Baby boomers vs Millennials

[PLNYC]

I'm a millennial (24) and I'm into most kinds of cars, hell I still drive a manual transmission. There are people my age who enjoys Mustangs, but they get a bad rep at car meets because they're usually the ones causing a scene and doing burnouts and that's usually when the police arrive and kick everyone out.

[AzPaul]

One reason for the difference in car devotion is that most high schools don't offer auto shop anymore. Whereas once it was a staple for a lot of kids, and a place where practical enthusiasm for vehicles flourished, nowadays, a lot of young people wouldn't know how to raise the hood of their car, let alone know what they were looking at once it was open.

[Fleetlord]

First off i think the millennial age grouping is too broad....I don't see someone born in 1980 as being a millennial at all..just as I don't see someone born in 1963 as a Gen X...

That being said I still think even "late" millennials have interests in cool cars and the such, maybe not Mustangs, but they still are into them...

Now the generation Z is where the concern could be valid.

I have allies with 16yr old kids and they have no interest in driving AT ALL. They don't yearn for their license like other HS kids used to do...

The reason for this is because they really don't HAVE to go anywhere..

Whatever they buy, they buy it online. They don't meet their friends out , they text or chat with them while playing video games.

Some other allies of mine have kids that are seniors in HS. ...they might even be considered jocks. The "cool" kids if you will...

Where are they on a Friday night? Playing video games online.

That's right. No parties, trips to the mall to hang out, movies....dating in a traditional sense.. all of that is poof. Gone.

The point is that GenZ doesn't care about cars for the most part because they don't want to go anywhere...

[Andad]

A HUGE generalisation there young man.

[Rock]

When I think about it, I've met remarkably few "car enthusiasts" in my lifetime.
As a young bloke I recall knowing a fair few guys that were in to cars but most of them had lost interest by their 30's - generally coinciding with marriage, family, homes and career. I am one of just a few I know of that maintained their interest over the years.
There is a local 'classic car club' with maybe 100 active members and less than 10% would be under 50 years of age. Mind you, there would be at least several hundred 'car enthusiasts' locally but again most would be over 50yrs.
I think it is about 'time' and 'money'.

[asdff]

Not sure what to tell you. I’m a millennial in my 30s and I’ve owned and enjoyed driving fun manual transmission cars since I was 15. Still try to get out with friends for spirited drives and autocrosses.

Enthusiasts can be found in all age groups, but as some others have mentioned, the “younger” age range may just be currently occupied with other life priorities (getting married, having kids, trying to buy a home).

[Mick8moses]

Originally Posted by AzPaul

One reason for the difference in car devotion is that most high schools don't offer auto shop anymore. Whereas once it was a staple for a lot of kids, and a place where practical enthusiasm for vehicles flourished, nowadays, a lot of young people wouldn't know how to raise the hood of their car, let alone know what they were looking at once it was open.

Agree with Paul on this point. I'm a Gen X and when I was 16 all I thought about was cars. I knew a guy in high school who's father was a mechanic so he taught his kid how to work on them. He had options of buying old mustangs, 240zs, firebirds to fix up, drive and sell.
My dad knew nothing about cars, we had no shop class at school so I never learned. After college getting a job and having disposable income, I bought motorcycles. First a Ducati then later a Harley. It was an opportunity to learn to work on engines. Bought shop manuals. Learned how to work on the bikes myself.
I guess my point is a classic Mustang, even a non functioning one, is a heavy cost for a teen or twenty something. Plus parts are expensive these days.
Didnt most of the guys in your club learn to work on cars early in life? That stopped happening by the nineties as the cost of classic cars went out of reach for young gearheads and schools didn't teach shop anymore. It was replaced by computer classes.


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[DoraTheExplorerII]

Makes no sense why millenials would be into Mustangs; they certainly did not grow up with the vintage ones to the same extent and these days there are tons more cooler cars than a modern Mustang, no offense to anyone here that owns one.

[Kainz]

I am 24 and I like cars, half of my friends love them, half don't. Right now I have a BRZ while I love it, my next car will probably be electric or something boring... I have other priorities than a car. I think it is the same for most.

