When I brought mine home from Idaho, it wandered in any sort of crosswind. A new set of tires and an alignment of the front wheel caster to the maximum (+4° I think) took care of that. Other than that and the hour long oil changes, no complaints.
Had mine since new. No complaints, but you will want the alignment caster set closer to 4 degrees. Average approx. 18 mpg overall. I don't know how old your son is or his driving habits, but it's not something he should try to drive like a sports car. When the vehicle stability control kicks in at the limit it can really raise the pucker factor to high levels.