Congratulations, you are a clever young consumer and you’ve decided to buy your first car. You’ve been raised at the bosom of the all-powerful Internet. You’ve intelligently studied the financial gaffes of older generations as they over borrowed, over spent, and ultimately suffered for their overindulgences. You are prepared to save wisely for your purchase, research thoroughly, and spend sensibly.

Lucky for you, there’s a new way to buy that differs from the antique customs of your parents. Saving and shopping for a car used to triangulate between unsympathetic bank teller, smooth salesman, and invisible financier. Launched in 2009, Motozuma is a website that allows users to save and ultimately purchase new vehicles online by harnessing social networking and cyber payments. It’s the brainchild of Real Art Design Group, a print and new media design firm with fingers in the industry, having worked closely with GM and Ford. The genius of Motozuma is interactivity—it’s designed so users can easily ante small increments to their online piggy bank, asking friends and family to make donations as well. Leveraging Facebook and blogging, Motozuma anticipates a new wave of birthday presents for its audience as the site gains popularity. Instead of Aunt Wanda’s promptly mailed card containing a crisp $20 bill, a pledge can be made to the growing fund. As an added bonus, Hyundai has already agreed to match contributions up to $500, with other manufacturers expected to follow suite.

It’s a win-win. Aunt Wanda saves on postage and her gift of $20 brilliantly duplicates into $40. The young buyer practices fiscal responsibility and social saving in the medium they are most comfortable—online. No more face-to-face transactions necessary, a consequence new generations won’t likely bemoan.

For the imperfect auto industry Motozuma launched in the nick of time, heartening reluctant and strapped young consumers to have patience, since loans aren’t easily obtained anymore. After years of sluggish sales the 43 participating brands are hoping this strategy provides a much-needed jolt and starts moving merchandise.

But while Motozuma diligently contributes to the Internet cog, the automotive industry at the core of the concept remains sluggishly averse to change. If this new technology is capable of rehabilitating, we should also wonder whether it is, in fact, capable of preserving a status quo that rightfully should be challenged. The public is weary of auto industry headlines. The love affair with gas-guzzling SUV’s is over. And with bailout and bankruptcy woes plaguing the Big Three, buyers are unlikely to be fired up by a lifejacket on what appears to be a sinking Titanic.

As our Internet youths clicks-to-pay for just about everything—and now cars—those of us who seek to understand them should beware of classifying their habits as singularly of convenience and a lack of desire for human contact. Teens and twenty-something’s are actually interactive extroverts, they experience rich online dialogue and are masters of processing information. They are adept at the Internet pinball game, with the most illuminating details kept buoyantly alive by virtual levers controlled by savvy young minds.

Motozuma was concepted by keen folks who understand the need to inject into the game. Real Art knows that physicality competes with virtuality, and that to exist really means to exist online. But the beneficiaries of Motozuma would do well to learn more lessons of our modern age. Instead of scraping by with mere existence, it would be opportune to contribute meaningfully. There needs to be dialogue between sovereign car creators and their shrewd purchasers. There needs to be commitment to the environment and eco smart cars. There needs to be upheaval. As an interactive den for smart young consumers, Motozuma could be the platform to converse about these obligations. It isn’t a two-way street yet. But it might be a start.