Polk, in the fifth in a series of trend center reports direct from the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS), has found that the number of consumers who used the Internet while shopping for a new vehicle increased 14 percent, from 46 percent last year to 60 percent this year.

These numbers are based on input from consumers during the first day the show was open to the public, according to Polk.

Polk also found that males continued to use the Internet to shop for vehicles at a slightly higher rate than females, with males increasing from 47 percent last year to 62 percent this year, and females increasing from 44 percent last year to 59 percent this year.

With regard to the effect age had on Internet vehicle shopping, Polk found that the highest increase in Internet vehicle shopping occurred in Baby Boomers (those aged 35 to 54); this segment had an increase of 21 percent. Generation X and the Mature Market increased over last year by about 17 percent.

By income, Polk's results show that the highest increase for Internet vehicle shopping occurred among those making $75,000 to $99,000 a year. The second highest increase occurred for those making $30,000 to $49,000.

"Baby Boomers and those households with average to above-average levels of income are using the Internet to shop for vehicles at an increasing rate," said Pete Affeld, an analytic consultant at Polk. "These consumers have found that the Internet is very useful when shopping for an automobile."

About Polk

Polk has served the automotive industry for nearly 80 years and is the longest standing curator of automobile records in the United States.

Founded in Detroit in 1870, Polk launched its motor vehicle statistical operations in 1922 when the first car registration reports were published. It now provides automotive solutions to nearly every segment of the motor vehicle industry as an analytic consultant and statistician, as a provider of database-marketing services, as a supplier of vehicle histories, and as a data enabler for geographic information systems.

Based in Southfield, Mich., Polk is a privately held global firm, currently operating in Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Holland, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States.