Are Millennials More Likely than Boomers to Fix Their Own Cars?

[Bikeman315]

Who knew?

https://www.autoweek.com/car-life/d... -- High Minus Dormant and 90 Day Non Openers

Sponsored

 

[coz0502]

When you think about this for a minute it's really not that surprising. Boomers were born between 1946 to 1964, putting them between 59 and 77 years old. Millennials are 1981 to 1996, making them between 27 and 42.

How many 59+ year old (that are not car enthusiast) do you know who want to work on their car? Financial position is probably also a driving force, generally speaking, the older you are the more financially stable. So Millennials doing basic repairs, think batteries, brakes, filters, etc. are willing to take on those task over paying a mechanic to do it.

I'm a gen Xer and I won't pay for anything I can fix myself for 2 reasons, the cost of labor is higher than my time to fix myself and waiting for an appointment to get the car in the shop seems to be longer and longer.

 

[momalle1]

When you think about this for a minute it's really not that surprising. Boomers were born between 1946 to 1964, putting them between 59 and 77 years old. Millennials are 1981 to 1996, making them between 27 and 42.

How many 59+ year old (that are not car enthusiast) do you know who want to work on their car? Financial position is probably also a driving force, generally speaking, the older you are the more financially stable. So Millennials doing basic repairs, think batteries, brakes, filters, etc. are willing to take on those task over paying a mechanic to do it.

I'm a gen Xer and I won't pay for anything I can fix myself for 2 reasons, the cost of labor is higher than my time to fix myself and waiting for an appointment to get the car in the shop seems to be longer and longer.

Good points here. I'm a retired Ford tech, but I can tell you I won't be changing a clutch in my garage, on my back. I'll pay for it. I did replace the axle thrust washers myself despite having an extended warranty, the cost was less than the deductible and I didn't have to wait in line. On top of that, no one cares more about that car than I do. I'll be asking my friends at the dealer for the trunk recall parts too...

On top of those things, us older people had to work on our cars because they were so unreliable, but people are people, I really can't subscribe to gender shaming or blaming or whatever you call it. The "kids these days" are much like the when I was a kid!

 

[coz0502]

Good points here. I'm a retired Ford tech, but I can tell you I won't be changing a clutch in my garage, on my back. I'll pay for it. I did replace the axle thrust washers myself despite having an extended warranty, the cost was less than the deductible and I didn't have to wait in line. On top of that, no one cares more about that car than I do. I'll be asking my friends at the dealer for the trunk recall parts too...

On top of those things, us older people had to work on our cars because they were so unreliable, but people are people, I really can't subscribe to gender shaming or blaming or whatever you call it. The "kids these days" are much like the when I was a kid!

You make a great point that I also thought of after posting the reply.

"On top of that, no one cares more about that car than I do." -I agree 100%, no one cares more about my car than me, plus if something goes wrong, I have no one to blame but myself.

Another thing that just came to mind, technology changes. There are so many how to videos available online, helping diagnose problems and walk throughs on how to fix. I've used how to videos for more than car repairs, 2 years ago I repaired my TV doing some online investigating, bought the part, replaced it as video instructed and it's still working. Granted it didn't stop me from buying a new TV as well, family room now has a 75in and the 55in I repaired went in my bedroom and the 42in went in the spare for guest.

 

[momalle1]

You make a great point that I also thought of after posting the reply.

"On top of that, no one cares more about that car than I do." -I agree 100%, no one cares more about my car than me, plus if something goes wrong, I have no one to blame but myself.

Another thing that just came to mind, technology changes. There are so many how to videos available online, helping diagnose problems and walk throughs on how to fix. I've used how to videos for more than car repairs, 2 years ago I repaired my TV doing some online investigating, bought the part, replaced it as video instructed and it's still working. Granted it didn't stop me from buying a new TV as well, family room now has a 75in and the 55in I repaired went in my bedroom and the 42in went in the spare for guest.

I often wonder how I used to fix things with common knowledge (how did I find that group knowledge back then?)! I know it existed back then!

 

[Balr14]

I used to do my own work years ago.... everything, body work, suspension, engine swaps, the works. Cars were simple, then. The more crap that got added and the more complex things got, the less fun they were to work on. It was hard to mess anything up, it isn't any more. I'd rather pay a dealer to fix my car now. They have the tools and diagnostic equipment I lack.

