PakWheels.com has conducted its second survey in 2014 to get an in-depth market research on the automobile industry in Pakistan. Chief Executive Officer of PakWheels.com, Muhammad Raza Saeed disclosed this while talking to Business Recorder here on Friday.
According to survey about 55 percent people bought second hand cars, while 32 percent bought brand new cars. The survey further discloses that 65 percent people bought cars on full cash payment and 24 percent people bought through car financing or a bank loan. PakWheels.com has been conducting automobile industry surveys during recent years and is a pioneer in respondents. The survey covered all aspects of the industry, mainstream and otherwise, Raza Saeed said.
The data that we have gathered covers the public's spending habits, driving habits, expectations, requirements and routine practices in terms of the automobile sector in Pakistan. Products associated with the automobile sector were also included in the survey including motor oils, insurance, companies, tracking companies and radio channels, he added.
Raza Saeed said the first part of the survey asked the users to rate the cars that they own or use the most. These ratings, which also lead to the crowning of awards, were purely based o these users' experiences. The second part of the survey included users' perceptions, regardless of what brands they used or owned. This gave us insights into how people view different brands available in Pakistan and what they think of those brands, he added.
As many as 25 million ie 40 percent of the total internet population visited the website while 10,436 respondents took part in the online survey. Province wise break up shows that 22.94 percent from Sindh, 49.37 percent from Punjab, 8.37 percent from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 1.11 percent from Balochistan and 16.62 percent respondents participated from Islamabad, he mentioned.
Raza Saeed said that the participants were asked to rate the importance of the following 11 aspects when buying a car. Contrary to a popular belief, resale scored less than safety and fuel efficiency. Besides, the participants termed Toyota as number one popular brand followed by Honda, and Suzuki. In unique category, Honda was termed as number one followed by Toyota and Suzuki while in high quality brand category; Honda topped the list followed by Toyota and Mitsubishi.
As many as 75 percent do not have insurance, while 78 percent do not have a tracker in their vehicles. According to the survey, 82 percent respondents do not prefer motor oil from their 3S dealers. The website is the largest community based automobile site in Pakistan, with more than 300,000 plus registered car and motorcycle enthusiasts. Around 18 million pages are viewed on the site every month, searching classifieds, researching about brand new cars and motorcycles, discussing auto-related issues with other members, sharing information, pictures and videos.
Pakwheels, through this survey has derived valuable information for the stakeholders of this industry and consumers alike. With over 10,000 respondents across the country, it covered people from all walks of life. The data was gathered from people belonging to all ages, income levels, and industry sectors. It even had responses from people who don't own cars. This was to get a good idea of the market from a third person's perspective.
The survey gave new insights into what people want from the automobile sector and how companies can improve their products and marketing campaigns in the country. Some of the major highlights of the Pakwheels survey showcased the best brand in the country, 86.13 percent respondents claim that Toyota is the number one brand, Honda was second with 83.38 percent and Suzuki stood third with 69.12 percent.
In case of vehicle features, compatibility and uniqueness; Honda top the claim of 80 percent respondents compared with other brands, Toyota was perceived second with 60 percent respondents claiming for its unique features; Suzuki was at third place with 30 percent respondent of the share.