[csfischer20]

I’m 37. I have no student debt and I love to wrench on old cars. I also ride a Harley. My current is a 1955 f100. I seem to hang out with older folks and have less in common with people my own age. These younger people don’t like the same things. My kid is 18 and he’s still into yeezy shoes and dragon ball z. When I was his age, I was buying my first home. Priorities and entitlement I guess.

[joli160]

Originally Posted by dddrees

I think you may have missed another diffrence. I think more of them will never have that money than previous generations.

Very true

[pickettt]

Originally Posted by csfischer20

I’m 37. I have no student debt and I love to wrench on old cars. I also ride a Harley. My current is a 1955 f100. I seem to hang out with older folks and have less in common with people my own age. These younger people don’t like the same things. My kid is 18 and he’s still into yeezy shoes and dragon ball z. When I was his age, I was buying my first home. Priorities and entitlement I guess.

It seems when you were his age, you were having him. Some people are forced to grow up, and some have no incentive to do so.

[Spartacus]

Girls/women are caring less about cars. More interested in travel.

GTR, M4, WRX+BRZ appear to have the most active clubs, abviously Jeep in the Mid-West.

It’s also crazy expensive to be into cars!

[crew]

I have a 30 YO son and a 24 YO son. Neither inherited my appreciation and enthusiasm for cars. At least my older son can drive a stick as that’s what he had to do when I bought him his first car. Try and find a stick today on a new car! I drove my friend’s new Ferrari recently and it, like many (most?) exotics lacked a clutch. Why bother to learn how to drive a manual when it’s highly unlikely that you’ll ever own one?

[Colin10101]

Honestly, just think about where you were in your mid 20s. If you already had the disposable income to be buying sports cars then great, you were in the minority. But most milllenials I know (and that’s a lot, since I’m in my late 20s) are still sorting their lives out and saving to buy a home or focusing on career development. I’m sure there is some generational drop in interest in cars like mustangs, but I’d say it’s mostly just because as a generation we’re all trying to buy homes, have kids, and in general don’t have a ton of disposable income.

[csfischer20]

Originally Posted by pickettt

It seems when you were his age, you were having him. Some people are forced to grow up, and some have no incentive to do so.

He’s actually my step son. I was just focused on a career and stable life. I’ve had my ups and downs. I’ve been to the school of hard knocks a couple of times myself. He was talking about how expensive it is to get his own place the other night. It is expensive in Denver, and he thinks he’s too good for some things. You have to prioritize. He’s spending 800 a month on a car with insurance. I’ve been down that road and know it was not wise. He’s going to have to figure it out. He should have got a hint when I wouldn’t co-sign on a car for him. He didn’t. He found a way to get his own loan. His choice was I’d give him the money for another car to get him around. A cheap car... or get his own loan. ( I didn’t think he’d actually get it with only 2 weeks on a job.) He chose the hard way. You just can’t talk sense into these kids. They have to learn. I don’t think moving out is on his list of priorities. They see the expense of things and just give up easily.

[Chester01]

Originally Posted by Fleetlord

First off i think the millennial age grouping is too broad....I don't see someone born in 1980 as being a millennial at all..just as I don't see someone born in 1963 as a Gen X...

That being said I still think even "late" millennials have interests in cool cars and the such, maybe not Mustangs, but they still are into them...

Now the generation Z is where the concern could be valid.

I have allies with 16yr old kids and they have no interest in driving AT ALL. They don't yearn for their license like other HS kids used to do...

The reason for this is because they really don't HAVE to go anywhere..

Whatever they buy, they buy it online. They don't meet their friends out , they text or chat with them while playing video games.

Some other allies of mine have kids that are seniors in HS. ...they might even be considered jocks. The "cool" kids if you will...

Where are they on a Friday night? Playing video games online.

That's right. No parties, trips to the mall to hang out, movies....dating in a traditional sense.. all of that is poof. Gone.

The point is that GenZ doesn't care about cars for the most part because they don't want to go anywhere...

The data would support you on this. Data indicates that kids are indeed obtaining their drivers license later than previous generations.

