Kids Today Don't Care About Cars

Rob Sass of Haggerty Insurance, a leading insurer of antique and collectible automobiles, was interviewed in a recent issue of Car and Driver about the current state of the collector car "hobby".  He mentioned that it was strong and particularly strong in regards to certain European makes and models but he cautioned that if current trends continue, the collector car hobby and marketplace could be in trouble.

 

 

That current trend is that the generations after the generation that "founded" the collector car hobby, "The Baby Boomers", the so called "Generations X and Y", have significantly less interest in cars than Boomers. What's worse, the generation after Generation Y, now known as "Millennials", a generation that is, apparently, almost as large as the Boomers, has almost no interest in cars above and beyond the practical application of driving. Even that is questionable because when you're wired in as much as these kids are, why would you need to actually go anywhere? This means that as Boomers get older there's going to be no one interested in their cars. No interest will drive the values of their cars down. Not that real car people buy cars as investments in the first place but it is nice to know that you're not literally endlessly burning cash with your hobby.

 

With regards to the Millenials, the reasons for their ambivalence are varied but the biggest single reason is, again, how "wired in" they are. For instance our 17 and 15 year old need just pick up their phones and text their friends, either individually or in the dreadful "group chat" and they are as much if not more engaged with their friends than as if they were together. They have little need for transportation other than to get to and from school and hopefully, sooner than later, to part time jobs and back home.

 

Our 17 year old says he's "into cars" but I know him well enough to know that if it wasn't for his father's interest in automobiles, he wouldn't be able to tell a Camaro from an Accord. I asked him if any of his friends are into cars and he told me, flatly, "no".

 

 

I got a great deal on an old Camaro last fall and while our 17 year old thinks its cool, he's told me that he prefers our Chevy Tahoe. He likes the room, comfort, size, power and driving position of the Tahoe over the Camaro. Hrmph. Apples to grapefruit vehicle wise but his point was interesting; he'd forgo the stylish, sporty Camaro for the comfort and practicality of the Tahoe.

 

 

Cars and trucks today are more fabulous than ever and you don't need the new Corvette to have a vehicle that can perform at extremely high levels. Even the most plebian of today's mini vans has enough power and handling prowess to do respectable quarter mile times and zip through the slalom with aplomb. What's more, there's no sacrifice or compromise with today's cars. Even with my Old '96er (Camaro) there's sacrifice. Hard to get into, cramped interior, fairly punishing ride, clumsy driving position. It's a car you really gotta love because it does its darndest to make you hate it.

The general greatness of today's cars underscores another problem. Cars are so good today and reliable too, that they've become little more than soulless appliances. Like a good dishwasher or stove, it does what it's designed to do very well but leaves you with little to no emotional foot print. Because they're so good they've, metaphorically, ceased to exist.