Toyota the most searched car brand of 2020
Tuesday, 26 January 2021
Last year, Australian researchers crunching Google data found that BMW was the most searched for car brand of 2019. Now, it appears those researchers have nothing better to do than look up search statistics about cars because they found that Toyota knocked BMW off the throne in 2020.
The Japanese carmaker topped searches in around a third of all countries analysed, including New Zealand, which comparethemarket reckoned was due to Toyota detailing an “extensive and unique range of vehicles” across 2020.
There was the epic GR Yaris, the second generation of hydrogen-powered Mirai, an expansion of the Corolla family with the Corolla Cross and the cute little C+pod, a tiny electric two-seater designed for extra-urban use. Oh, and don’t forget the revamped Hilux, which won our Top Ute award last year.
As it happened, Toyota won Best Brand too.
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BMW took a back seat in 2020, only topping searches in 34 countries, dropping to 21.5 per cent (or around one in five top searches). Still, this was enough to make it the second most searched car brand in the countries analysed.
Despite the drop last year, BMW has proven to be the most searched brand for the last three years, accounting for 38.3 per cent of all top searches within that period, compared to Toyota’s 31.3 per cent. Mercedes-Benz took third place in all three years.
As was seen in 2019, some countries continue to search for locally manufactured vehicle brands. For three years running, Swedish company Volvo topped searches in Sweden. It’s a similar story in Japan, where Toyota proved most popular. More Italians searched for local manufacturer Fiat than any other, while BMW continued to dominate searches in Germany and Peugeot got people clicking in France.