As we get older we all end up looking into the mirror and saying, I’m starting to look like my Dad/mom the older I get. Except for Michael Jackson’s kids. So life mirrors life and according to research carried out by Michigan State University in the US, it appears that as kids get older they also start to mirror their parents buying habits particularly when it comes to purchasing cars. The research study into car buying patterns among adult children and parents found that 39% of children are more likely to buy the same brand of car their parents purchased. The research collated responses concerning car ownership of more than 4,300 adult children matched to nearly 2,600 parents from a period between 1999 to 2011, every two years. The research found matching preferences and these were broken down into car makers that included Honda, General Motors, Toyota, Chrysler and Ford. The report suggests that a sensible strategy to build brand loyalty is to “invest in young consumers and harvest old consumers”. This strategic approach can be translated as sell low on entry level vehicles to attract a younger buyer and then rip them off when they get older and are dumb enough to believe what the car dealer is telling them. The report, authored by Soren Anderson goes onto say “In theory these findings could change the way automakers price and market their cars”. That’s pretty much what the major car makers have been doing for the past 50 years. Its called pulling a fast one.