The BMW 3 series was the most searched for car on Auto Trader in 2016, a title the vehicle has held on the UK’s largest automotive marketplace for a sixth consecutive year. Beating two of its BMW stablemates in both the 1 Series and 5 Series, the 3 Series topped a list that was dominated by premium vehicles in 2016, which made up 75% of the Top 10 list.
Jon Quirk, Auto Trader’s Editor-in-Chief, said, “The BMW 3 series continues its dominance as the most searched for car on Auto Trader, while the overall popularity for premium vehicles continues. This is due, in part, to an expansive new car portfolio and the availability of low rate finance. Small family cars have been big news in 2016 too, as they can provide superb levels of in-car technology, safety and refinement in more compact, more efficient and cost effective packages.”
The rise in UK car buyers on the lookout for more premium models led to a significant rise in searches for the 3 Series rival, the Mercedes-Benz C Class, which rose two places in the Top 10 search list in 2016 to take the Bronze spot from the Ford Focus.
The Volkswagen Golf also continues to be a highly desirable for UK car buyers in 2016, as it becomes the second most searched for car on Auto Trader for the eighth year running.
Making a prediction for 2017, Quirk said, “2017 is going to be the year of the small car. The small car league table will see a host of new competition – the Ford Fiesta, Volkswagen Polo, Citroen C3 and Seat Ibiza will all have brand new models in 2017, not to mention the totally reinvented Nissan Micra.”
Looking at how some of next year’s new car launches might impact search behaviour, Quirk added, “We’re also expecting to see an increase in the number of searches for electric vehicles, with refreshed models like the Renault Zoe promising better range and the release of the Tesla Model 3 – the Ford Focus-sized electric car with a 200+ mile range costing £30k – which should bring mass appeal for UK car buyers.”
Top 10 most searched for cars on Auto Trader in 2016
|
Rank
|
Make
|
Model
|
|
1
|
BMW
|
3 SERIES
|
|
2
|
VOLKSWAGEN
|
GOLF
|
|
3
|
MERCEDES-BENZ
|
C CLASS
|
|
4
|
FORD
|
FOCUS
|
|
5
|
BMW
|
5 SERIES
|
|
6
|
BMW
|
1 SERIES
|
|
7
|
FORD
|
FIESTA
|
|
8
|
AUDI
|
A3
|
|
9
|
MERCEDES-BENZ
|
E CLASS
|
|
10
|
VAUXHALL
|
ASTRA
|
