Millennials are more cost-conscious than Gen Xers or baby boomers, but transparency and online F&I product introductions could sway them to open their wallets for add-ons, a new study finds.
In 2016, millennials accounted for 29 percent of new-vehicle sales. In the next three years, according to Deloitte, that share will rise to 40 percent, Cox Automotive says in the study, "Improving the Car Buying Experience for Millennials … and Everyone Else."
On the financing side, millennials made up 36 percent of the lending market in 2016, up from 25 percent in 2011, according to Cox. Generation X accounted for 41 percent, compared with baby boomers' 14 percent and the silent generation's 9 percent.
The credit mix of millennials has been fairly consistent since 2014. Through January this year, 39 percent of millennials who submitted credit applications through Dealertrack's network were subprime, 18 percent were near prime, 22 percent were prime and 21 percent were superprime.
The mix has been consistent after millennials' financial position improved in 2014, said Isabelle Helms, vice president of research and market intelligence at Cox Automotive.
"As they continue to age and land more stable jobs and grow their careers, we can actually see the composition probably improve in terms of prime and subprime for them … with the caveat that the economy doesn't go tanking," she said.