There are cars we see nearly every day on every corner of every street. They are what you call in popular terms best sellers. And unlike other countries, they are not bought because they are the cheapest, the safest, the best looking, the most powerful, or the most fuel-efficient. Here in Egypt, different factors determine car popularity.
Word of mouth a lot of weight in this country. People usually base their decisions on the advice of friends or relatives. However, people offer their advice without having tried the car; they can just repeat what they heard about it in the café down the street.
The Lancer for example is Mitsubishi s best seller in Egypt: it is spacious, fairly powerful, and to be honest, it’s not an ugly car either. But what people do not know about it is that it only got two stars in the EURO NCAP crash test, which means that it is less secure than the KIA Picanto – smaller in size and more than LE 20,000 cheaper.
The Lancer is selling because people say nice things about it. They think that because it is a sedan, it is naturally secure and because it has a spoiler it s got sporty genes.
Its direct competitor shares the same nationality: Japanese. The Toyota Corolla is technically better, safer and more fuel efficient. And thanks to the reputation Toyota got for its very good Corolla, its Hiace van, its epic Land Cruiser and Hi-Lux pickup, it now sells anything under its name.
Just like BMW, the tip of the top in Egyptian culture: You want a limo, buy the 7 series; an executive saloon, there s the 5 series; and if you cannot afford any of them, there s the smallest sedan, the 3 series. Its German origin allows it to sell any vehicle under its brand, even if it’s an off-roader that will never go off road like the X5 or the X3.
Hyundai on the other hand, is the best choice for tight budgets. Its cars offer value for money whether it is a low cost small sedan (like the Verna, the Viva or the Accent), a compact (the lovely Getz), or bigger saloons (Elantra and Sonata).
So in an nutshell: there are Lancers, Corollas, Vernas and BMWs on almost every Egyptian street. Add to them another hideous player: the late Daewoo Lanos, which was one of the cheapest cars before the Chinese came in and took over.
These Chinese cars that are invading Egyptian streets are mainly roomy sedans with technically basic engines and rock bottom prices. The fact that they are the size of a Mercedes at the price of a fuul sandwich made them irresistible.
Until the last rise in the price of gasoline, no one looked at fuel consumption when buying a car, but from now on, this will change, and consumers will feel the difference with not only an increase in gas prices, but also the increase of vehicle taxes for more powerful, gas-guzzling models. The demand on natural gas powered cars will increase, while the sale of bigger, stronger and but less fuel-efficient models will witness a severe decrease.
Although this was an overview of the most bought cars in Egypt today, this does not reflect the most beloved ones, which are no longer available in showrooms today: the Peugeot 504, the Fiat/Nasr 128 and the old Mercedes Benz.
And for proof, taxi drivers cherish them and would never exchange them for anything else; the cars have proved to be enduring and cheap to repair.
