Generation Why: J.D. Power's Top Ten Gen Y Vehicles For 2012

Derek Kreindler
by Derek Kreindler

Until the research arm of TTAC gets more funding, we’ll have to rely on data from third-parties like J.D. Power. The venerable outfit recently compiled a list of the Top 10 cars with the highest percentage of Gen Y buyers. The results aren’t entirely surprising.

J.D. Power’s definition of Generation Y consists of buyers aged 16-35. Rather than the penniless youngsters mostly covered in this series, their study also takes into account older members of this cohort who are earning much more, with stable career prospects – maybe even families. No surprise then that four door cars, whether sedans or hatchbacks, tend to dominate the list. Of the 10 cars, only one was a domestic and only one came from a luxury brand. The rest were from mainstream imports, with 6 of the 10 from Japanese brands and 3 from the Germans. No Korean cars cracked the list, which at first glance seems surprising. But we’ve heard through the grapevine that Hyundai products, even the Veloster, tend to skew older. Also missing was Honda, something that would have been unthinkable not too long ago, though Acura was well represented.

10. Acura TSX

Percent of 2012 buyers in Gen Y: 34.3

Year-over-year change in Gen Y buyers: +0.7%

Comment: The bright spot of Acura’s car lineup. Just premium enough to look successful, but also sensible. Does not have the negative connotations that come with certain luxury brands.

9. Dodge Charger

Percent of 2012 buyers in Gen Y: 34.7

Year-over-year change in Gen Y buyers: 0.9%

Comment: The lone domestic. Notice there are no Ford hatches here. It looks like a brawny, masculine car…perfect for those who need a family sedan but can’t bear the thought of a CamCord.

8. VW Golf

Percent of 2012 buyers in Gen Y: 34.7

Year-over-year change in Gen Y buyers: 1.6%

Comment: The “premium” choice for C-segment cars. Not a surprise. The TDI is lumped in with the Golf.

7. VW Jetta

Percent of 2012 buyers in Gen Y: 35.2

Year-over-year change in Gen Y buyers: 33.9%

Comment: Not a surprise. VW badge has cachet, the price is right.

6. Subaru Impreza

Percent of 2012 buyers in Gen Y: 37.4

Year-over-year change in Gen Y buyers: -7.1%

Comment: Subaru is a bit of a quirky choice but a darling of the winter sports crowd and those who grew up on Gran Turismo.

5. Mazda3

Percent of 2012 buyers in Gen Y: 40.2

Year-over-year change in Gen Y buyers: -2.3%

Comment: A good sign for Mazda. The 3 is also seen as a bit of a step up from the usual choices, and Mazda can only benefit from a younger customer base.

4. Acura ILX

Percent of 2012 buyers in Gen Y: 40.2

Year-over-year change in Gen Y buyers: N/A

Comment: I was wrong here. I panned it for being a silly product with no appeal. These figures don’t tell the whole sales story, but they do tell something.

3. VW GTI

Percent of 2012 buyers in Gen Y: 44.5

Year-over-year change in Gen Y buyers: -0.8%

Comment: Ask any car guy or girl what they’d buy for under $30k and there’s a good chance it’s a GTI. No surprise here.

2. Mitsubishi Lancer

Percent of 2012 buyers in Gen Y: 48.6

Year-over-year change in Gen Y buyers: 5%

Comment: The Ralliart and EVO are lumped in with Lancer, but it may also have something to do with Mitsubishi’s financing deals. This car is a dog.

1. Scion tC

Percent of 2012 buyers in Gen Y: 50.2

Year-over-year change in Gen Y buyers: -0.4%

Comment: The FR-S gets all the hype, but the tC is top dog. Maybe things will change next year?

Derek Kreindler
Derek Kreindler

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  • Cdakost Cdakost on Feb 22, 2013

    One problem with this that I noticed is that it is the percentage of buyers. I'm Gen Y (19-years-old in college), and I drive a Subaru BRZ. But I didn't buy, my dad did. So technically using these numbers, the car was bought by a 63-year-old man. I think that there are quite a few cases that fall into this category.

  • Jcp12385 Jcp12385 on Mar 21, 2013

    Ugh. I hate that Gen "Y" moniker. Anyhow, being myself perfectly in the middle of this demographic, I would consider...none of these, save for a Jetta. And then only a wagon. I am 28, college educated with a wife, kid and another kid in the oven. I am a hopeless suburbanite. I'd much prefer something twice my age. Something easy to work on, big, and of course...something that actually has personality. Then again, I've always been kinda...different from my peers.

  • CanadaCraig You can just imagine how quickly the tires are going to wear out on a 5,800 lbs AWD 2024 Dodge Charger.
  • Luke42 I tried FSD for a month in December 2022 on my Model Y and wasn’t impressed.The building-blocks were amazing but sum of the all of those amazing parts was about as useful as Honda Sensing in terms of reducing the driver’s workload.I have a list of fixes I need to see in Autopilot before I blow another $200 renting FSD. But I will try it for free for a month.I would love it if FSD v12 lived up to the hype and my mind were changed. But I have no reason to believe I might be wrong at this point, based on the reviews I’ve read so far. [shrug]. I’m sure I’ll have more to say about it once I get to test it.
  • FormerFF We bought three new and one used car last year, so we won't be visiting any showrooms this year unless a meteor hits one of them. Sorry to hear that Mini has terminated the manual transmission, a Mini could be a fun car to drive with a stick.It appears that 2025 is going to see a significant decrease in the number of models that can be had with a stick. The used car we bought is a Mk 7 GTI with a six speed manual, and my younger daughter and I are enjoying it quite a lot. We'll be hanging on to it for many years.
  • Oberkanone Where is the value here? Magna is assembling the vehicles. The IP is not novel. Just buy the IP at bankruptcy stage for next to nothing.
  • Jalop1991 what, no Turbo trim?
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