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The 5 Best Vehicle Brands in Nigeria
Vehicle types and makes in Nigeria are as many as they come, types like Saloon car or Sedan, SUV, Van, Lorry and Trailer, makes like Audi, BMW, Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Infiniti, Jeep, Kia, Land Rover, Lexus, Mazda, Mercedes, Nissan, Peugeot, and Toyota.
We stood by the roadside for fifteen minutes and counted as many as 15 car brands, ranging from the latest Toyota to the oldest Peugeot. To get the fairest review facts and figures, we went from workshop to workshop to talk to the people that know best about vehicles and their performance, the mechanics. Then we interviewed the vehicles owners themselves and their drivers, then we asked anybody else that might know. Our main questions were: 1) What is the best car brand in Nigeria? 2) What is the reason for your first choice? 3) What is the second-best car brand in Nigeria? 4) What is the third best car brand in Nigeria? 5) What is the fourth best car brand in Nigeria? 6) What is the fifth best car brand in Nigeria? and below is the collective verdict:
Vehicle Brand No 1 – TOYOTA
Talk to a Nigerian mechanic about your vehicle breaking down frequently, the first thing he will tell you is: Oga, buy a Toyota and your problems will end. 100% of the Nigerian mechanics we interviewed told us that, and we believe them. Japanese Toyota has, over the years, proved to be the best car, in terms of number of vehicles on the road, performance, durability and, wait for it, second-hand value, not only in Nigeria but, indeed, all over the world.
When we stood by that roadside, from where we shifted to another road and to another and to another, Toyota made up 65% of all the vehicles that sped by. That figure might even be higher, and we have videos to prove it. Toyota brands in Nigeria are, Sedans: Avalon, Avensis, Camri, Corolla, Corona, Matrix and Yaris; SUVs: 4-Runner, FJ Cruiser, Fortuner, Highlander, Land Cruiser, Land Cruiser Prado, Rav 4, Sequoia, Sienna and Venza; Pick-Ups: Hilux, Tacoma and Tundra; Transporters: Coaster, Dyna and HiAce. No other vehicle make parades as many brands on Nigerian roads.
Vehicle Brand No 2 – HONDA:
The same mechanics who give Toyota the number one spot give Honda the number two, a verdict supported by interviewed Honda owners and drivers, not only because the brand also boasts Japanese technology but because, in many aspects, it outperforms all other cars they have worked on, minus the Toyota, although they point out one major complaint against this brand, especially the used type.
They say the Honda has a problem with the legs, specifically, with the suspension system, especially the shaft. Many a Honda vehicle has been seen paralysed on Nigerian roads with a broken suspension shaft and one tyre, mostly the front tyre, limp. Mechanics and drivers say if Honda can fix this problem, then it will be able to compete favourably with Toyota for the number one spot. Honda brands in Nigeria are, Sedans: Accord and Civic; SUVs: CR-V, Odyssey, Pilot; Pick-Ups: Ridgeline.
Vehicle Brand No 3 – MERCEDES:
The Mercedes brand is older than Toyota in Nigeria, but there are fewer of it on Nigerian roads now, most probably, we suspect, because of the high price it comes with. German technology is good and reliable, and Nigerians trust and love it. Mercedes Benz, with the Peugeot, used to be the most numerous on Nigerian roads, when Petro-Naira was plenty, was very strong, stronger than the USDollar and was an international legal tender, but not anymore, because since the devaluation of the Nigerian currency, from 300% in 1986 to 4,700% today, Nigerians have been so impoverished and traumatized by hyperinflation that they have given up complaining and protesting and just hope in God for daily survival and any improvement.
In 1986, a brand-new Mercedes Benz car was less than five thousand Naira (which was equally less than five thousand dollars), but in 2021, the cheapest brand-new Mercedes Benz car in Nigeria, say, a C300, is not less than US 55,000 dollars, which, at the official exchange rate, is 22,000,000 Naira. So, with a 30,000 Naira minimum wage, most Nigerians cannot afford three balanced meals a day, not to talk of buying a brand-new Mercedes Benz. Same thing goes for all vehicle types in Nigeria today. Currency devaluation converted Nigeria from a country of world respected shoppers of brand-new products to a country of used products. Thus, 99% of vehicles on Nigerian roads today are imported used ones.
Currency devaluation made the ubiquitous Mercedes Benz, and most luxuries, disappear from Nigeria, and only the super-rich can afford them now, otherwise, this brand used to be the number one, in respect of performance, reliability and second-hand value, before Toyota took over.
Mercedes brands in Nigeria are, Sedans: Almost none of the A-Class; almost none of the B-Class; All members of the C-Class, most members of the E-Class; almost none of all the other Classes and very few of the S-Class; SUVs: Very few of the GLA, GLC, GLE, GLS Classes. Lorries: There used to be a lot of Mercedes lorries in Nigeria, the most common being the Mercedes 911 which, at a time, disappeared, but later resurfaced. Now, most of the lorries imported into the country are of the L Series, the 911, the AXOR range and others like the 814, 815 and 1117 brands, 99% of which are used.
Vehicle Brand No 4 – NISSAN:
The Nissan brand, together with Toyota, Honda and Mazda, used to be the best Japanese names known in Nigeria. Nissan vehicles used to be very many and likeable in Nigeria, but their numbers diminished gradually over the years and now most Nissans found on Nigerian roads are old school sedans used as taxis and a few of the used new school types. Mechanics and drivers do not attribute many problems to it, so it is somewhat surprising that it is not fairing as well as it used to, although it still comes at number four in our list.
Nissan brands in Nigeria are, Sedans: Sentra, Altima and Maxima; SUVs: Murano, Pathfinder and Armada; Pick-Ups: Frontier and Titan.
Vehicle Brand No 5 – PEUGEOT:
Many vehicle brands qualify for the number five slot in this list because there are equal numbers of them on the road, and they are equals in performance, durability and second-hand value, but our pick is the Peugeot.
Assembled in Kaduna, Nigeria by Peugeot Automobile of Nigeria (PAN), Peugeot, which used to be number one, dwindled in number over the years after the beginning of our harrowing currency devaluation. Nigeria enjoyed and fondly remembers Peugeot sedans and hatchbacks 403, 404, 504, 505, 604 and the transporter J5 for their ruggedness and second-hand value, even as their door lock system was a constant disappointment. They all disappeared in the early nineties, then the 406 was born, which is the only old school Peugeot sedan still on the Nigerian road today, even though in very small numbers and together with Peugeot 207 and 307, which briefly appeared and disappeared between 2003 and 2010.
Even though it is ‘Made in Nigeria’, the number of Peugeot vehicles on Nigerian roads is surprisingly few, and that is because the price of the finished product is as expensive as the imported one. Revitalised PAN is currently promoting new kids on the block, Sedans like Peugeot 301 and 508, SUVs like the beautiful All-New Peugeot 3008 (which sells for 23,278,050 Naira, same price level with imported SUVs) and Partner Tepee, the All-New Peugeot Pickup and the Transporter called Higer Bus and Higer Ambulance.
And we have the video to prove what we write. Click and have a look:
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