For most middle-income Americans, the car is not a luxury. It is the thing that gets them to work. More than three-quarters, 77 per cent, rely on a vehicle to get to and from work, and more than half are driving to work more often than a year ago, according to Santander US’s Paths to Financial Prosperity Q3 2026 survey of 2,193 middle-income householders.
The survey, conducted by Morning Consult on September 22 to 24, 2026, covers Americans aged 18 to 76 with household incomes of about $55,000 to $167,000. It found vehicle access is now central to economic opportunity: 84 per cent said vehicle access gives them more flexibility in where they live, 76 per cent said it affects the number of job opportunities available to them, and 69 per cent said losing access to a vehicle would put them in danger of losing their job.
Workers are cutting elsewhere to keep the car
Households are making real sacrifices to stay mobile. More than two-thirds, 68 per cent, say they would sacrifice other budgetary items to access and maintain a vehicle, while 67 per cent have cut discretionary spending in the past three months to cover vehicle-related costs. The top reasons for driving to work more often are more in-person work requirements, fewer opportunities to work remotely, and changed jobs or work locations.
The squeeze is changing what people buy. Nearly three-quarters, 73 per cent, of recent buyers switched brands to find the right price, and more than 80 per cent of prospective buyers are considering a used vehicle. The share of buyers delaying a vehicle purchase stayed at 52 per cent for a second straight quarter, up from 49 per cent at the start of the year, and more than seven in ten buyers took out an auto loan, with 78 per cent of recent buyers relying on the dealership to find financing that fits their budget.
The car comes before almost everything
“Vehicle access remains fundamental to how middle-income Americans get to work, and consumers are prioritizing their vehicles, amid competing budgetary demands, to maintain that access,” said Betty Jotanovic, president of auto relationships at Santander Consumer USA. The survey has now run for fourteen quarters, and the vehicle findings have barely moved: the car keeps its place at the centre of working life.
That helps explain why record new car prices of $51,109 have not killed demand outright, and why falling gas prices are such a relief. When the car is the difference between keeping a job and losing it, households will cut almost anything else first. The risk is what happens when the car itself breaks down: for a family already cutting spending to keep it running, a single big repair bill can be the thing that stops the commute altogether.
