The Auto Channel On Target As Boomers Supplant Their Kids as Car Buyers

Complete Bloomberg Boomer Story
University of Michigan's Transportation Research Institute Marketing Study

Detroit August 5, 2013; The NADA reported that Keith Naughton, Bloomberg News wrote that Boomers have now surpassed their children as prime new car buying prospects. As an example they point to Dave Rodham who bought two Ford Mustangs -- a red one because it looked cool and then a white one with a big V-8 engine because it sounded cool.

For Rodham, 63 and retired, those were his 50th and 51st cars. "I have to have a new car every year-and-a-half to two years" said Rodham, of Virginia Beach, Virginia, who said he pays cash for his cars. "After I retired 10 years ago, I didn't have anything else to do, so I went out and bought new cars."

For generations, car buying declined as consumers entered their golden years. Now, boomers are refusing to follow their parents' lead and go quietly into the car buying night. The 55-to-64-year-old age group, the oldest of the boomers, has become the cohort most likely to buy a new car, according to a new study by the University of Michigan's Transportation Research Institute.

Graying boomers replaced the 35-to-44 year old age group, who were most likely to buy four years ago. The findings show there are plenty of miles left in boomers' automotive passions and pocketbooks.

The study suggests that the billions of dollars the auto industry spends to try to woo the elusive Generation Y, the children of the boomers, would generate a higher return on investment if targeted at those driver who can afford and have a passion for new cars.

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