More women under 35 are financing vehicle purchases, while Volkswagen has been the number one brand choice over the past ten years for buyers under 35.

These highlights are based on an analysis by Lightstone, a provider of comprehensive data, analytics, and systems on property, automotive, and business assets, of data from 2015 to 2025 examining the buying preferences of South Africans under 35 who financed both new and used vehicles.

The graph below shows the growing trend towards more women financing vehicles. In 2015 65% of all financed vehicle purchases by u35s were by men, but to date in 2025 the share has fallen to 60%, with women accounting for 40% of these sales.

Under 35s financing vehicle purchases - by gender



While financing trends have fluctuated over the last ten years, Volkswagen’s position as the number one choice has been a constant, although 14 different brands have held a position amongst the Top 10 brands.

Top 10 brands for buyers under 35



Ford was number two in 2015, but swapped positions with Toyota in 2020, and has subsequently been overtaken by the increasingly popular Suzuki, which only entered the Top 10 in 2020.

Nissan has moved between positions four and seven, and is currently at number 5, while both Haval and Chery find themselves inside the Top 10. There is still a demand for premium brands amongst the younger consumers as both Audi and BMW have retained spots inside the Top 10 over the last decade, although they have slipped slightly from where they were in 2015.

Since 2015 there has been a gradual increase in the average price point at which younger buyers were prepared to finance a vehicle purchase. Whereas in 2015 a buyer under 35 was prepared to finance a vehicle purchase at an average of just under R200 000, in 2025 this has jumped to R321 500.

Interestingly, if the price were to be inflated by headline CPI, using 2015 as a base year, the average price point at which the u35s are financing their vehicle purchases would be consistently higher than the inflation-adjusted price. This gap grew close to R30 000 in 2021 and 2022, but by 2025 it has reduced to a little over R5 000 thus far in 2025.

Under 35s vehicle purchases - average price financed