Jul 8, 2011

What auto brands are likely to appeal to younger buyers? What's the next hip auto brand, in other words, for 18-27 year olds, a/k/a Generation Y?

Scion! Toyota's offering for customizing kids. It worked. Scion has, almost since inception, had the youngest buyers in the business. A new study by TrueCar says the company still has its mojo. The study, which is based on purchase behavior of more than four million car buyers in 2009 and 2010, gave Scion, Mitsubishi and Mazda the nod as the auto brands with the highest concentration of under-27 buyers.

Jesse Toprak, head of industry analysis at TrueCar, says Gen Y buyers set trends via social media. Per TrueCar data for 2009 and 2010, Scion had 21.2% of Gen Y buyers, Mitsubishi 20.3%, and Mazda 10.7%.

On a model basis, Generation Y buyers opted for vehicles that were good for customizing or that made the experience easier: Scion tC, Mitsubishi Lancer and Honda Civic Si lead. "Scion targeted its vehicles from the outset to Gen Y, from styling and customization standpoint. It's a brand that was completely marketed and sold to that age group, and they succeeded," says Toprak.

Toyota Yaris, Ford Focus couple, Scion xD, Volkswagen GLI, Subaru Impreza, Kia Forte and Toyota Corolla were the other vehicles in the top-ten list of cars purchased by Gen Y.

Click here for the statistics!