The Older Generation is Driving The Car Industry

2015 Toyota Camry (Credit: Toyota)

Senior citizens in the United States are healthier and flusher with cash than ever before. While that might sound like great news, it all depends on your perspective. For example, if you think that the automotive industry has been pumping out a plethora of boring vehicles (cough, cough, Toyota) then the surging vitality of older folk is a real problem.

It’s a simple fact that most old people don’t want to climb in and out of a roadster, which could be in part why that market segment has been suffering in a big way. Meanwhile crossovers have become wildly popular, thanks in part to the ease of climbing in and out of the seats.

According to a recent report from The Washington Post, the aging population in the United States is also driving the introduction of more driver assistance features. With more senior citizens paying big bucks for new cars, automakers are catering to them by cramming in all kinds of technologies such as blind spot monitoring, lane departure warning and even frontal collision mitigation systems. If you hate the intrusiveness of such technology, you have this new wave of affluent older drivers to blame.

No longer are grandma and grandpa content to drive the same 1997 Buick LeSabre all the way to the grave, then pass it down to their teenage grandkid. Instead, they’re trading in that LeSabre for a 2015 Lexus RX 350 and living the good life.

The report also pointed out that still only a small number of Millennials are purchasing new cars. While some still think that the youths just aren’t interested in driving, it’s more likely a function of their graduating and getting jobs during the worst recession since the Great Depression. With more Millennials getting real jobs and moving out of their mom’s basement lately, there’s still hope that they’ll help infuse some excitement into the automotive market. Hopefully that excitement doesn’t take the form of vehicles like the Nissan Juke.