I think this article has some very interesting points about the future of automobile aftermarket and today's youth. I did not realize how much things have changed.

I am not quite 30 and I remember not sleeping for months before my 16th birthday and being there as soon as the BMV opened so I could get my license as soon as possible. Apparently that is no longer the norm....

Are Young Auto Enthusiasts Vanishing? | Specialty Equipment Market Association

 

I think my son falls into this group, he had a car of his own, supplied and insured by us and he ran it using the second tier license until he went to the U of T whereupon he let the license lapse. This meant he had to start the whole license application process from step one. He was without a license again for nearly eight years. Living downtown he really did not need a license but there was no enthusiasm to get one either. The '66 Mustang he insists we keep in the garage for him to fix up is a pie in the sky idea I think.

 

I found the article to be interesting, and true. In the list of their bullet-points, I think they missed one:

• Increased devotion to social media, such as Facebook and texting, which are replacing in-person interaction and making cars less necessary for “hanging out” with friends.
• Gaming, which is displacing sporting and activity events.
• A shift of discretionary income toward mobile devices, leaving less money for automotive expenditures.
• Current unemployment rates among 20- to 24-year-olds reaching 15%.
• A tight economy, rendering parents with less disposable income to help young enthusiasts with auto-related purchases.
• Economic pressures forcing older wrenchers from the hobby, depriving youth of role models.
• Increasing pressure from leftist educational facilities to use public transit and "green" transportation.

Before everyone gets all bent out of shape, hear me out. Today's schools have been pushing the whole "Global Warming / Climate Change" agenda in a "Fast and Furious" manner, pun intended. It's simply not as "cool" to have your own car unless it's a Hybrid/EV. And those suck, from a performance/thrill standpoint... not to mention they're too expensive for 95% of the high-schoolers to afford.

My nephew is 18... still doesn't have his driver's license. Simply has zero interest in it. He's a gamer, and his girlfriend has a car and a job (he has neither). So, his view is "why try, I'll just rely on her". That works great until she realizes there are men out there that are independent. It chops my ***, but his mom (my sister) is a Lefty, so the apple didn't fall far from the tree. But I digress.

Nissan has been insulated from the decline in youth interest due to the Leaf, Z, and obviously the GT-R. We can thank Gran Turismo for that car's fame... LOL

Still, those are out of reach for many young kids.

One thing I think the article hit the nail on the head about, is the need for kids these days to have the "latest/greatest" of everything, or simply go without. God forbid you be seen with a three year old iPad... you'll be the laughing stock of the school. So if that same entitlement mentality translates to vehicles, many kids won't be satisfied with mom's clapped-out Corolla.

It doesn't stop with cars, though. Many of my peers are in debt to their eyeballs, trying to match the house/cars their moms and dads have acquired after 30 years of working. The kids want all of that right now.

 

How do you propose to rebuild something complex when you do not even know how to operate it

Thats too bad, hopeully there are other interests you share. My father was the one who got me hooked, at one point having 7 cars when he and my mother were the only people in the house of license age...


I agree 100% with your thoughts on the matter, John. Most especially about the latest and greatest. Molly and I are under 30 (her morso than I, but I digress) and we have three cars and what we consider to be a nice home. We go on vacations and do most things within reason we would like to. Neither of us have trust funds or parents bankrolling our every move. Nonetheless, the only debt we have is our home, and I have 30% equity, which is more than I can say for many in the current economic situation.

We are also reasonable, I have a XF for a fun toy, not a CTS-V. Our cars are 2004-2005 model years, but IMHO better kept and nicer looking than many of our counterparts with much newer vehicles having costly monthly payments to deal with. I still thank God everyday for what we have and realize we have another 50+ years to get where we would eventually like to be, but we do not need to keep up with anyone 30 years our senior or with lots deeper pockets. We are certainly having a great time along the way, and cars have played a large part of that for me...

 

age has nothing to do with it. I loved machines when I was ten. It is innate. I still love them and electronics. They are my toys. People play with what they like. I played with guns yesterday.

 

I think we are seeing the decline of men in the business world and the rise of women. Women are well over 50% in universities and colleges, far to many men seem to have drifted to the wayside and they will have a rude awakening when they realize that immigrants and women hold the top jobs.
These guys want well paid jobs without going through the hoops required, They are content to sit idle, play video games and get drunk rather than learn anything, they are in for a big shock.

