2:25 pm, October 10, 2008
SUPERMINIS are where dealers should be focusing their efforts, says car buying website savemoneyoncars.co.uk.
The company has released details of its top searches for the past month – which shows a clear shift towards smaller and cheaper models.
This, says the organisation, is helping defy the industry trend of falling sales.
Take the Ford Focus. It sat at the top of the ‘most-searched’ listings for a year – but, during September, was displaced by the Fiesta.
And the rest of the top 10 heavily features small cars – the Vauxhall Corsa, Renault Clio and Ford Ka all appear in the listings.
However, the trend is not quite universal. The VW Golf, Honda Civic, Ford Mondeo, Vauxhall Zafira and even the Audi A3 also make the top 10. And we can’t help but note the BMW X5 rounding out the top 20.
Even so, it is evidence that dearer junior executives are out, and more value-focused options are in.
The SMMT revealed earlier in the week that the small car sector was the only one to grow during a depressing September.
‘In the current climate, it comes as no surprise to staff at savemoneyoncars.co.uk to see a trend towards more frugal and economically viable vehicles,’ said Lee Sibbald of savemoneyoncars.co.uk.
‘Motorists are being squeezed financially, and the focus is now on smaller cars. Drivers are understandably looking to downsize.
‘The race is now on for motor manufacturers to produce the cleanest cars they can. Smaller cars are usually less fuel hungry and therefore cheaper to run. Not to mention that they are cheaper to buy, too.
‘Dealers will look increasingly to meet the demand for these small cars.’
