Hondas and Toyotas continue to predominate

Antoine of MazdaForums asked me which five models have been most researched recently. Turns out I hadn’t updated the Most Popular Car Price Comparisons list in a while. Since last July, in fact.

Since it has been eight months, there must be quite a few changes, right? Well, not exactly. Hondas continue to dominate, followed by–despite the current crisis–Toyotas. Both eight months ago and now the top five comparisons are all between a Honda and a Toyota. Only the order has changed a little.

Through the rest of the list, Honda’s dominance has slipped only a bit. Last July, 23 of the top 40 comparisons–including 12 of the top 15–included at least one Honda product. This time around, “only” 21 of the top 40 and 11 of the top 15.

Toyota is currently immersed in an unintended acceleration crisis. So surely fewer people are considering its cars? Last July, 17 of the top 40 comparisons included a Toyota. This time around, only 13. So there has been a decline, but not a precipitous one. No one save Honda comes close.

When I first started this list, there wasn’t a domestic car on it. This time there are seven: the Ford Fusion, Mustang, Escape, and Fiesta and the Chevrolet Malibu, Camaro, and Equinox. On the other hand, in only two comparisons (Fiesta-Fit and Fusion-Camry) is a domestic compared to a foreign brand.

So what brands are being researched more? Surprisingly, not Hyundai–it’s in only one comparison this time around. Following Honda and Toyota we now have:

BMW: 6

VW / Audi: 6

Ford: 5

Subaru: 5

Mazda: 4

All others: 3 or fewer

This site attracts people who like to heavily research their car purchases. And, for whatever reason, such people tend to focus their research on Hondas and Toyotas.