It's also a tank of vehicle.
Posted on 11/04/2025 2:32:18 PM PST by nickcarraway
We don’t blame them: Pull into any parking lot and it’s a sea of grayscale SUVs with the same sweeping LED eyebrows and bloated body lines.
By any measure, modern cars are starting to look a little too much alike. A Honda CR-V looks like a Hyundai Tucson. A BMW X5 looks like an Alfa Romeo SUV. Maybe that’s why the next wave of car enthusiasts, Gen Z, is quietly falling for the classics instead.
According to Hagerty’s 2024 “Future of Driving” survey, 60% of Gen Z respondents said they’re interested in owning a classic car.
That’s nearly double the rate of Baby Boomers Hagerty, based in Traverse City, Michigan, commissioned the study through OnePoll, surveying over 2,000 Americans about their relationship with cars and driving.
The data hints at a cultural shift: young drivers are drawn to older cars because they feel more alive.
77% percent of Gen Zers said they love or like driving, and many already own “enthusiast” cars
They’re not just scrolling car content on YouTube or Instagram. They’re showing up at real-world car shows, wrenching, and learning to drive stick.
And honestly, who can blame them? My husband and I drive a 21-year-old BMW 325i, a compact, performance-minded manual that still feels connected in ways modern cars don’t.
Sure, we’ve recently replaced a fuel level sender and an AC compressor…two parts I’ve seen fail just as often on newer Hondas and F-150s. But otherwise, it’s been remarkably easy to live with.
It’s also sharper, better balanced, and infinitely more expressive than most of today’s small cars.
Hagerty’s data backs up this craving for personality The most popular classics Gen Z is insuring are 1990 to 1998 Mazda Miatas.
It’s the lightweight roadster that practically defined “pure” driving.
Millennials lean toward old-school Chevy GMT400 pickups (It’s me, Hi!) another era of honest, straightforward engineering. But hey, I’d hop into a 90s Miata or Honda Civic Del Sol any day.
This isn’t just nostalgia in reverse. It’s a quiet rebellion
Gen Z drivers are seeing through the sameness of new-car design and finding inspiration in vehicles that had character, color, and mechanical soul.
Half the survey’s respondents said driving makes them feel free. It’s a reminder that cars once symbolized individuality, not just commute duty.
In fact, 43% said classic cars are part of American heritage worth preserving. Despite some trends in some areas, maybe young people aren’t actually giving up on driving. Some are reclaiming it, one analog machine at a time.
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Just like modern music.
Many cars. Before the mid-1990s were still handbuilt by talented individuals who were passionate about their line of work.
The quality still shows 30+ years later. I will never buy a new Porsche or Mercedes. You can tell the passion just isn’t there and there is an allure driving a car from an older area where vehicles had new ABS, TC, ASR, and drivers died like real men.
I’d recommend a 1953 Henry J Corsair.
For a different reason ... car designers are ‘driven’ to maximize fuel efficiency. For any size car, there is one maximally efficient shape, and every designer wants to get as close as possible to it, while still having some semblance of a distinctive feature.
Another thing to blame on the Feds. The CAFE standards are so high now it limits what carmakers can do. That’s why you never see chrome bumpers on cars anymore.
Government should get out of regulating car gas mileage.
Or maybe because you can fix them in the driveway with a $49 tool kit from Sears.
(Tractor Supply, Harbor Freight, Lowes as you wish . . .)
When I was stationed near San Fran in the early 90s we owned an NA 1992 MX-5. Great on the Pacific Hwy.
Today, my spouse and I own a 2020 ND. It is why we get up early on Saturday mornings.
The fun of driving is out there for reasonable money.
Most new cars look like a week old bar of soap. But it was inevitable in the search for higher mileage. Blunt shapes are more slippery at subsonic velocities.
Good for Gen Z. I just picked up a 2021 Miata w/ 6 speed manual tranny. As close as you’re going to get today to an old school sports car.
I will agree that most cars today look like they were polled out of any individuality. What amazes me is the blandness of the paint jobs. You have your choice of black, white or shades of gray - as if this is a 1950s TV show. Perfectly good colors like blue and red have been minimized. Why? Potential resale value? I live in Texas and I can tell you during the summer months, you don’t want to be in a black car, inside or out.
ND?
This Kaiser Darrin looks like a great car.
https://youtu.be/DhRG6H5BiFQ?si=HIxbwEgxpmWqWG7L&t=1844
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0676330/
A really good episode with Gabe Kaplan.
My newest car is a 2025 truck I bought for the wife.
As to what I drive, my newest is 28 years old.
My spare backup vehicle is 21 years old, but has
a newer very low mileage engine. I put in last year.
I stick to Toyota or German engines when purchasing.
A company that was able to start building older cars again from their original blue prints with slight improvements could make a lot of money. Sadly the government would not allow it.
The sweet spot for reliability was probably from the late 80’s to the early 2000’s. As far as GM was concerned.
Automakers have made sure it is difficult for the regular guy to do maintenance and repairs on modern cars, which are becoming unaffordable. Electric vehicles are unreliable, and tend to explode in the garage, so there will come a time when pre-computerized & pre-electronic ignition cars will be worth their weight in gold.
An opportunity for “retro” aftermarket retrofits to give new cars some style?
People want cars they can drive and feel like it isn’t spying on them. They don’t want cars that do the driving and keeps track of their every move.
People tend to gravitate towards freedom.
Novel notion, isn’t it?
Glad you enjoy your Mazda.
To me, driving has generally been a chore rather than a thrill.
May I ask, how much of the fun is the adrenaline rush?
The level of awareness of surroundings has to be kept high.
I’ve ridden a motorcyle across the USA a few times, and it definitely keeps the adrenaline up, or you don’t survive.
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