cars.com Comparison Reveals Portland is Patriotic
2 May 2000
cars.com Comparison Reveals Portland is Patriotic When Choosing Cars CARS-COM INTERNET VENTURE CARS.COM INTERNET VENTURE Times Mirror, Tribune and Washington Post launch online venture with cars.com internet company. The cars.com website will offer consumers the most complete source of online information about new and used vehicles as well as the largest,most current inventory of vehicles for sale, both locally and nationally. (PRNewsFoto)[KI] CHICAGO, IL USA 04/15/2000 Side-by-Side City Comparison of Top Requests Showcases Regional Tastes
CHICAGO, May 2 Portlanders yearn for American cars,
according to statistics from cars.com, a leading automotive Web site.
Cars.com conducted a side-by-side comparison for Portland, New York and Los
Angeles based on its online vehicle requests during the first quarter of 2000.
The comparison uncovered interesting regional preferences. Portland's 10 most
frequently requested cars included five American makes. This compares to Los
Angeles' top 10, which included three domestic models, and New York's, which
included only two.
cars.com Most Requested Cars (a)
Portland Los Angeles New York
1. Ford Ranger 1. Honda Accord 1. Honda Accord
2. Volkswagen Passat 2. Toyota Camry 2. Nissan Maxima
3. Honda Odyssey 3. BMW 3-Series 3. Honda Odyssey
4. Ford Contour 4. Ford Explorer 4. Toyota Camry
5. Honda Accord 5. Nissan Xterra 5. Nissan Xterra
6. Toyota 4Runner 6. Honda Odyssey 6. Honda Civic
7. Volkswagen Jetta 7. Toyota 4Runner 7. Ford Super Duty F-250
8. Ford Focus 8. Ford Mustang 8. BMW 3-Series
9. Ford Explorer 9. Ford Expedition 9. Jeep Grand Cherokee
10. Chevrolet 250 10. Honda Civic 10. Nissan Altima
(a) Based on leads submitted to cars.com during Q1 2000.
(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000415/CARSLOGO )
The most requested vehicle in Portland was the Ford Ranger compact pickup
truck, and the 10th was the Chevrolet 2500 full-size pickup. In comparison,
pickups were not listed in Los Angeles' top 10 and the Ford Super Duty F-250
commercial pickup ranked only seventh in New York. While this would indicate
that utility is important to Portlanders, it seems driving with the wind in
one's hair is not. While none of Portland's top 10 are available as
convertibles, Los Angelenos favored the Mustang (No. 8) and shared a liking of
the BMW 3-series with New Yorkers. Both are available with a ragtop.
As a category, noticeably absent in Portland were luxury cars, while the
BMW 3-Series weighed in at No. 3 among Los Angeles cars.com shoppers and at
No. 8 among their New York counterparts.
In midsize cars, Portland cars.com shoppers seemed to snub the
best-selling Camry in favor of the youthful appeal of the Volkswagen Passat
and Ford Contour -- neither of which appear in either other city's top 10.
In the three-city comparison, only Los Angeles cars.com shoppers were
interested in a pure sports car, represented in their No. 8 choice, the Ford
Mustang.
A list of most requested cars nationally is available at cars.com by
clicking on the "Advice," "Best and Worst," then "User Favorites" icons.
About cars.com
Cars.com simplifies local new and used car shopping on the Internet. With
inventory in 26 of the top 30 U.S. markets, cars.com is the only automotive
Web site to provide daily updates of dealer inventories. Cars.com allows
consumers to search vehicle listings by zip code, vehicle make, model and year
and easily submit a quote request to a car dealer by e-mail, fax or telephone.
In addition to vehicle pricing, cars.com provides consumers with trusted
automotive information, including rich editorial content pertaining to
real-life issues such as how to purchase a vehicle and tips for parents of
young drivers. The site also provides consumers with tools such as an auto
loan calculator, news and reports on new and used vehicles, more than 3,500
independent vehicle reviews (from 1983 to the present), vehicle performance
data and vehicle recall information. Cars.com is a division of Classified
Ventures, which is based in Chicago.
About Classified Ventures
Classified Ventures, Inc. provides nationally branded online services in
the classified advertising market place that build upon the capabilities and
local expertise of its national affiliate network of more than 130 newspapers.
The company currently operates the national Web sites Apartments.com(TM),
http://www.apartments.com, Auctions.com(TM), http://www.auctions.com, cars.com(TM),
http://www.cars.com, Moving Center(TM), http://www.movingcenter.com and
NewHomeNetwork.com(TM), http://www.newhomenetwork.com. Classified Ventures, Inc.
also operates HomeHunter(TM), a local resale real estate service.
