New Study Finds Millennials Prefer Their Cars Over Social Media

Jan. 26, 2015

Jan. 26, 2015—MTV, a division of Viacom, unveiled on Friday its new research study, “Millennials Have Drive,” at the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Convention and Expo 2015.

The study uncovered an increase in young people’s passions for cars and car ownership with three out of every four millennials agreeing they would rather give up social media for a day than their cars, and 72 percent agreed they would rather give up texting for a week than their cars.

“Millennials are perhaps the most sophisticated consumers the world has ever seen—highly educated, demanding, and incredibly adept at using technology to make thoughtful purchases,” Jeff Lucas, head of sales of music and entertainment for Viacom Media Networks, said in a release.  “We want to understand how Millennials’ attitudes toward car ownership are changing as they grow older, the economy improves and the auto sales landscape evolves.” 

The findings establish that eight in 10 Millennials get around most often by car as opposed to any other form of transportation—a contrast to studies in recent years that show driving is on the decline among young people.

This shift in driving behaviors and attitudes toward automobiles can be attributed to Millennials aging up into car ownership, an improving economy and the fact that more Millennials are able to afford cars now than a few years ago. As a result, young people claim to drive more miles per month than any other generation with a self-reported 72 percent increase in the average number of miles driven versus Boomers (934 miles vs. 544 miles) and an 18 percent increase versus Gen X (934 miles vs. 790 miles).

The “Millennials Have Drive” study was fielded in the spring of 2014 and included quantitative research of 3,610 Millennials ages 18-34, 400 Gen Xers and 403 Boomers, as well as qualitative field studies, focus groups, one-on-one interviews and more.

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