ur 1st car — what it costs

You'll want to know what it will cost to take driving lessons, take the driving test and buy and run your ideal first car. This is where things start to get expensive.....but there are now some interesting new alternatives.

If you've just started thinking about learning to drive, you'll want to know about driving lessons, how much they cost and how many you might need.

If you're already taking lessons then you'll be looking ahead and want to know how much it'll cost to take, and hopefully pass, your driving test.

When you've got your licence you'll be thinking of getting out and driving — you'll need to know about insurance to make sure that you're legal to do so and you'll want to know how to keep your insurance costs down.

Now the exciting bit — getting ur1stcar — but it's not much fun buying ur1st car and then finding you can't afford to run it You'll need to know what the running costs will be and you can calculate them on a annual, monthly or weekly basis.

When you're buying any car it's vital to get the right one. The right one will be the one that best suits your needs and your pocket - use our Car Chooser to help you find ur car.

If all this looks too expensive or you don't need frequent use of a car, you might want to consider alternatives to owning a car, like the new pay-as-you-go car schemes.

Before buying any second-hand car it is essential to check it out to make sure you don't buy a duff, dangerous or stolen car.