Even with Rapidly Declining Birth Rates Globally, Family Cars still Reign | InfoZonePK

Family Friendly Vehicle

Retailers and dealers, take note! Global car buyers are searching for family friendly vehicles. More conventional factors such as mileage, color, and brand type are declining in searches, and lifestyle preferences are taking the lead when it comes to influencing factors in vehicle purchasing decisions for buyers.

Carmudi, the fastest way to sell or buy your car online, analyzed over seven million car searches on the company’s car classifieds website in the past month. The site offers car search options based on different lifestyle preferences, as well as more traditional search queries. They found that over 33% of potential car buyers in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East are searching for family cars, with 19.6% searching for off-road cars, 11% looking for luxury cars, and 9.6% looking for their first car ever on the site.

Interestingly, family size is rapidly decreasing globally, even in some countries that you might not expect, including Pakistan. In 2000, the average birth rate per woman was 3.12, and in a mere twelve years that number decreased to 2.21. As the Economist explains, “When people got richer, families got smaller; and as families got smaller, people got richer.” As people get richer, data shows they look for family-friendly vehicles.

Bangladesh 2000: 3.12 2012: 2.21

Indonesia 2000: 2.48 2012: 2.34

Pakistan 2000: 4.47 2012: 3.26

Philippines 2000: 3.81 2012: 3.08

Myanmar 2000: 2.43 2012: 1.96

UAE 2000: 2.64 2012: 1.82

Mexico 2000: 2.66 2012: 1.82

Nigeria 2000: 6.10 2012: 6.0

Ghana 2000: 4.67 2012: 3.92

Ivory Coast 2000: 5.38 2012: 4.89

Cameroun 2000: 5.62 2012: 4.86

Senegal 2000: 5.56 2012: 4.98

In Africa, which has the highest birthrate of any region at 4.57 children per woman, 39% of car buyers in Africa searched for family cars. It comes as no surprise that the best-selling car on the continent is the Toyota Hilux, a SUV that seats up to six adults.

33% of consumers searching for cars in Asia, where the average family consists of 2.38 kids per family, are specifically looking for family vehicles. The best-selling car in the region is the economical Toyota Corolla. In the Middle East 30.79% search for family cars, but despite an average of 2.15 children per family, the top car is still the Toyota Land Cruiser, which could fit a family of four and have plenty of space.

Shopping for a family car is a big step, so while putting your dream of buying a sports car or a sexy convertible aside might leave you feeling blue, investing your money in the perfect family car will leave you feeling fulfilled. And who knows, maybe once the kids have grown up, you can trade in the family car for that reckless sports car you’ve always wanted.