Gen Y is not into cars;

**FlyingJ** · October-11-09, 02:56 PM

Wow, what a sea change...but with gas prices , draconian DMV laws & insurance co. redlining, no wonder they're turned off;
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/upto...mes-dean-.html

**cloud_wall** · October-11-09, 04:56 PM

As an "early careerist," I can say that my car is a low priority for me.

However, this strikes me as a dubious conclusion by the researchers:

â€œAlso, with the advent of social media and other forms of electronic communities, teens perceive less of a need to physically congregate, and less of a need for a mode of transportation,â€ the study concluded.

Aren't there ways of quantifying whether people are actually eschewing transportation? And are social media really having an impact on whether people feel the need to go places? I have a facebook profile, but I also shop for groceries, eat at restaurants, congregate with friends, and work outside my home. I need a car for most of those trips. I at least need "a mode of transportation."

Maybe people spend less time in their cars, but it's an unsupported stretch to say that the internet is eliminating the need for transportation. BTW, it's 2009; I want to teleport! That would be a real threat to the automakers.

**Tig3rzhark** · October-11-09, 05:22 PM

As a Detroit Gen Yer, I have to say that after a few years of having a car, I would rather not deal with the expenses of having one.

Currently, my 1998 Ford Taurus sits in the driveway. You can even see it on Google Earth. It sits there because it won't start. My father offered to fix it but he doesn't have a lot of time to work on it.

I've been riding my bike as a main mode of transportation. Yes in the "automobile capital of the world".

Insurance is high everywhere but it is even higher here. Anyone who reads the paper already knows why. Gas isn't as high as it was here or currently is in California. However, it is too high for me when you barely have enough in your pocket after rent.

Personally, I'd rather live in a city where I can ride my bike, but also catch the bus, with my bike, without having to worry about motorists that don't pay attention when driving on the street, or jackasses who like to harass anyone that isn't in a vehicle.

I would like to make Detroit into that type of city. However, if I cannot, then living in Portland or Los Angeles near family would be decent enough for me.

Driving used to be something that I enjoyed, when I could afford it. Now it is just an appliance, I use it when I need it, and leave it in the driveway when I don't. In this case however, it would be more economically feasible for me, not to have a car.

**Mackinaw** · October-11-09, 05:37 PM

I think the overall dropoff is pretty small-- young people are still really into cars, even far beyond Detroit. But, they are a lower priority and, quite simply, not a purchase someone goes out of their way to make if they're living in most other cities beyond Detroit. Certainly, a more proper awareness of the real costs of driving [[both in terms of our budgets and damage to the landscape and environment) also informs the declined enthusiasm for cars.

Sludgedaddy · October-11-09, 05:57 PM

....I don't think Brian Wilson will ever pen an opus celebrating electric or hybrid vehicles, either.

Cloud, I like the idea of teleportation. A mishap on the same order that occurred in "The Fly" comes to mind. It would be rather ironic to see an ipod or cellular device adhered in an atomicaly altered way to a gen y'er's backside or permanently affixed to one side of the head.

**bailey** · October-12-09, 08:18 AM

Originally Posted by Sludgedaddy

....I don't think Brian Wilson will ever pen an opus celebrating electric or hybrid vehicles, either.

would the cars about which he penned those songs even existed if gas wasn't 5 cents a gallon?

**iheartthed** · October-12-09, 10:10 AM

Just a hunch, but maybe this has something to do with it: http://www.businessweek.com/magazine...1032038302.htm

**GRALR** · October-12-09, 01:00 PM

We are in a unique position as we have several classic cars. We drive a 1953 Cadillac Fleetwood or 1965 Cadillac on a semi-daily basis. The responses from everyone is huge smiles, wow how beautiful, that reminds me of my day, that is when we built cars, etc, etc. We built beauty, we had aesthetic eye, and the buying public wanted good looking cars. Remember the day when we would rush to the showroom to see the new models? How long has it bee since we did that? What cars today have any looks to them? The retro models to me look great.

It seems that the old school designers left GM in particular were all gone by the early eighties. Cadillac designs stayed the same for years after 1980, then it seems that the college boy designers took over and gave us the American generic designs which have dominated the market. We copied the Japanese designers thinking that was what we wanted.

I think all of us wanted good reliable. well designed, well built cars.

