In a major warning to Detroit, J.D. Power and Associates on Thursday reported that young consumers have a strong bias against domestic vehicles, according to its 2007 Avoider Study. The Hummer H3 took a real hit in this new report, earning the dubious title of "most-avoided model" in its segment.

"Among import buyers, for example, the younger the person is, the more likely they are to avoid models because they are of domestic origin," J.D. Power and Associates said in a statement. The 2007 Avoider Study is based on responses from more than 35,000 owners who registered a new vehicle in May.

A key finding of the report is that "pro-domestic and pro-import purchase sentiment is strongly tied to the buyer's age," Power said. Older buyers who purchase domestic vehicles are more likely to avoid imports.

The marketing information services firm said "many buyers continue to have unfavorable impressions of domestic models due to concerns about quality, reliability and depreciation issues."

The Hummer H3 was singled out in the report as the "most-avoided model in its segment, with 21 percent of buyers saying they would not consider buying this model and many citing poor gas mileage as a reason," Power said. In a somewhat puzzling study finding, the Jeep Commander and Chrysler Aspen had "much lower rates of avoidance," despite having EPA fuel economy estimates very similar to the Hummer H3.

The study also found that while gas mileage is a prominent reason for vehicle purchase decisions, wanting "an environmentally friendly vehicle" is one of the least-cited reasons for purchasing. Buyers are also increasingly relying on consumer-generated car information found on the Internet as they make "avoidance decisions."

Source: Edmunds Inside Liine