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Red is the colour of love! It’s also a popular car colour. Given the fact that Valentine’s Day is on our doorstep, AutoTrader has released a list of the most-sold and most-searched-for used red cars in South Africa.
According to George Mienie, AutoTrader CEO, red cars sell well all over the world. “It is the fifth most popular car colour in South Africa, and the sixth most popular colour on a global basis,” he reveals.
Wheels24's Janine Van der Post says: "White is the most popular car colour not only in South Africa, but all over the world. It's an easy colour to maintain and usually hides dings and dents quite easily, hence it's such a loved shade when it comes to any vehicle.
"Red is one of the other popular choices, and it certainly does look good on sportier models, or even smaller city cars. It's no surprise that Volkswagen tallies in the most cars in this hue."
Image: Wheels24 / Rouel van Nelson
So, which used red car is the most popular in South Africa? According to AutoTrader statistics for the full 2019 calendar year, the most sold red vehicle in the country is the Volkswagen Polo.
"This does not come as a surprise," comments Mienie. "It was also the most sold used car (irrespective of car colour) in the country in 2019.”
The average registration year for red Polos is 2015, these cars achieve an average selling price of R214 126 and the average mileage is 65 054km.
The Polo’s sibling, the Polo Vivo, is the second most sold red used car in South Africa. "It was the third most sold used car in South Africa last year (irrespective of car colour),” reveals Mienie.
The average registration year for red Polo Vivos is also 2015; these cars achieve an average selling price of R169 761 and the average mileage drops to a mere 41 620km.
Yet another hatch from Volkswagen rounds off the top three when it comes to most sold red cars. "The Golf – the eighth-most sold car in South Africa last year – clocks in third in the red cars ranking,” says Mienie.
Image: Volkswagen
The average registration year for red Golfs is 2011; these cars achieve an average selling price of R293 868 and the average mileage is 90 393 km.
Mienie notes that it is interesting to see a slight difference when it comes to the most searched for red cars in 2019. “The Golf and Polo clock in first and second, but the Polo Vivo is displaced from the top three by the BMW 3 Series,” he reveals. The BMW was the fourth most sold red car in South Africa in 2019.
Finally, Mienie comments that it’s interesting to see that the Ford Ranger – the second most sold used vehicle in South Africa in 2019 – is completely missing from the list of the top 20 most sold used red vehicles in South Africa last year. "The Ranger is extremely popular, and it is available in red – but that’s clearly not the colour of choice for bakkie owners,” he concludes.