Do we really wonder why GEN Y has limited interest in the generic cars we have today.

**milesdriven** · October-13-09, 11:46 AM

Also an "early careerist," I love my cars and would hate to go without them. I have an 09 Fusion [[company car) and a 92 Buick Century, which I maintain myself. I'm also a classic car enthusiast, and am in the process of acquiring a 1963 Ford Falcon van [[think "Mystery Machine" from Scooby Doo).

That being said, I can't wait for the high speed rail to be completed between Toledo and Chicago. Transit is great for dense urban areas, but for areas like Detroit where the population is more dispersed buses and carpooling make more sense economically than rail lines.

**RickBeall** · October-13-09, 08:16 PM

All modern cars look the same to me. They are all vaguely aerodynamic and that's about it. So there is certainly no visual excitement. And I'm an old fart.

Sludgedaddy · October-13-09, 09:25 PM

..Give me a streamlined, aerodynamic 1951 Nash, where in every model of Nash, the front seat folded down to meet the backseat for leisure activity. Even throw in a few roach burns in the uphosltery...and I'm a really old fart.

**English** · October-13-09, 09:49 PM

While my car is in the shop, I've got a rental car that I love -- it's a Kia Rondo, from a class of car known as a "microvan". I love the headroom and space you get for the size.

No, I will not buy a Kia. NEVER. But I hear that Ford's got a similar vehicle over in their European market that's doing splendidly. When the Ford C-Max debuts, it's going to get a serious test drive and look from me. If it's hybrid, so much the better.

DetroitDad · October-13-09, 10:06 PM

I'm not a Gen Y... but I can't stand my family's one car. My work car is OKAY... I guess.

Anyway, the car is going to be much less significant in the near future. Many American's don't seem to realize that they have bought their last new car. Some American's have bought their last car period.

**NoHeartAnthony** · October-13-09, 10:57 PM

I'm a Gen Y-er... and I love driving a truck. BTW, it's manufactured entirely in the US.

**softailrider** · October-14-09, 12:31 AM

Originally Posted by Tig3rzhark

As a Detroit Gen Yer, I have to say that after a few years of having a car, I would rather not deal with the expenses of having one.

Currently, my 1998 Ford Taurus sits in the driveway. You can even see it on Google Earth. It sits there because it won't start. My father offered to fix it but he doesn't have a lot of time to work on it.

I've been riding my bike as a main mode of transportation. Yes in the "automobile capital of the world".

Insurance is high everywhere but it is even higher here. Anyone who reads the paper already knows why. Gas isn't as high as it was here or currently is in California. However, it is too high for me when you barely have enough in your pocket after rent.

Personally, I'd rather live in a city where I can ride my bike, but also catch the bus, with my bike, without having to worry about motorists that don't pay attention when driving on the street, or jackasses who like to harass anyone that isn't in a vehicle.

I would like to make Detroit into that type of city. However, if I cannot, then living in Portland or Los Angeles near family would be decent enough for me.

Driving used to be something that I enjoyed, when I could afford it. Now it is just an appliance, I use it when I need it, and leave it in the driveway when I don't. In this case however, it would be more economically feasible for me, not to have a car.

Have fun with those bike rides as your "main mode of transportation" in Jan and Feb. Sounds like a lot of fun.

**Sstashmoo** · October-14-09, 09:16 AM

It's a little tough to get excited about a 4 cylinder shitbox that looks exactly like every other shitbox, with enough tubes hanging and sensors stuck in it, it looks like it's in some intensive care unit.

Nothing cool about them. But hey they are "green" whatever the hell that means, or how it can be applied to a device that burns fossil fuel and pollutes the environment. Hey my old muscle cars used to do that too.

**GRALR** · October-14-09, 10:37 AM

Just wait till the fuel prices are double then we will be forced into those green boxes. There is much talk about the oil going off the greenback standard just think what that will mean. Good thing for the new GM?

**Sstashmoo** · October-14-09, 10:57 AM

Quote: "Just wait till the fuel prices are double then we will be forced into those green boxes."

I don't care if it's more expensive, I'll still be driving my 8 cylinder vehicle. It is much more comfortable, roomy and above all, safer. Those little cars are light and have no mass, means the sheet metal is thinner, there is no frame and less combined weight means they deflect [[you too) instead of withstand impact less. Less where it matters is not more.