[joeychitwood]

I don't think it's just car clubs. Numerous organizations I'm currently involved with now or have been in the past struggle to bring new young people into membership. Charities, volunteer ambulance services and fire departments, the ski patrol, churches, service clubs, community organizations, photo clubs and social organizations cannot get younger people to commit to membership. In this region, hunting, fishing, hiking and other outdoor activities are slowly in decline due to lack of new participants. It seems that "Millenials" aren't joiners. It's a different mindset. It's not right or wrong, it's just how things are today.

[Valenciawatchrepair]

Originally Posted by joeychitwood

I don't think it's just car clubs. Numerous organizations I'm currently involved with now or have been in the past struggle to bring new young people into membership. Charities, volunteer ambulance services and fire departments, the ski patrol, churches, service clubs, community organizations, photo clubs and social organizations cannot get younger people to commit to membership. In this region, hunting, fishing, hiking and other outdoor activities are slowly in decline due to lack of new participants. It seems that "Millenials" aren't joiners. It's a different mindset. It's not right or wrong, it's just how things are today.

I've seen this as well. Forums that were buzzing with traffic years ago, are almost ghost towns now. Or shut down altogether.

[77T]

Originally Posted by joeychitwood

I don't think it's just car clubs. Numerous organizations I'm currently involved with now or have been in the past struggle to bring new young people into membership.

I tend to agree -
Research that cuts across various millennial demographics points out that “joining” isn’t a prime motivator for engagement.

So in the OP’s case, there are probably just as many millennial lovers of vintage Mustangs as prior generations, but they may not want to be in a club. The challenge for clubs is to “change or die”.

If you research FB posts of vintage mustang pics, posts, likes, shares, etc. then you can see what else they are doing with their free time. Our club saw the same issue a decade ago while we also battled the recession. Even long time members had less $$$ to go racing. But millennials were willing to get an “experiential” thrill at a cost.

We are now getting better millennial engagement by hosting events aimed at them without asking for anything more than their money - communicate via social media and bang, they show up.

They’ll never join but we’ve learned not to expect that. Instead of the club relying on membership dues we’re funding operations via profit from events where they’ll trade $$$ for fun. And sure there’s a good deal of churn but that’s a macro trend for all of us, don’t you think?

They WILL come for fun - but sitting in meetings isn’t their idea of fun. No surprise there - I’m a Boomer and don’t like meetings either.


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[Fleetlord]

Originally Posted by Chester01

The data would support you on this. Data indicates that kids are indeed obtaining their drivers license later than previous generations.

My friend is trying to get is son excited about cars, like he was @ his age.

The response back was, why do I need to drive when you can just drop me off or whatever?

That is 180 from GenX. We couldn't wait to get our own cars and drive all over the place.

Being dropped off by your parents was as UNCOOL as it got.

Now cars aren't about pride of ownership or freedom. It's about a means of getting somewhere in the rare event they actually physically NEED to be somewhere...

This is going to be interesting...

[Blansky]

The internet and cell phones changed everything.

If we want to categorize things it maybe should be pre cell phone/internet and post cell phone/internet.

[Fleetlord]

Originally Posted by Blansky

The internet and cell phones changed everything.

If we want to categorize things it maybe should be pre cell phone/internet and post cell phone/internet.

That is very true.

From a social standpoint, there is very little reason to actually physically meet anyone, well besides the obvious...lol.. But otherwise, nah. Just snapsie or whatever. It's cool...

The youths of today have only known this, so they don't see a need for transportation as we think of it.

[gmh1013]

Originally Posted by joeychitwood

I don't think it's just car clubs. Numerous organizations I'm currently involved with now or have been in the past struggle to bring new young people into membership. Charities, volunteer ambulance services and fire departments, the ski patrol, churches, service clubs, community organizations, photo clubs and social organizations cannot get younger people to commit to membership. In this region, hunting, fishing, hiking and other outdoor activities are slowly in decline due to lack of new participants. It seems that "Millenials" aren't joiners. It's a different mindset. It's not right or wrong, it's just how things are today.

