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Thinking About Giving a Car As a Gift This Holiday Season? What To Know and Where Tesla Ranks as a Gift

If you are thinking about giving someone a car as a gift this holiday season, there are some important things you need to know, including how many people want a Tesla as a gift.
Thinking About Giving a Car As a Gift This Holiday Season? Here's How Many People Want a Tesla As a Gift

A Car as a Gift For the Holidays

During the holidays, people take time to (hopefully) decompress and enjoy time with their loved ones. One thing on many people's minds is gift giving. If you've thought about giving a car as a gift to someone, then you've come to the right place and here's everything you need to know, including how many people want a Tesla.

Extreme Terrain surveyed over 1,000 Americans to get an idea of how people think about giving a car as a gift. In this survey, there were quite a number of takeaways - here were the main ones that caught my eye:

  • Almost half of Americans want a car as a gift, with most wanting a Toyota
  • Half of the people wanting a car as a gift want an EV
  • Americans who want to buy a car as a gift this year view Toyota as the top pick
  • About 1/3 of those in relationships would trust their partner to buy them a car
  • About 1/3 of people have bought a car this holiday season, with 10% experiencing buyer's remorse

How People Feel About Gifting Cars

The most common people to give a car as a gift are:

  • Parents at 53%
  • Significant others in relationships at 22%
  • Grandparents at 11%
  • Others (friends, relatives, etc.) at 14%

That means parents or grandparents make up 64% of those wanting to give a car as a gift. I think in order for a parent to give a car as a gift, they either need to be getting rid of an old car, or buying a new or used car they can afford without "breaking the bank".

In addition to this, 36% of those surveyed want to gift a car to someone special and 44% want to receive a car as a gift.

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Most Desired Cars as Gifts

The top list of most desired cars is below, and I was a bit discouraged to see that Tesla was only 3rd at 28%. Here they are:

  • Toyota: 42%
  • Honda: 30%
  • Tesla: 28%
  • Mercedes-Benz: 28%
  • BMW: 26%
  • Lexus: 25%
  • Chevrolet: 20%
  • Audi: 20%
  • Ford: 19%
  • Porsche: 17%

The reason the percentages are over 100% combined here is because I think people mentioned multiple car brands they would like. Also, 39% of respondents prefer the gift of an SUV. The Model Y would make the perfect EV gift in this case.

Gifting a Used Tesla

I think many people underestimate the value of a used Tesla. You can get a used Model 3 with a tax credit in the $25,000 range. A used Model Y with FSD is about $45,000 or less, depending on the year. This is something to keep in mind when gifting a car to someone who wants an EV - there are affordable options if you look on Tesla's website, or anywhere a car marketplace exists.

Trusting a Significant Other To Gift a Car

For those in the 1,000 person survey, 43% said they would somewhat prefer to be involved in their car gift, meaning they would want to have a say in how it goes down, but not too much say.

33% said they would completely trust their partner's choice.

24% said they would prefer just to buy the car themselves.

This shows about 75% of people very open to the idea of getting a car as a gift from their significant other.

However, 42% of respondents worry about the financial impact of their partner surprising them with a car. This can be somewhat circumnavigated by buying a used car like a Tesla, which is much less than a new car.

The Key Takeaways For Gifting a Car to Another Person

When thinking about gifting a car, keep in mind that only 5% of Americans actually received a car as a holiday gift, even though the desire remains strong.

36% of Americans want to gift someone a car and 44% want one as a gift.

Parents are the most common gift givers of cars at 57%.

Toyota and Honda were the top on America's wish lists at 42% and 30%, probably because they are often the most affordable and reliable cars known to consumers.

A Tesla is at 28% of the wish list. I love Tesla vehicles, but I think people still worry about range and cost with them.

50% of people want an EV as a gift, showing EV adoption is increasing.

43% want to be involved in receiving a car as a gift with input, while 33% trust their partner completely and 27% would rather just buy the car on their own.

42% worry about the financial impact of their partner surprising them with a car.

My Conclusion

I think my conclusion on this is that in order for most people to gift a car to someone, they have to feel comfortable with the financial obligation. With interest rates so high right now, unless that person can buy the car outright with cash, I think it will be out of reach of most people as shown by the 5% of people actually giving a car as a gift.

I am not surprised to see Honda and Toyota as desired gifts. They are reliable cars. I had a Honda Fit for 12 years with no problems, and it had good gas mileage. I bought it in 2008 for $17,500.

Many people want to gift a car or receive a car as a gift, but the prices are just too high for most cars at the moment. This is why I recommend people look into reliable used vehicles, like a Tesla Model 3 or Model Y.

In Other Tesla News: Charging a Tesla at a Luxury Mercedes-Benz Charging Station

What do you think about gifting a car to someone for the holidays? Is this something you have already done or would consider doing?

Share this article with friends and family and on social media! Thank you so much for your support!

Hi! I'm Jeremy Noel Johnson, and I am a Tesla investor and supporter and own a 2022 Model 3 RWD EV and I don't have range anxiety :). I enjoy bringing you breaking Tesla news as well as anything about Tesla or other EV companies I can find, like Aptera. Other interests of mine are AI, Tesla Energy and the Tesla Bot! You can follow me on X.COM or LinkedIn to stay in touch and follow my Tesla and EV news coverage.

Image Credit, Tesla, Screenshot

Article Reference: Extreme Terrain

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