German manufacturers dominate the Swiss market

Delivery difficulties also caused new car sales to stall last year. For this reason, many car buyers may have purchased their dream car online as a used car. The online comparison service Comparis, Switzerland’s largest online car market, took a closer look at the most sought-after car brands in 2022. Mercedes was the most searched name with a 13.1 percent share of search queries. BMW and VW are also on the podium with 12.2 percent and 10.7 percent, respectively. This is followed by Audi (9.5%), Porsche (5.5%), Toyota (3.8%) and Ford (3.1%). Škoda (2.9%), Volvo (2.6%) and Renault (2.1%) are among the top ten most sought-after automobile brands.

BMW above, VW and Volvo fail

“The ranking has not changed compared to the previous year. “German manufacturers continue to dominate the list of finds in online car searches,” says Comparis mobility expert Andrea Auer. But there are significant differences when compared to new car sales. “An example is Tesla: The manufacturer was one of the ten best-selling brands for new cars in 2022. However, the manufacturer is not yet in great demand in the online market on the Internet. » This is probably also due to the fact that Tesla offer in the used market is still quite low, Auer says. Two-thirds of all search queries in 2022 went to the top ten brands, and more than one-third of the top three brands.

In a five-year comparison, the following picture emerges: VW and Volvo are the biggest losers. The manufacturers each lost two places and are currently in 3rd and 9th places, but the biggest winner is BMW. Between 2018 and 2022, the manufacturer moved up two places in the rankings and currently ranks second.

Regional differences

If you are looking for a vehicle in Comparis, you can expand the search to the whole of Switzerland or limit it to one canton. In the search for specific vehicles for individual cantons, regional characteristics become evident. In the mountain canton of Graubünden, for example, Seat and Hyundai entered the top ten. New Fiat in Valais. Suzuki, on the other hand, remained in the top ten of both cantons in 2021, but failed to qualify.

“Now, after Subaru in 2019 and 2020, another brand known for its 4×4 rides has disappeared from the top ten of the two mountain cantons,” Auer says. “Today, more and more suppliers have all-wheel drive cars.” Subaru and Suzuki could compete at that level today. The preferences of those looking for vehicles in southern Switzerland are completely different: here the Mini, Fiat and Jeep brands are among the ten most sought-after automobile brands. Fiat, which has been in fifth place since the start of the Compparis analysis, is now in seventh place, losing two places compared to 2021.

French brands are disappearing

Land Rover, Peugeot and Fiat brands are among the 10 most sought-after automobile brands in French-speaking Switzerland, where the cantons of Geneva, Jura, Neuchâtel and Vaud are located. “In the 2018 rankings, many French brands are still on the search list of French-speaking Switzerland, while Citroën and Renault have generally disappeared from the rankings in 2022,” analyzes Auer.

Source: Blick