New research this month revealed the vehicles most preferred by Americans, categorized by generation. The results might surprise certain folks, especially those opposed to downsizing their beloved SUV and truck options.

In August, Insurify released the top 10 most preferred cars in the U.S. by generation. Baby Boomers decidedly prefer larger vehicles. Their top 10 includes two pickup trucks and four SUVs. According to the data, Americans born between 1946 and 1964 love the Ford F-Series, which landed first place on their list.

However, Gen Z (Americans born from 1997 to 2012) prefers the Honda Civic. In fact, there isn’t a single truck or SUV in Gen Z’s top 10.

	Baby Boomers	Gen X	Millennials	Gen Z
1	Ford F-Series pickup	Ford F-Series pickup	Millennials	Honda Civic
2	Toyota Camry	Toyota Camry	Nissan Altima	Honda Accord
3	Toyota Corolla	Honda Accord	Toyota Camry	Toyota Camry
4	Honda Accord	Nissan Altima	Honda Civic	Nissan Altima
5	Chevrolet Silverado	Chevrolet Silverado	Toyota Corolla	Toyota Corolla
6	Nissan Altima	Toyota Corolla	Ford F-Series pickup	Hyundai Elantra
7	Ford Escape	Honda Civic	Chevrolet Malibu	Hyundai Sonata
8	Nissan Rogue	Hyundai Elantra	Hyundai Elantra	Chevrolet Malibu
9	Chevrolet Equinox	Chevrolet Equinox	Hyundai Sonata	Ford Fusion
10	Honda CR-V	Chevrolet Malibu	Chevrolet Silverado	Nissan Sentra

Is Gen Z turning the U.S. into a small car nation?

We’ve regularly reported on the cost of buying new cars in the American market in 2024. According to recent data, 82% of Americans simply can’t afford new car purchases. More than halfway through the year, some sources report the average new car payment hovers over $750 per month. As such, 40% of car shoppers today are only looking at used cars, per a June 2024 Consumer Reports survey.

While younger Americans seem to be less interested in driving, car insurance premiums continue to rise. This is because larger, more technologically advanced vehicles (including EVs) are increasingly expensive to repair after a collision.

We also recently reported that Gerber, a large collision repair chain with hundreds of U.S. locations, is seeing an increase in total loss claims this year. Since Americans drive older vehicles than ever, many smaller, more compact cars get totaled after a wreck. This is especially true if the accident involved a larger car, like a truck or SUV.

Considering the sobering costs of vehicle ownership these days and that the top 5 most popular cars among Millenials are also four-door sedans, Gen Z might well be steering the U.S. away from our beloved behemoths and toward smaller, more efficient vehicles.

American automakers might actually be relieved by this; after all, producing large electric vehicles is proving dangerously unprofitable at the moment. Ford CEO Jim Farley even publicly encouraged Americans to fall back in love with smaller cars despite the brand axing the majority of its sedan lineup in recent years. Moreover, Ford just announced it canceled production of its all-new three-row SUV EV to focus on its commercial business.

Unless new car buying conditions here improve, with small, efficient, cheap electric cars built by Chinese automakers looking to dominate the global market, I see the U.S. either creating its own versions of these models…or begrudgingly letting the competition take over.