Tesla, German brands surge in popularity in Asia

With the coronavirus lockdown measures being eased, at least partially, in most countries, many studies have pointed to a growing aversion to use of public transportation, and a renewed interest in owning a personal vehicle. A recent study conducted among residents of South East Asian countries reveals some interesting insights into the car brands that were most searched for by prospective buyers during the period between March – May 2020.

The study, conducted by iPrice, an aggregator e-commerce platform, found that electric car brand Tesla has surged in popularity in the region, with the company snagging the first spot in countries like Singapore and Hong Kong, and overall fifth spot in searches in the wider region. The report attributes this to that fact that both countries aim to reduce pollution through the use of electric cars by 2050. The search interest of Tesla saw a particularly high spike of 22 per cent in Hong Kong alone, garnering an average of 246,000 searches during the period.

While traditionally popular Japanese car brands such as Honda, Toyota, and Mitsubishi still dominate the popularity charts in Southeast Asian countries, the study revealed a surge in interest in German brands BMW and Mercedes-Benz, with search interest seeing a spike of 50 per cent. Audi was close behind with an increase of 49 per cent between March – May 2020 when compared to December 2019 – February 2020.

Among the Japanese brands, Honda was the most searched car brand in Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam, while Toyota took the runner-up spot in most countries and ranked first in the Philippines.

While MPV/Wagon, Hatchback, and Coupe were the types of cars that were being searched during this period, SUVs and saloons are still the most popular types of vehicles.