Whether you’re a petrolhead or just someone needing information about your car or cars you could buy, the internet is usually the first port of call. Forums, car blogs, YouTube videos, online stores for cars and car parts… the internet has pretty much everything you need and is the best way to stay up to date with the industry – whether it’s the history of Ferrari or the latest innovations from brands like Tesla.
Across the world millions of car searches are made every year, so given how many of us are regularly Googling cars, we thought it would be interesting to see which brands are searched for online the most.
To do this we took Google data from the past 12 months for every country in the world, looking at average search volume for some of the biggest and best-known car makers. Here’s a look at what we find out.
The Top Car Brands in the World
When asked to list the world’s biggest car brands, names like Volkswagen and Ford spring to mind, but does this match up to what we’re searching for online? Here’s a look at the brands which come out on top for Google searches.
BMW, the iconic German car brand, is by far the world’s most Googled car maker, being the most searched brand in 137 countries. Looking at search data, it’s amazing just how many people search for BMW across the globe, with car fans in the US alone accounting for over 5 million of the total searches for the brand.
Elsewhere in the topflight, it was no surprise to see Ferrari among the most searched car brands in the world. For decades, Ferrari has continued to make headlines for their innovative and beautiful cars, and the Italian brand came out on top in Monaco – home to more Ferrari drivers than anywhere else on Earth.
What was perhaps most surprising is that Tesla ranked the world’s fourth most heavily searched car brand, coming above the likes of Volkswagen. Interest in Tesla has spiked in recent years, as the brand’s all-electric cars continue to make waves in the motoring market.
The Most Searched Brands in Europe
Every country has its favourite car makes and models. When you look at the most searched car makers across Europe, there are some interesting things to note – as our map below demonstrates.
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Searches for BMW continue to dominate, even in countries where you’d think other car brands might be more popular. In France for example, it would be easy to assume that the likes of Renault and Peugeot would be more searched than BMW, and the same goes for Italy – home of big brands like Fiat and Ferrari.
Tesla pops up on Europe’s most searched car brands map, being the talking point in countries like Norway and Switzerland. This does ring true, especially when you consider that these types of countries are often associated with green living and environmental interests.
Has Coronavirus Changed the Cars We Search For?
The COVID-19 crisis has left thousands sat at home twiddling their thumbs as they wait for the lockdown to lift, and this has had an impact on the cars and brands we search for the most here in the UK. Below we’ve put together a chart which shows the brands we normally search for compared to those we’ve looked at during lockdown, with some pretty interesting results.
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What’s clear from the UK’s car search history is that high-end brands like Lamborghini, Tesla, Audi and Porsche have been searched for more regularly during the coronavirus lockdown than at other times within the last 12 months. But why is that?
It could be that petrolheads who normally attend car events, shows and races are having to indulge their hobby online rather than in real life – reading and looking up their favourite high-end models. Or it could be a bit of wishful thinking, as people have a bit more time on their hands and start dreaming of their next big car purchase.
We hope you enjoyed this look at the world’s most popular car brands. Are you surprised by our findings? How have you been keeping up with cars during lockdown? We’d love to hear from you, so get in touch on the Holts Facebook page.
Whatever car you drive, Holts is here to help you look after it. Our DIY maintenance products are perfect for fixing and repairing your car, either on your drive or at the roadside. For more information, visit the Holts Auto homepage.
