Australia: First car is bought 2nd hand at 82%, Toyota and Corolla top picks

TV personality Grant Denyer is the new ambassador of Gumtree Cars in Australia.

Coinciding with the announcement of former V8 supercar driver and TV & radio personality Grant Denyer as its new ambassador, Gumtree Cars has unveiled some interesting research about the first car of Australian buyers. Gumtree Cars officially launched in 2017 and is the #1 platform in Australia for privately listed cars with more than 150,000 new and used cars listings on the site and 6,000 new cars listed each day, and is aiming at becoming the #1 motors marketplace in the country.

More than four in five first cars (82%) were bought second hand in Australia, and just 18% brand new. However, millennials (24%) are more likely than Gen X (15%) and Baby Boomers (14%) to say their first car was brand new when they got it. The top picks for first car brands are Toyota (20%), Holden (19%) and Ford (16%) and for models (in order) the Toyota Corolla, Holden Commodore, Ford Falcon, Toyota Camry, Nissan Pulsar, Holden Gemini, Ford Laser, Holden Torana, Ford Escort and Mazda 3/323. Coincidentally, the Toyota Corolla also served as Grant Denyer’s first purchase.

Two million Australians claim to name their car (21% of women vs 11% of men), and indeed Denyer admits he named his first car Lola Corolla. Great to see I’m not the only one naming the cars I drive! – the latest one being Roma the Dacia Logan. Interestingly, one in four young drivers (24%) bought their first car before they had even passed their drivers licence/P’s, 25% as soon as they passed their test and 26% between 2 and 12 months after getting their licence. At the other end of the scale, 12% waited 2-5 years, 6% more than 5 years and 6% have never had their own car.

Car dealers are still the first pick for Aussies looking to purchase their first set of wheels (41%), followed by private sellers (30%) and friends and family (21%). The most common way drivers get their first car is by saving up and buying it themselves (40%), with just 13% taking out a bank loan or using car finance. More than 600,000 Australians bought their first car via an online classified ads site such as Gumtree Cars.