Big Three See Bumpy Road With 20-Somethings

Demographic key to rebuilding for US automakers

By Matt Cantor, Newser Staff

Posted May 29, 2009 2:23 PM CDT

(Newser) – Detroit automakers face a hard road when it comes to Generation Y—consumers aged 22-32 whose business is crucial to securing the firms' futures, BusinessWeek reports. Their boomer parents broke from tradition by shifting to Japanese cars, and Gen Y is following in those footsteps. Detroit “simply must do much better with Gen Y than they did with their parents, or the comeback we keep hearing about may not happen,” says an analyst.

Some 51% of Gen-Yers say they’re mulling Toyotas, a survey says. Only 34% said they were looking at Chevy, 32% Ford, and 10% Chrysler. Another survey suggests Gen Y is quick to reject brands based on perceptions of reliability and manufacturers’ “bad reputations.”

President Obama acknowledges Ford Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally in the Rose Garden of the White House. Obama's backing of Detroit may encourage young people to buy. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

In this Jan. 12, 2009 file photo, the General Motors logo is seen on display at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

A survey suggests young people are favoring Toyota over Detroit. (Shutterstock)

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COMMENTS

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Showing 3 of 3 comments

Yourself

May 30, 2009 12:25 PM CDT

Dodge has had some nice products of late, too bad that Dodge can't save Chrysler all by itself. They need to just accept the facts and bring all their companies under one name and make sure that the one name they keep is a good one with a lasting reputation. (get rid of the actual chrysler brand for one!)

lonewolf17

May 30, 2009 1:59 AM CDT

I'll buy domestic when domestic makes a car that doesn't fall apart after 100k. My Camry has 400+ and is still going strong.

AClotfelter

May 29, 2009 8:28 AM CDT

If they want us, they're going to have to put up or shut up...

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Big Three See Bumpy Road With 20-Somethings

Demographic key to rebuilding for US automakers

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Chrysler • baby boomer • Toyota • General Motors • Detroit • automaker • Ford • Big Three • Generation Y • US automakers • Japanese auto industry

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Car Sales Jumped 14% Last Month

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Obama Should Campaign on Auto Bailout

Some Republicans were ready to let GM, Chrysler die: Jonathan Cohn

Chrysler Turns 1st Profit Since Bankruptcy

Revenue climbs 35% as Big Three return to profitablility

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Big Three See Bumpy Road With 20-Somethings

Demographic key to rebuilding for US automakers

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Chrysler • baby boomer • Toyota • General Motors • Detroit • automaker • Ford • Big Three • Generation Y • US automakers • Japanese auto industry

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

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More Newser Stories

Car Sales Jumped 14% Last Month

Chrysler, VW saw huge gains

New US Fuel Standards: 54.5 MPG by 2025

Obama hails new goal with automakers

Obama Should Campaign on Auto Bailout

Some Republicans were ready to let GM, Chrysler die: Jonathan Cohn

Chrysler Turns 1st Profit Since Bankruptcy

Revenue climbs 35% as Big Three return to profitablility

GM Earns $2B in Q3

Biggest quarterly profit in more than a decade

About Us

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Newser By Users

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What is Newser?