|
 |
|
|
Cars and the Baby Boom are
synonymous. The early Boomers arrived just in time to see efficient public transportation disappear from city after city. The late Boomers arrived in time to
grow up with the ever-developing Interstate Highway system. Collectively, the Baby Boom has always had a love affair with
automobiles. If nothing else, it’s a cinch, it’s the first American
generation to view car ownership not only as a necessity, but also
as an unalienable right.
 2005 Porsche Boxster |
|
Suddenly, the 16th Birthday became a rite of passage. Driver’s Ed programs were maxed out. Learner’s permits forged friendships. A great car was a gift of the gods, but any car would do because, without one, you were nothing. You ate in your car. You watched movies in your car. Cruising was a way of life and there was no way one could cruise from Chuck-A-Burger to Steak ‘n Shake and back on a bike or, even worse, on foot. From restaurants to cinemas, Drive-Ins were called Drive-Ins for a reason. Cars became ubiquitous images in popular music. You drove to the Prom, then you danced to your car set to music, then you made out in your car. From Ramblers to Corvettes, cars were personal trophies, and convertibles were the top prize.
By the time the late Boomers appeared, the automotive gains of the early Boomers were an accepted part of life. High Schools expanded parking lots. Parents expanded garages. Shopping centers replaced downtowns. Roads were widened. And automotive designers began to target younger drivers. The parental assumption that their teen’s wheels could double, if needed, as yet another family car began to erode. And convertibles were still the top prize.
Flash forward forty years and the Baby Boom still entails one of the largest segments of new car buyers—and only eighteen percent of their purchases are made out of necessity. In practical terms that means the Boomers are buying what they want, not what they need and, given the sheer size of the group, what they want and what they need covers a lot of automotive ground. The Boom constitutes the fastest growing age group of RV purchasers, but its taste is certainly not limited to RVs. Ask a sales manager to name a specific model attracting the Boomers and you’ll receive a lot of answers. Multiply those answers by sampling a random selection of dealerships and you’ll soon ascertain that the Boomers are more than likely responsible for whatever car model suddenly seems to be catching your eye with undue regularity.
| 2005 Volvo XC90 PUV |
|
Various local dealerships offered their best estimation of current Boomer favorites and the only consensus is that Boomers present no consensus. Doug Bruce of Huey’s Honda selects the Odyssey Touring Edition, a van. At McMahon Ford, the selection is the Focus
ZX-4, while Pundmann Ford pin points the Escape, a small SUV offering front or four wheel drive and, for the counter-culturist with popular taste, a hybrid model. Don Fricke, the General Sales Manager of Autohaus of Clayton offers the entire BMW 5 Series. Don Brown Chevrolet highlights the full-size, four-door Impala equipped with the nearest thing going these days to a traditional V-8 Engine, while Charlie Armes of Johnny Londoff Chevrolet picks the Malibu. Chevy driving Boomers are obviously traditionalists. At Plaza Motors, upscale Boomers are into Land Rovers and Porches, while at West County Volvo-Saab, the Volvo XC90 PUV attracts a lot of attention. The selection is as eclectic as the Boomers’ original sets of wheels. Convertibles (specifically, the Saab 9-3, the Audi Cabriolet and the Volvo C70) are still prized. Some things never change.
Possibly more intriguingly, many Boomers are intensely involved in recreating their first favorite set of wheels. From Studebakers to ’57 Chevys, from mega-finned DeSotos to ’64 Tahitian Yellow Cutlass Convertibles, vintage models are being lovingly restored to mint condition and are searching for long abandoned Drive-Ins to cruise. Their owners even hold an adolescent dream car reunion a couple of times a year at Chuck-A-Burger to brag and reminisce. Dealers in vintage junkers
are discovering a ready-made market. Restoration outlets thrive. Garages are expanding even further to accommodate the home body shop. The Boom has never considered itself limited to owning merely one car at a time and the concept of possessing a practical car, a fun car and a trophy car makes perfect sense to a group accustomed to creating their own rules.
| 2005 Ford Escape Hybrid |
| 2005 Saab 9-3 Convertible |
| 2005 Cadillac CTS-V |
| 2005 BMW 530i |
|
About the only shock confronting Boomers when it comes to their love affair with cars comes from, depending on their end of the Boom, their own children and/or grandchildren. Sources ranging from National Public Radio to the comic strip Zits are reporting that the current crop of teens seem not to have inherited the wheel-centric genes of their elders. Schools are eliminating Driver’s Ed classes to balance their budgets. Current 16 years olds are citing insurance and gas costs as reasons to postpone getting their driver’s licenses. The parking lot potential of driveways could actually be shrinking. If the trend continues, garages may well have reached their evolutionary potential and Metrolink will be facing forced expansion of necessity.
For the 59 years of its existence the Baby Boom, by its sheer numbers, has been viewed both as a natural consequence and an aberration. Boomers, of course, could care less. They’ve spent their lives as part of a majorly major crowd constantly being cited either for better or worse by the rest of the population. Auto makers had better beware. No matter one’s attitude towards the Baby Boom, it’s a cinch car sales will decline drastically once it drives off to the great beyond.
| 2005 Land Rover Range Rover. 2005 LR3. and 2005 Freelander |
|
|
|
|
|
|
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
|
