Gen-Z Car Enthusiasts Are Gravitating Toward This Hot American Compact

The notion that young people aren't into cars anymore is overstated. According to a Cars.com poll, Gen Z bought 10% more cars than millennials between the ages of 16 and 18. When it comes to young car enthusiasts, the specific models they are apparently most interested in are slightly offbeat, reasonably attainable, and overwhelmingly Japanese. Except for one.

Collector car insurance provider Hagerty looked at its quote activity data and figured out which cars were most popular among Gen Z enthusiasts (that is, users born between 1997 and 2012). The following vehicles represented the highest share:

• 1991-96 Honda Beat

• 2001-06 Acura RSX

• 1989-2000 Toyota Celsior (that's the Toyota version of the original Lexus LS)

• 1999-2001 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI

• 2005-10 Chevrolet Cobalt SS

That last one caught our eye not just because it's the only American car on the list, but also because it is the Chevy freakin' Cobalt SS.

For younger, JDM-obsessed car enthusiasts, the Cobalt SS's basic recipe is a familiar one. General Motors took its humble, front-wheel-drive compact economy Chevy Cobalt and put a more powerful engine in it, stiffened up the suspension, and then sold it primarily to young people looking to go fast on a budget. As Gen Z might say, it's giving Honda Civic Si or Volkswagen Golf GTI, but American.

The SS stood for Super Sport. It launched with a 205-horsepower supercharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder, which was replaced by a turbocharged motor for 2008 — producing 260 hp — because the previous engine no longer met emissions regulations. A factory supercharged sport compact could be a novelty we'll never see again.

Period reviews were generally positive, with Car and Driver coming away impressed by the launch version's smooth power delivery, "fast reflexes, and stable course control." Former Jalopnik editor-in-chief Patrick George also declared the Cobalt SS a future classic 13 years ago.

It looks like George's prediction was on the money, given Gen Z's notable proportion of inquiries for the model on Hagerty. The insurance firm pegs the car's youth appeal on price, writing, "Even low-mile, collector-grade cream puffs typically sell in the mid-teens, and solid ones still sell for well under five figures."

Even discounting the "that's all we can afford" factor, the Cobalt SS, if you think about it, is a Gen Z-coded automobile. It's fast and fun, but in a way that won't absolutely destroy the environment. The model's aura can be described as unpretentious and, in 2026, a little irreverent. In contrast, Civics and Golfs, two millennial favorites, are simply too mainstream and lack edge. GM may just have built the perfect Gen Z car enthusiast vehicle back when the demographic was still learning how to add numbers together. "Main character energy" indeed.