 

Agreed 100%... This describes a very similar situation with me and the lovely Kim. She drives a 2003 Accord, I've got my '05 beater

As you said, both are in superb shape. It ain't about what you can spend, it's about how you care for what you have. Contentment is a beautiful thing.

You're absolutely right.

 

And this is why I love this place and hate missing events like the Dragon, the discussions I have had with members here have been some of my favorites

 

Back in my day,(yeah, yeah, I sound just like my father) most families had only one car. At least until the sons started getting to driving age. Then a "jalopy" often began to organicaly take shape in the driveway.

I started driving my grandpa's 51 Pontiac when I was 10. Had my own car when I was 14 (until Mom found out and made me sell it). Shortly after I bought Grandad's old 39 Ford coupe and a sedan , giving me a 14 month project to create my own "jalopy" out of the various pieces. At the ripe old age of 15 1/2 I had my permit and the cops stopped bugging me. First in line at the DMV on my 16th birthday. Got my first Ticket that same day.

Back then if you had a car in school, you were either well heeled or well oiled and greasy. There was a manly pride in being responsible for the wheels under your butt. And having the dark grease under your nails to prove it. Along with a paid for title, for the dead carcass you had rescued and made into a war chariot for street contests and a limo for your gal.

A typical highschool student parking lot perhaps had one or two fairly classy new Chevy's amoungst a bevy of fenderless, rusted behemouths. All of them equipped with funky exhausts, coon tails, Primered quarter panels, and hoodless wonders throbbing in the engine bay. All of them works in progress who's owners were carefully scratching notes and dreams during study hall and math class. The dreams of teenage boys.

And amoung that pile of recovering relics, a few completed projects of spectaculer paint and chrome. For a majority of guys back then, participating in this passage defined who you were.

Pass a high school today and you will still see a few of these wonderous works of art and mechanical craftsmanship. But they are rare gems in a field of brand new, cookie cutter, commuter specials.

I don't think the enthusiasm today is any less, but it seems to afflict a smaller percentage of the population. Back then it took alot of hours and patience to work a crappy job so one could pay for a car. I mean actually "pay cash " to get it. Perhaps there is simply less pride in owning a car today because they are all so genericaly similar. And, thanks to easy credit terms and payments, having a new FORD Focus or a fast Hyundi is now so easy.

 

The sad thing is these women will want to marry someone at their own level or better, that may be a hard match to find. They will not want to be married or pared to a man with low personal esteem who is bitter that he has a low paying job with non existent job skills.

 

Enter the ever-increasing divorce rate among my age group...

Not saying women are blameless... many of today's young girls will marry the previously mentioned bum, expecting to live the lifestyle of a Kardashian -- Moet Chandon taste on a Pabst Blue Ribbon budget. Once the reality strikes that neither can live up to the other's standards, it's easier to simply throw in the towel and write off the venture.

I'm one lucky man... Franc knows this, as he's met my wife on a number of occasions. Not suggesting that our marriage is flawless, but it's realistic and comfortable. I appreciate Kim's frugality as much as she appreciates my work ethic. It certainly makes things easier... one less thing to argue about.

 

Uh John, not that many times. Curiously,,,, how many did she tell you?

However, every one was an honor for me. You are one lucky dude!

 

LOL!! Well, okay... the 2010 Dragon and the Wedding. But, she still considers you part of the fam.

 

3 boys with a Dad who will never grow up has produced a '97 Toyota Tacoma, the youngest son, the twins have a 2010 Mazda, and a 2012 VW Passat Deisel... But, and a big BUT, the twins stated they are waiting for me to die...so there is hope, and youngest wants the Harley....lol

 

I would be content with that, where do I sign! Can I live in your basement?


This also goes the other way... Im am willing to trade in Evil Evelyn for... pretty much anything female with a decent paying job

 

Basement is taken.....thats where Dave lives.....banished to the basment to drink and play video games.

 

Sparkie, I need you to take a measurement on your new pulley and your OEM one. Is that possible?
I can come up maybe and measure myself some time.

 

Give me a few minutes.

 

From the back of the bearing inner race to the back of the clutch plate, should be around 1" to 1.020".

 

Interesting data for sure
I had a car before I even turned 16 and went to the local DMV and got my drivers license on my 16th birthday.