When i think about this its very true....im going to point this out at next meeting....no matter how hard they try Its going to be the BB generation and when we are gone it over.
Im 61 and the only "one ' i know is my wife's grandson who turns 30 in March.
He just got his first GF 6 months ago....but still they stay home and play video games all night and on their days off. He drives a used Yaris cheapest car he could get....dont forget the smoking dope too. Its a generation i will never "get"
IMHO he is totally unmotivated ....but seem to take his job in IT with intense focus...plus could care less about outward appearance...when I was in early thirties I spent lots of money on clothes and drove a BMW 325 back in 1990....when i was a VAX and Sun programmer.
Times HAVE changed in the past 30 years....if I would have showed up for work looking like Kyle does...long hair... has not shaved in weeks... tore up blue jeans and a t-shirt...i would have been sent home with no pay at Fina oil and chem in Dallas.
But his job in IT security at Host Gator in Houston could care less what you look like I guess....its a company run by a 42 year old.

[strettyend]

I think its dependent on where the millennials of today live. The last 20 years has seen incredible growth in both urban cores and the increasingly dense suburbs that surround them. This is where the jobs are and also where it tends to be the most expensive to live. With the advent of the sharing economy and apps like Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, Seamless, etc. it has become increasing unnecessary to own a vehicle in the locations where millennials can find jobs and want to live. They also tend to value experiences like travel more than inanimate objects (and sharing those experiences with friends), and cars and driving just don't really check the mark for them.

I am 30 years old so I guess I fall in the millennial bucket but I have always been drawn to cars and machinery. I learned to read from browsing the latest Motor Trend or Car & Driver that my dad would bring home as well as Popular Mechanics. I have always questioned how everything works and loved all things mechanical - reading on my own about mathematics and physics to better understand things.

I lusted over cars and would dream up scenarios and perform hours of cost benefit analysis in my head at way too young of an age of what cars I would have in my garage at certain budgets if I ever made it there. I never had a car in high school because my parents couldn't afford it and I didn't have one in college because I went to school in a city but I always maintained those dreams and I'm sure I subconsciously chose my current career path to give me the best chance to own the cars I dreamt of when I was 8 years old. I moved across the river to Jersey so I could buy and store cars more easily once I achieved the necessary income. But I am a car nut and I can understand why someone wouldn't want to go through the headache of car ownership in a city or dense suburban area.

[Valenciawatchrepair]

Originally Posted by Fleetlord

The response back was, why do I need to drive when you can just drop me off or whatever?

This is a common mentality these days. Why should I do anything, when someone else can.

[Blansky]

The strange thing is, the people that complain about "these kids today" are the same people generally that brought them up, or brought up their parents.

So I guess WE did this.

But like I said previously, the internet/computers changed everything. Literally EVERYTHING.

So people who only knew that dominating part of life have far different life experience and attitudes than people before computers.

Also mass consumerism wasn't a thing when I was growing up. It also changed a lot of things.

[Blacktocomm]

I am a millennial and I LOVE cars and watches, but I don't buy them. I drive a CR-V and wear a Tudor BBN instead. My wife and I both have advanced degrees and work in management for F500 companies, but we have decided that we could retire at ~40 and take hobby jobs, or we could grind away life at a corporate high stress job. And neither of us wants that. So instead of buying a Rolex (or a Patek 5396 which is the real dream right now) I tuck that money away into investments.

We have a lot of millennial friends who all make Hodinkee Reader money and then some, but live frugal lives driving a 20 year old Lexus/Hondas while putting 10k or more a month away towards retirement. It is all about where you find value, and I sure find value in watches and cars, but at the moment I would rather buy my own time after 40 instead of buying a Mustang or a Patek.

[2ltdjorn]

Can someone be transgenerational? I am a millennial as defined, but associate more with the "silent" generation. I guess I have a fluid interpretation about the constraints of my label.

[superstarmar]

Originally Posted by singe89

I'm a older millennial and my friends and I are into classic and modern cars including on and offroad race cars.

The younger millennials (sub 30) in my office seem to love cars as well but they see them as unattainable because they focus too much on immediate gratification. They claim they are broke making $80-$100k+ per year but drink $25+ bottles of wine, $5 cans of cut water and eat out and pretty nice restaurants everyday.

Ummmm , maybe being a little frugal might help them out
a little? That's great money and should be easy to obtain some
great goals in life besides $25+ bottles of wine that could be
easily replaced with $10 and invest in a reverse osmosis in home
water system to save them the $5 cut water daily spending ?