Former V8 supercar driver, and TV & radio personality, Grant Denyer, has an admission to make – and that is that cars come before TV.
“I only ever got into TV as a means to fund my racing,” admits Denyer, the new ambassador for Gumtree Cars.
“Cars come first for me, and as a Gumtree user, I look forward to helping Aussies gain a better understanding of Gumtree Cars. My car was $7,000, paid for with $5,000 from a bank and $2,000 from my parents.
“I am crazy about cars, and with Gumtree’s breadth, there’s nowhere that does cars like Gumtree Cars. I bring my passion and experience to the table, and a desire to help Aussies get up to speed on the autos market.”
Interestingly, the most common way drivers get their first car is by saving up and buying it themselves (40%). Just 13% went down the same route as Denyer and took out a bank loan or used car finance.
There are more than 150,000 new and used cars listings on the site, with 6,000 new cars listed each day. On average 150,000 Australians visit Gumtree Cars every day.
Commenting on the partnership, Martin Herbst, General Manager for Gumtree Australia, said:
“With a true passion for cars, and motor-racing in particular, Grant Denyer brings a wealth of knowledge around all things autos-related,” said Martin Herbst, General Manager for Gumtree Australia. “He’s also a dedicated Gummie and is always on the lookout for his next deal.”
To kick start the ongoing partnership with Denyer, Gumtree Cars has released the first instalment of its Gumtree Cars Index – unveiling new research conducted by YouGov Galaxy into the nation’s first cars.
The nation’s first car pick
The Toyota Corolla has been crowned Australia’s top pick for first car, which also served as Denyer’s first purchase – showing that Grant is on trend when it comes to the Aussie public’s car preferences.
“Turns out, I completely fell in love with my Corolla,” adds Denyer. “It was the perfect first car. I bought it when I was starting my racing career and it was my best buddy. I towed this massive trailer that weighed a ton off of the back of it. I ended up having some great adventures in my Corolla. We travelled the country together!”
It’s certainly true that Aussies form some serious bonds with their first car, to the extent that two million Australians claim to name them (21% of women vs 11% of men). Top picks for a car name include, ‘Betsy’, ‘Bob’ and ‘The Beast’.
Denyer admits that he named his first car, Lola.
On Gumtree, users are mostly looking to buy a 4WD/SUV (42%), ute (19%), small sedan (17%) or medium Sedan (17%).
Second hand and dealers win the first car battle
A whopping 82% bought their first car second hand, and interestingly, more people buy their car from a dealer than anywhere else (41%), followed by private sellers (30%).
1600 dealers currently subscribed to Gumtree Cars, which provides transparent listings, driving leads straight to a dealership. Dealer logos, physical addresses and contact details appear on every ad, whilst call tracking is now available on all dealer subscriptions.
“When you’re buying your first car, you may not be a motor head like I was. I bought my first car privately and took my parents along, but for added peace of mind, many Aussies opt to buy a second-hand car from a dealer.”
Around a quarter (24%) of Gumtree users intend to purchase a car within the next 12 months and have an average budget of $21,000 – 13% of those users plan to buy a new car, 66% a used car and 22% are unsure.
Gumtree Cars
o Seven million people per month visit Gumtree website.
o On average, 250k Aussies visit Gumtree Automotive category each day
o On average, more than 150,000 listings on Gumtree Cars
o On average, more than 6,000 new listings each day on Gumtree Cars
https://www.gumtree.com.au/cars
The Carousel would like to thank Jem Webb for his article.
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