A recent survey by Deloitte has shown what we have always suspected: Gen Y buyers look at cars differently from preceding generations. One of the important findings is that they are prepared to pay as much as $2000 extra for alternative powertrains but are hypersensitive to vehicle running costs.
The survey has important implications for manufacturers and dealers alike. Gen Ys (those born between the early 1980s and late 1990s) are just as keen to buy cars as their forebears, but are much more cost-conscious than their parents. Another interesting finding that runs counter to current thinking is that Gen Y buyers have a greater interest in safety technology than state-of-the-art in-car communications technology.
The good news for the industry is that 75 percent of people surveyed are intending to buy a car during the next five years, and 52 per cent within the next three years. Although these figures cover the general population, the proportions aren’t greatly different among Gen Y.
Where Gen Y buyers differ is their thinking behind the purchase decision. As usual, all buyers put purchase price right at the top of their list of considerations, but Gen Y buyers placed the cost and availability of parking as their second most important concern. Older respondents were more interested in fuel consumption. Gen Y put fuel efficiency in third place (older respondents put more emphasis on better roads and infrastructure).
However, as many of us have observed, Gen Ys aren’t as attached to their cars as the generations that came before. They are more than twice as likely to abandon their vehicles if operating costs rise more than they are willing to live with.
Naturally, the tech-savvy Gen Ys are far more interested in technology than we, their parents and grandparents, are, particularly drivetrains and safety systems. And nearly 50 per cent of them believe they will be driving a vehicle with an alternative power source within five years.