2022, proved to be an interesting year for the automobile sector with an increased inclination amongst Indians towards purchasing and selling pre-owned cars. The last quarter of the year, especially, saw a growth in demand for used cars, highlights CARS24, India’s leading e-commerce player for pre-owned vehicles. The platform, in fact, recorded a massive ~75 percent jump in the sale of pre-owned cars in the Oct-Dec quarter (Q4) from Jan-March quarter (Q1).
With people willing to spend a higher amount on cars without compromising on their choices, safety or quality, the e-commerce player also noted a 30 percent increase in the average buying budget during the year.
As more Indians came closer to fulfilling their car dream in 2022 CARS24 has today shared a snackbreak worthy pan India Mileage report 2022 highlighting key trends and the changing criteria for purchasing cars that will define the country’s car buying behavior in 2023 as well.
Kitna deti hai? mileage remains the top criteria for the Indian car buyer
While there has been a shift towards premiumisation of cars, mileage continues to be the most important factor for an individual while purchasing a vehicle. In fact, last year, every 2 minutes, users enquired about the mileage and the average of various cars in different fuel choices. Most asked question : Yeh car average kitna deti hai?
However, interestingly, it was not the only important factor. Premium features like airbags, driver assist system, autoplay music systems, giant screens, camera controls, sunroofs, etc when making a purchase decision became immensely popular with people willing to spend more for them. These features will also be considered important while buying a car in 2023 and drive sales.
There was a surge in people buying cars in different colors such as red, black and blue beyond the traditional white/gray
Maruti was LUV but other brands were not far behind
In 2022 as well, Maruti continued leading the race for the most popular car brand in India with every 1 in 3 buyers purchasing a Maruti car in 2022. The maximum Maruti cars were bought in New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad followed by Kolkata, Lucknow, Pune and Ahmedabad. Hatchbacks such as Swift, Baleno, Alto, WagonR and Celerio were the most sold Maruti cars in 2022 while the sale of mini SUVs such as Vitara Brezza picked up.
Maruti was followed by Hyundai, Honda and Renault and Ford however, the sale of younger brands such as Kia picked up in the last quarter of the year.
Fun Fact : Even though Ford has stopped producing cars, it continues to be a top choice amongst Indians while purchasing a pre-owned car.
EMI Banado – India wanted its cars to be financed in 2022 ; More millennials bought their first car
According to the data shared by CARS24, more Indians preferred getting their cars financed in 2022. Maximum cars were financed for users in cities like Hyderabad, Lucknow and Kolkata. The highest loan was taken for INR 25L by a user in Delhi.
While financing, Indians preferred the tenure of 6 years as it gives more flexibility to pay and decreases the payment burden. The average EMI amount in 2022 was INR 11500, and the majority of loans were taken by salaried professionals.
Thanks to the financing options, this year also recorded more millennials buying a car with a majority of buyers under 35 years old.
Pune and Ahmedabad witnessed most car deliveries in the Tier II cities in 2022
The sale of pre-owned cars picked up pace in tier II markets with Pune and Ahmedabad recording maximum car deliveries. Baleno was the most popular car in both cities.
A user in Pune, in fact, bought a car worth INR 33 lakhs (A Mercedes C Class)
Cities such as Jaipur, Kochi, Lucknow, Patna, Ludhiana, Chandigarh and Coimbatore have also been catching up in the race of which city will buy the most cars this year with cars already being added to the cart in the first week of 2023 itself.
Fun Fact : While all other cities bought hatchbacks, Nawabo ka sheher, Lucknow recorded the maximum sale of Mini SUV- Vitara Brezza
Amongst metro cities, Bengaluru purchased the maximum cars in 2022 followed by Mumbai, New Delhi, Hyderabad and Chennai. Swifting through the heavy traffic with its smaller size and great speed, Maruti’s Swift was the most popular car in Bengaluru, Delhi and Chennai while Mumbai shopped for WagonR and Hyderabad fell in love with Hyundai Grandi10.
The year of buying and selling more cars
Another interesting trend revealed in CARS24’s Mileage Report suggests a whopping 81 percent YoY surge in the number of people buying more than 1 car in a year.
Not only did people shop for more cars, the year also witnessed an all-time high in people selling more than 1 car this year with maximum sellers from New Delhi. Indians in fact sold cars worth thousands of crores in 2022 alone.
