Former MTV stars Beavis and Butthead take a 1959 Corvair for a spin in “Car Wash“
Back in October, a report entitled “Millennials in Motion” found that young people are driving less and walking, biking, and taking public transit more. It reinforced the prevailing stereotype that, rather than drive or own a car, Millennials would prefer to have an Uber come pick them up so that they can sit in the backseat taking selfies with their smartphones and swiping right on tinder and tweeting about how they literally can’t even right now.
But a new study by the respected scholarly institute of MTV (or are we thinking of MIT?) has confirmed that Millennials do like cars, even if they can’t necessarily afford them right now.
“Why drive anywhere when I can take these selfies from the comfort of my own home?”
Photo Source: Ryan Hyde, CC
Called “Millennials Have Drive,” the study surveyed 3,610 Millennials between the ages of 18 and 34, along with 400 Generation X-ers, and 403 Baby Boomers. MTV presented its findings at the National Automobile Dealers Association conference in San Francisco, debunking the myth that young people love their phones more than cars/life itself.
In fact, 72% of the young folks said they would sooner give up texting for a week than their car. Additionally, 82% of Millennials polled in the MTV study found the idea of buying or leasing a new car “exciting,” proving that youths want cars almost as much as David Bowie wants his MTV.
Another interesting revelation: 73% of Millennials look forward to eventually owning their dream car, versus 72% of Gen X-ers, and only 59% of Boomers (of course, that downward slide could just be evidence that the older you get, the more it dawns on you that your dreams will never be realized).
So the good news for the auto industry is that Millennials do like cars and they won’t forsake automobiles to spend the entirety of their paychecks subscribing to the Apple iPhone of the Month club. The bad news is that car companies may need to figure out how to better appeal to the 18-34 demographic: 50% of Millennials surveyed said that current car ads “don’t speak to who they are.”
They must be the 50% of young people who aren’t the 1%.
News Source: Broadcasting & Cable
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