美国国家公共电台 NPR Generation Z May Not Want To Own Cars. Can Automakers Woo Them In Other Ways?

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RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Next, we're going to meet some kids who are already shaping the economy. Generation Z is the generation after millennials. Their oldest members are just starting college. They have tons of buying power - in the billions of dollars - but also different tastes. Natalie Bettendorf of Youth Radio reports on how big corporations are planning for Generation Z.

NATALIE BETTENDORF, BYLINE¹: Sheryl Connelly has a crazy job. She's in charge of looking into the future for Ford² Motor Company. They're trying to predict how people my age, from Generation Z, will use cars.

SHERYL CONNELLY: I have two Gen Zers at home.

BETTENDORF: She's in Detroit.

CONNELLY: My 16-year-old daughter is thrilled. We, actually - her car is ready to go.

BETTENDORF: Yeah, that's definitely not me.

CONNELLY: Well, I think it's context. It depends on where you live.

BETTENDORF: A couple of decades ago, you would not have heard someone from Ford saying that owning a car is about context. Things are definitely changing. I'm 18, and I don't want a car. I'm from the Bay Area. I take buses. And when I need a car, I use Lyft. Ford's Connelly says Gen Z is a game changer.

CONNELLY: They don't really care about ownership. They don't necessarily see that their vehicle is going to be a status symbol. In fact, they're really savvy³ customers and can be quite frugal⁴.

BETTENDORF: Does this scare you at Ford - that we're frugal?

CONNELLY: No, I don't think so at all. We're ready for you. If you want to buy a car, we got it for you. If you don't want to buy a car, we can still help you there.

BETTENDORF: The top three automakers in the United States are Ford, Fiat⁵ Chrysler and General Motors. They say they are no longer just automakers. Every major car company is trying to make a move, whether it's car-sharing or ride-hailing or self-driving. Even General Motors has a new app for car-sharing that it's betting billions on. It's called Maven. And Peter Kosak is the executive director of urban mobility⁶.

PETER KOSAK: We needed to create a new brand because this is really about access and not necessarily ownership.

CONNELLY: Ownership? Well, whatever. Me and people my age are redefining what it means to travel by car. Susan Shaheen is at UC Berkeley and has been studying ride-sharing since the '90s - before it was a real thing. She says this isn't all bad news for car companies.

SUSAN SHAHEEN: They're going to know you. If you are using their mobility services, chances are they going to have a lot of data about your preferences. They're going to know a lot about where you travel and how you travel. They're going to be in a very good position to market to you.

BETTENDORF: Even if you haven't thought about owning a car, car companies have already kind of got you. Car-sharing apps essentially⁷ place you on the road to ownership. And using these services is essentially test driving, which is the first step in purchasing a car.

I recently came to Los Angeles for college. Before I moved, I told people that I wouldn't have a car, and they'd say, oh, good luck. But I didn't need luck because I got here and there's Lyft and there's Uber. And right now, for people who are selling cars, I'm a problem. So is the rest of my generation. That is what is sending car companies into their own identity crisis.

For NPR News, I'm Natalie Bettendorf.

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MARTIN: That report is part of a series, We Are Generation Z. It was produced by Youth Radio in collaboration⁸ with NPR's Sonari Glinton.

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