Many car owners in Abuja, the nation’s capital, are selling off or abandoning their big cars in preference to compact ones, investigations by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) have revealed.
They are snapping up small cars not only because they are cheaper to own, but also typically more fuel-efficient.
Some vehicle dealers who spoke to NAN confirmed that small car sales are outpacing the rest of the market, since the fuel subsidy removal.
Mr Sankay Yagbaza, the manager of a car stand in Dawaki, said his frequenters now asked for cars like Kia Picanto, Forte, Suzuki Swift, Grand Vitara, Toyota Matrix, Nissan Micra and other low fuel consumption cars.
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“The high fuel price has humbled buyers; a lot of people even prefer to join public transport these days, rather than drive their own cars.
“Before now, cars like Picanto and Matrix were mostly bought by women or beginners. People buy them to master the act of driving before buying bigger cars.
“But, men are buying them now, because they just need a small car that will not consume much fuel to move them around.’’
John Eze, a car stand manager at Airport Road, said his patrons have been asking for more small cars, adding that he had exhausted the compact cars available in his stand.
“It is the desire of most Nigerians now, to own cars that have low fuel consumption, such as Honda Civic and the small Toyota Corolla.
Another car dealer in Garki, Usman Sombo, said he had lost so much patronage because he did not have compact cars in stock.
“I used to sell between eight and 10 cars in a month, but since the fuel subsidy removal, the sale has dropped to two or three cars in a month.
“As you can see around, I deal more with big cars. Because of low patronage, it has been difficult for me to raise funds to stock compact cars which are now in vogue.
“Most of the customers we receive in our stand are asking for compact cars because of their fuel efficiency.
“They also consider the cost of the compact cars, which ranges between N4 million to N6 million, depending on the make and grade,” the ‘tokunbo’ car dealer said.
A civil servant, Lawrence Ogunleye, who spoke to NAN at the Federal Secretariat car park, explained why he opted for a small car.
“Before owning this Kia Picanto, I drove a Toyota Venza, which I have now packed and reserved for long journeys.
”I come to the office and move around with this small car now, and it has saved me a lot of money on fuel.
“Although I feel less safe in the small car while driving on the highway, compared to the Venza, it has its own advantages.
“Besides the less fuel mileage, it is easier to move around narrow streets, easy to park and cheaper to own.
“The car is more manoeuvrable, better handled and it is a lot more fun to drive,” he said.
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