Having emergency braking and Lane departure (RDM) are the safety net features. You can get rear parking sensors installed by the dealer. I think that leaves the cross traffic as the only major point. However a sedan is generally good to learn in for good visibility. Learning should be the time to use your own eyes to watch cars. Blind spot monitors don't help much when a car is changing lanes from two lanes over. This is still necessary to use eyes to watch for, and a driving test will still expect not to rely on the car's features.
Two of the biggest dangers for teenage drivers is carting around friends and driver distraction from phones, etc. For that, you'd basically want to buy your kid a manual transmission car with just awful backseats (don't buy a two seater because the insurance cost will bankrupt you). With a stick shift, they won't be able to play with their phone much and none of their friends can drive the car (another hazard). Stick shifts force the driver to be engaged, essential for inexperienced drivers. All those automated safety features can cause overconfidence, a condition that's deadly for new, inexperienced drivers.
It's happened (note the lack of attribution) to our car, too. Is it the body shape that makes it difficult to determine how close the curb is? We have the accessory wheels, so if it's the rims that just stick out more than the tires, its both the OEM and the accessory wheels that do it.
I did this a few times in my previous SUV. Purchased the dealerships 5-year plan for interior and exterior coverage, I think it came to $1000 for it, wheels included. Not sure if you did but they sold it as basically anything like that is covered. The scuffs would drive me nuts.
