Compact vans and heavyweight SUVs among the UK's most in-demand rare cars

• Quirky Piaggio Porter and Daihatsu Hijet microvans among UK's most-searched rare cars
• Desirability Score from CarGurus highlights the rarest cars of 2020 that have high demand but low inventory numbers
• American heavyweight Hummer H3 and Mercedes-Benz G-Wagen highly sought after
• "Bored browsing" during lockdown likely to have influenced bizarre list

If asked to picture the most desirable rare(1) cars in Britain it might be exotic Ferraris and classic Jaguars that most readily come to mind. The reality is somewhat different, however, according to the latest CarGurus Desirability Index(2).

In fact, the list of the 15 most in-demand rare cars is made up of heavyweight off-road vehicles, sumptuous saloons, classic coupes and - perhaps most surprising of all - a pair of microvans.

The rare Piaggio Porter, a microvan made by the legendary scooter brand, may be hard to find, but not hard to love according to the CarGurus research. The tiny Italian van, which weighs less than your average city car, recorded over 2,300 searches per available model on sale in 2020.

Despite a more niche following among microvan fans, more than 1,700 searched for every listing for the Japanese-made Daihatsu Hijet.

Among the most unusual SUVs available in the UK, the big, bold and - often - bright yellow Hummer H3 recorded over 5,000 searches for every model on sale, ranking it as among the most sought-after rare cars.

Based on the military Humvee, Hummers have long been a cultural icon in the U.S thanks in part to their colourful palette and colossal size. The H3 - its smallest model - still weighing over 2 and a half times more than the Piaggio Porter.

Several other larger than life SUVs made the list, including the Mercedes-Benz G-Wagen - the German manufacturer's off-road monster - and British models such as the Land Rover Series III and 90, with Desirability Scores of 1,731 and 1,495 and 1,477 respectively.

The rare Bentley Eight, only a handful of which appear on sale every year, ranked top of the Desirability Score with more than 10,000 searches per available model, while cult classics including the BMW M3, Ford Sierra and Ford Capri all made the top ten with thousands of searches apiece.

CarGurus, the fastest growing automotive shopping site in the UK(3), analysed the number of shoppers searching for each model for sale on CarGurus.co.uk since January 2020 to create its 'Desirability Score', and identified rare cars as models with under 100 listings.

Most in-demand rare used cars

Vehicle / CarGurus Desirability Score(2)

1. Bentley Eight / 10,485
2. Hummer H3 / 5,241
3. BMW M3 / 4259.75
4. Volkswagen Phaeton / 3134
5. Ford Sierra / 2527
6. Toyota Supra / 2399
7. Piaggio Porter / 2320
8. Ford Capri / 2279
9. Audi RS6 / 2003
10. Mercedes-Benz G Wagen / 1731
11. Daihatsu Hijet / 1713
12. Mercedes-Benz 300 / 1711
13. Rolls-Royce Silver Spirit / 1555
14. Land Rover Series III / 1495
15. Land Rover 90 / 1477

Chris Knapman, Editor at CarGurus, said: "While a lot of our studies inevitably focus on the biggest-selling cars, in the CarGurus Desirability Index we like to turn things on their head. By restricting our data set to cars with fewer than 100 examples for sale, we are able to see the more obscure models that still capture plenty of attention from shoppers.

"This year's list is as eclectic as ever, with everything from the towering Hummer H3 to the tiny Piaggio Porter making the cut among the perhaps more expected Bentleys and BMWs."

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(1)Rare cars were determined to be models with under 100 individual listings on CarGurus between January and August 2020.

(2)The CarGurus Desirability Score has been calculated as the ratio of unique user searches to inventory listed on CarGurus.

(3)CarGurus is the fastest growing online automotive marketplace in the UK among its nearest competitors based on the percent change in average unique monthly visitors from Q2 2019 to Q2 2020 (Source: Comscore MMX Multi-Platform®, Total Audience, Custom-defined list includes CarGurus.CO.UK, Motors.CO.UK, AutorTrader.CO.UK, Gumtree.com, Q2 2019 - Q2 2020, UK)

For further information, please contact:
James Drake at CarGurus – UKPR@CarGurus.com / 0208 541 3434 / +44 07809 657178

How CarGurus Works:
CarGurus helps car shoppers search local car listings and quickly find great deals from top rated dealers. Every day, the company analyses millions of data points on hundreds of thousands of UK car listings to calculate each car's Instant Market Value (IMV) or fair retail price. This data is used in combination with dealership ratings from other shoppers to rank and rate available cars results based on the quality of the deal: Great, Good, Fair, High or Overpriced. The site also provides transparency on how long the car has been on the forecourt and if it's had a price drop. Consumers can contact dealers directly.

About CarGurus:
Founded in 2006 by Langley Steinert (also a co-founder of TripAdvisor), CarGurus (Nasdaq: CARG) is a global, online automotive marketplace connecting buyers and sellers of cars. The company uses proprietary technology, search algorithms and data analytics to bring trust and transparency to the automotive search experience and help users find great deals from top rated dealers. CarGurus is the most visited automotive shopping site in the U.S. (source: Comscore Media Metrix® Multi-Platform, Automotive - Information/Resources, Total Audience, Q2 2020, U.S. (Competitive set: CarGurus.com, Autotrader.com, Cars.com, TrueCar.com)). CarGurus launched in the UK in 2015 and is the fastest growing online automotive marketplace in the UK among its nearest competitors based on the percent change in average unique monthly visitors from Q2 2019 to Q2 2020 (Source: Comscore MMX Multi-Platform®, Total Audience, Custom-defined list includes CarGurus.CO.UK, Motors.CO.UK, AutorTrader.CO.UK, Gumtree.com, Q2 2019 - Q2 2020, UK). In 2019, CarGurus acquired UK-based PistonHeads.com, which it operates as an independent brand. In addition to the United Kingdom and the United States, CarGurus also operates an online marketplace in Canada.

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