out there.
if he likes modified cars in general then hot rod, car craft, popular hot rodding, etc. are the ones to concentrate on.
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