Richard Bartrop Posted January 14, 2020 Share Posted January 14, 2020 https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-01-13/millennials-could-end-up-being-a-boon-to-the-u-s-auto-market Apparently there are a record number of drivers in the US, driven mostly by, yes, the millenials. While fewer people are getting their license as soon as they turn 16, they do get them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Handley Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 I saw that on Jalopnik this moring and then heard as I was getting changed at the gym after work that they're doing the same when it comes to having kids. Seems that the median age for Millenials becoming parents is about 26y/o vs prior generations being closer to a 21y/o average when they started. Many decided to wait until they were more mature to bring kids into the world, want to say that the kids that had been asked wanted to be more finacially stable before having their own too. Can't fault them for that now?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Russell C Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 May be a boon for the stolen car sales industry, too. I'm prepared, though, my 34 year-old daily driver came with one of these from the factory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danno Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 ? True dat! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrObsessive Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 This reinforces what I've said about some car makers giving up on cars (like Ford). I still say that by the end of the decade, the truck and SUV craze will have come and gone. Not that they'll die off and no one will want them, but they won't be as hot a property as they are now. I just can't see young folks today (especially years from now) wanting to buy the same type of car that their parents and grandparents are driving. I could be all wet, but this has happened before in the car industry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteski Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 You guys are forgetting about these new-fangled self-driving cars for millennials. No need to drive or pay attention - the car will take you wherever you want to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrObsessive Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 (edited) 3 hours ago, peteski said: You guys are forgetting about these new-fangled self-driving cars for millennials. No need to drive or pay attention - the car will take you wherever you want to go. Ugggh! Or take you somewhere you DON'T want to go! ? Edited January 15, 2020 by MrObsessive Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DukeE Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 The other issue seems to be kids/families can't afford to get kids a car, or cover insurance. Hard to get jobs as kid when there's adults competing for flipping burgers. Hard to get old cars that won't die, or need expensive work that many can't DIY. Kids rack up college debt or have hard time getting decent job, what, 30% or more live with parents? Wise they wait to have kids. Once they get income, they can borrow. I'd be curious to see what lease vs. finance rate is. That, and 72-month financing?? Nuts. Kinda sad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Metallic Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 1 hour ago, DukeE said: The other issue seems to be kids/families can't afford to get kids a car, or cover insurance. Hard to get jobs as kid when there's adults competing for flipping burgers. Hard to get old cars that won't die, or need expensive work that many can't DIY. Kids rack up college debt or have hard time getting decent job, what, 30% or more live with parents? Wise they wait to have kids. This! All of this! Our insurance rate DOUBLED when we added our first teen driver a few months ago when he turned 16. Now we have a 15 year old and a 14 year old right behind him (blended family) And the "millennial" anti theft device? Works on a lot of the Gen-X generation too. I'd say less than 50% of my generation can drive stick. And that's not our fault. Trying to find a running stick shift that wasn't a truck or sports car when i was learning to drive? Good luck . Near impossible these days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iamsuperdan Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 Being in the industry, what I've noticed around here is that millenials will drive, but they aren't buying cars. They use public transit or their bikes, and will rent on the weekends, or use those car sharing services. Even my company is experimenting with offering car sharing. We have a few vehicles set up with the equipment and are trialing it with a few select clients. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stitchdup Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 Over here the younger folks are leasing more than buying, and i can see why its attractive to them with a new car every 3 years. It just doesn't appeal to me and its hammered the price of used cars to the point I would never want a second hand ex lease car. When you dont own it and have some hope of a trade in from it, you just dont take the same amount of care. At least with old cars you know someone has taken some sort of care or it would be gone by now, or at least can have a chance of fixing it yourself Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Austin Posted January 16, 2020 Share Posted January 16, 2020 16 hours ago, peteski said: You guys are forgetting about these new-fangled self-driving cars for millennials. No need to drive or pay attention - the car will take you wherever you want to go. I'm sure Boomers might take autonomous vehicles (or rideshares) more seriously once they themselves become too old to drive safely. :-D Also, I don't get why some folk have to put others down for not wanting to drive a manual transmission. That's kind of like an old-timer dismissing someone for not knowing how to use steering wheel levers to manually advance spark plugs/set the choke...or how to start an engine with a hand crank. :-P Also, keep in mind that Millennials (I have an older family friend who insists on calling them "Millenniums") are already at, or heading into, middle age. So there's an entirely different generation following them that are entering car-shopping age. https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/young-car-buyers-dealerships/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted January 16, 2020 Share Posted January 16, 2020 No comment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brutalform Posted January 16, 2020 Share Posted January 16, 2020 1 hour ago, Ace-Garageguy said: No comment. Ditto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cpt Tuttle Posted January 18, 2020 Share Posted January 18, 2020 On 1/15/2020 at 5:36 AM, Russell C said: May be a boon for the stolen car sales industry, too. I'm prepared, though, my 34 year-old daily driver came with one of these from the factory. I'm a milennial and I drive around with shot syncros in my daily so I have to double clutch.... I guess your anti theft device will not work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Handley Posted January 18, 2020 Share Posted January 18, 2020 25 minutes ago, Cpt Tuttle said: I'm a milennial and I drive around with shot syncros in my daily so I have to double clutch.... I guess your anti theft device will not work. One of my best friends is a Millenial who has multiple factory stick shift vehicles, one of which is a factory supercharged front driver (a Cobalt SS/SC) and the other is one of the last years you could buy a manual shift Silverado, as well as a Sportside, then get that gen with 4 wheel discs on a 1500, he then lowered it and added a Magnason blower to the 4.8l V8 he rebuilt for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cpt Tuttle Posted January 18, 2020 Share Posted January 18, 2020 On the other hand I guess us farm kids are a bit different, I learned to drive on a 1963 Volvo BM tractor, no syncros there........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrObsessive Posted January 18, 2020 Share Posted January 18, 2020 I was one of those that had to teach myself how to drive a manual as my Dad refused to show me. He had a very nasty experience trying to teach my Mom many years earlier, so I guess it reminded him of that too much. My first stick car (didn't get a manual till I was 21) was a 1965 Dodge Dart Convertible with three on the column. I was determined to learn first where the gears were and within a day I had it down pat. Very few young folks learn to drive a manual these days sadly. I've always had the mind that if you can drive one of those, you can drive anything. No handicap in the car buying department IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
espo Posted January 18, 2020 Share Posted January 18, 2020 Some of the reasons for them not buying cars or driving early on is simple economics. With very few exceptions wages have not kept up with inflation plus the cost of insurance and maintenance is not cheap. The cost our auto insurance has also almost doubled in the last couple of years with no claims since a hail storm over ten years ago. No citations on either of our driving records. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbowser Posted January 18, 2020 Share Posted January 18, 2020 1 minute ago, espo said: Some of the reasons for them not buying cars or driving early on is simple economics. With very few exceptions wages have not kept up with inflation plus the cost of insurance and maintenance is not cheap. The cost our auto insurance has also almost doubled in the last couple of years with no claims since a hail storm over ten years ago. No citations on either of our driving records. I agree with this, as well as the fact that today's offerings just don't drive the passion the way cars have in the past. For the most part today's cars are appliances, generating as much excitement as a dishwasher. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Bartrop Posted January 18, 2020 Author Share Posted January 18, 2020 (edited) 2 hours ago, bbowser said: I agree with this, as well as the fact that today's offerings just don't drive the passion the way cars have in the past. For the most part today's cars are appliances, generating as much excitement as a dishwasher. I'd take this one a little more seriously if people hadn't been repeating it pretty much verbatim since before I was born. Edited January 18, 2020 by Richard Bartrop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atmobil Posted January 18, 2020 Share Posted January 18, 2020 I think it is very simple. It is a case of personal transportation. For most people public transport or a bicycle may work fine for short journey taken on a daily basis but sometimes you need a motorized vehicle that will take you where you need to go when you need it and in a timeframe that fits your needs. An example is my sister, from the place she lives and to her job, a trip that takes 10 by car is taking her 1 hour by bus. She works in a store and she works at different hours so taking the bus is not always possible even. She is now 32 and is now getting her driverslicence. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrObsessive Posted January 18, 2020 Share Posted January 18, 2020 1 hour ago, Richard Bartrop said: I'd take this one a little more seriously if people hadn't been repeating it pretty much verbatim since before I was born. True. What may be considered today's "appliance" might be tomorrow's collectible. I look no further than the ever present 1955-'57 Chevy. In the '60's they were "just another car" because there were still soooo many of them. At least in my neck of the woods as a kid you could hardly go a block and not see one in some form or fashion. Then they started to disappear and they were wanted..........again. Same might be said of today's vehicles. I'm not going to be so quick to write them off as "unwanted" because you never know what's going to be the hot item say 30-40 years from now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonW Posted January 18, 2020 Share Posted January 18, 2020 Said 'hot item' won't be the subject of this weeks Auto Id quiz on this forum to judge from the feedback its received. But then again to a collector of kitsch... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteski Posted January 18, 2020 Share Posted January 18, 2020 7 hours ago, Cpt Tuttle said: I'm a milennial and I drive around with shot syncros in my daily so I have to double clutch.... I guess your anti theft device will not work. Large portion of participants in this forum are from USA, and I'm sure he meant "American Millenials". Rest of the world (especially Europe) is different. I suspect that many more cars in Europe have manual transmissions than in USA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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