As has been mentioned, we fixed our own cars in the old days because they weren't that reliable, so we got a lot of practice. In the last 20 years, I average one repair every 3 years, most of which involved complex electronics that didn't exist when I worked on my own cars, for example the cable inside the steering wheel of a Lexus that controls all of the electronics, or the GPS in a Mustang.

I still do some things on BMWs I've owned because they are really easy to do, like installing an aftermarket intercooler.

 

[Arknsawchuck]

I'm 61 and there won't be any shop touching my car. I don't trust the quality of maintenance these days and the cost is insane. The day I can no longer do my own maintenance is the day I sell my car.

 

[Balr14]

I'm 61 and there won't be any shop touching my car. I don't trust the quality of maintenance these days and the cost is insane. The day I can no longer do my own maintenance is the day I sell my car.

I did a lot of stuff at 61 I have to pay for at 80. Too much stuff breaking down... on me, not the car!

 

[daSNAK3]

Boomers are getting old, so probably. Shit, I’m only 37 and almost ready to start paying to have my stuff done and I’m a cheap skate.

 

[ice445]

I'm 31 and do all my own work (unless it's something expensive under warranty). Besides being satisfying, it's just faster, lol. Getting your car worked on professionally these days is an incredible hassle, starting from the moment you pick up the phone. Plus, you never really know who did the work and if they really gave a shit (or knew what they were doing). I'm not a mechanic by any means, and I know my limits, but most things aren't that hard if you put in the time to learn. Even modern cars aren't too bad if you're familiar with computers and can spend the time to learn the way everything is integrated. There's so many affordable ways now to emulate dealer level diagnostic equipment (at least for a brand like Ford, if you're working on German stuff good luck).

 

[Joe B.]

The study was done in the UK. Apples and oranges. The day I can't maintain my 5 cars, except for the heavy stuff, I'll downsize, and then it's the glue factory. I see only two other guys, and they're about my age (old) in the neighborhood doing car stuff. No one even washes them anymore. Sad.

 

[Arknsawchuck]

I did a lot of stuff at 61 I have to pay for at 80. Too much stuff breaking down... on me, not the car!

lol, I get that. Even at 61 I have to do things slower than before.

 

[TexasMetallic5.0]

Gen X here. I've always done all of my own work besides paint/body. I can't make myself pay someone else to do something that I can do and know that it's done right. I just finished rebuilding the whole front suspension and steering on my Ram a week or so ago.

 

[Hack]

That's crazy that the percentage of 60-80 year olds who do their own work on cars is so close to that for young people. My opinion is the article has it completely wrong. For young people the percentage should be in the 60s or 70s, not in the 20s. The real question to me is how many boomers fixed their own cars when they were in their 20s?

I disagree with the argument about complexity. Carbs and points ignitions are not easy at all to adjust and get right. Modern cars in order to fix them you just need remove and replace the bad part, which is really easy to do. Modern cars even feature computers that will tell you what part is bad. Super easy.

 

[Balr14]

That's crazy that the percentage of 60-80 year olds who do their own work on cars is so close to that for young people. My opinion is the article has it completely wrong. For young people the percentage should be in the 60s or 70s, not in the 20s. The real question to me is how many boomers fixed their own cars when they were in their 20s?

I disagree with the argument about complexity. Carbs and points ignitions are not easy at all to adjust and get right. Modern cars in order to fix them you just need remove and replace the bad part, which is really easy to do. Modern cars even feature computers that will tell you what part is bad. Super easy.

Yes, removing the bad part is easy to do. But, they are a lot harder to get to in newer cars. In the 50s and 60s, you could work blindfolded.... seriously. I learned everything about working on cars from an 83 year old neighbor who restored a Model A, including all the wiring and he was blind. I had to tell him which color wire he was holding and that was about all.

Most guys did their own repairs in those days because many dealers had little or no service departments. Independent garages were usually one man shops with questionable capabilities. If you found a good one they were normally swamped with work. The cars I owned in those days required a lot of repairs, so I had to do it myself. I had a 53 Chevy that required work on the voltage regulator and shift linkage about once a week and a 65 Dodge that needed plugs replaced every two weeks.

For fun, me and a couple buddies put a Cadillac engine in a Mercury and the Mercury engine in the Cadillac. It took us 3 days. Try that now. The Cadillac with a Merc flathead was slower than shit! You could stick just about any engine in any car. We put a big block Chevy in a Thames panel truck. We had to use an automatic transmission because there wasn't enough room for 3 pedals. Did a huge wheelie with it and broke the frame in half! Memories!

Sponsored