Given that 2.4 billion people were born between 1980 and 1996, according to Bloomberg, it's a question that's likely keeping some auto industry executives up at night–and there's some anecdotal evidence behind it. Millennials prefer public transportation, ride-hailing, biking/scootering and even walking to driving their own cars–at least that's the conventional wisdom.
However, we wanted to go further than conventional wisdom. In a survey of 2,150 millennials from around the globe, we obtained real numbers for what millennials, a generation that currently makes up nearly one-third of the world's population, will do when it comes to buying automobiles in the years ahead.
Will Millennials Buy or
Lease Vehicles Over the Next 10 years?
(Hover over colors for regional level data)
The survey's results indicate that common assumptions about low car ownership should be tossed out along with tired millennial stereotypes like poor work ethic, a sense of entitlement and bad attitudes.
Stereotypes aside, the results were surprising given that a higher percentage of millennials live in cities1 (with access to myriad public transportation options) relative to other generations, and millennials tend to be more environmentally conscious.2 However, it's clear that millennials actually do value car ownership, and a high percentage expect to make another car purchase in the next five years. This is good news for automotive companies currently facing headwinds for the first time this decade.
Our survey was performed online with the goal of obtaining responses from men and women between the ages of 23 and 38 (born between the years 1980 and 1996) from some of the largest automotive markets around the world. The survey examines the responses on a global level as well as a regional level grouped as follows: the U.S. and Canada; Latin America, including Mexico, Brazil and Argentina; Europe, including Germany, UK, France and Italy; and Asia, including China (other than Hong Kong), Hong Kong, Japan, India and Singapore. Charts, data and findings in this report are based on the global survey responses unless otherwise indicated.
In the following report, we present our key findings regarding car ownership, interest in electric and hybrid electric vehicles, and the factors driving these trends. We provide supporting charts, data and the scope of the survey in the Appendix section at the end of this report.
Footnotes
1. "Millennials and Rapid Urbanization," Urban Getaway, accessed September 25, 2019, https://www.urbangateway.org/news/millennials-and-rapid-urbanization.
2. Jennifer Robinson, "Millennials Worry About the Environment – Should Your Company?," Gallup, accessed September 25, 2019, https://www.gallup.com/workplace/257786/millennials-worry-environment-company.aspx.
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