I don't think it's a bad start. Statistics usually make teenagers go "omg, WHATEVER" and do their little eyeroll. Yeah, you probably know the one. I'm sure I gave it a few times, too.
One thing I plan to tell my daughter in times like this is, "you probably think you know everything. And you know what? You're a smart person. You're intelligent and bright and I give you every ounce of credit for that. But
wisdom comes with age, and there's a difference between being smart and being wise. Wise is what you let your parents do when you're caught making a bad decision. I'm your parent and it's my job to keep you safe. When you were a baby, I was there if you fell. I didn't let you play with matches. I never let you run across the street without you holding my hand. You thought you knew better then too. But I had to tell you 'no' and you had to have trust and faith in me that I will only ever want your health and safety and happiness. And there is no way that I am going to send you into this big, scary world without understanding that. And I'm going to help you be a responsible person. You can kick and scream just like you did when you were two years old and I wouldn't let you play with the electrical outlet or go somewhere alone. Sometimes the hardest thing to do is the right thing to do. And it's hard to do this because I know what this car means to you, but it's the right thing to do."
And if that doesn't make something of a dent, I may just get desperate and try the "listen to me. I carried you in my belly for 42 weeks and was in labor for 17 hours. Get OVER yourself. I'd rather have you angry at me for the next 15 years than in traction in the hospital or in a hole in the ground. Deal with it.
"
Just hang in there! I think you are awesome and someone that I already look up to for as little as I know about you. Kind of like that mom from a few months ago who told her son that if she found out he was drinking and driving that she'd sell his car. Then she found an empty beer in the car (which he claimed was his friend's.) So, she put an ad in the newspaper as "world's meanest mom, selling car..."
I think that kid will look back in about 6 years and laugh about it. I bet your son will too, and he'll be alive to do it.
