New eye-tracking study reveals the most eye-catching cars of 2023
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A new study by UK's largest automotive marketplace Auto Trader has used unique eye-tracking technology to discover which cars are the most attractive to the human eye.
In the study, participants were asked to look at a series of 40 images of the world's best-selling car models whilst their eye movements were tracked, in order to discover which motors, capture our attention the quickest and which hold our gaze the longest.
These two-tracking metrics were combined to give each car model its own unique ‘eye-catching’ score.
The 20 Most Eye-Catching Cars in the World:
Luxury German car manufacturer Porsche landed itself in first place, with one of the brand’s most beloved models securing an impressive 91% ‘eye-catching’ score.
The luxury car held participants’ gazes for 2.51 seconds on average, with individuals also taking on average just two and a half seconds to find it on their screen.
Japanese brand Lexus came joint second place, with its super suave LC500, alongside Ferrari’s F40 - a powerhouse vehicle that once-upon-a-time was the only street-legal car that could supersede 200mph. Both of these beautiful supercars came out of the study with an eye-catching score of 88%.
Luxury cars dominate the top rankings, with 60% of the top ten vehicles being supercars, while electric cars featured just three times in the top 20 most eye-catching car rankings.
The MG4 EV design came out as the 20th most eye-catching car with a score of 64%, whilst the Tesla Model 3 ranked 6th.
However, the biggest win for EV design is the electric Porsche Taycan, which comes out in 4th place overall.
The Taycan held the research participants’ gazes the longest, with a gaze time of 5.63 seconds on average, a significantly longer average time than any other vehicle in the study.
When it comes to which auto captures our attention the quickest, the everyday bestseller Toyota Yaris tops the charts, with the study showing it took just 1.89 seconds for participants to fixate on the Yaris image on the screen.
Erin Baker, Editorial Director from Auto Trader comments says “While you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, it’s long been clear that how our car looks on the outside is just as important as what’s inside it.
“We know that a car’s design is a huge factor for people in their car-buying journey, and using eye-tracking technology is a fantastic and really exciting way to discover which current motor designs are really grabbing our attention.
“We are thrilled to see much-loved bestsellers like the BMW 3 Series and Volvo XC40 ranking alongside the luxury supercars in the study, and hats off to Porsche for designing the most eye-catching supercar and EV car!
This study is a great reminder of just how important a car’s exterior is to a potential buyer, so be sure to show off the car you're selling at its best - from getting the chassis polished and gleaming to taking flattering photographs for your listing.”
The results for which cars came out as most eye-catching for specific auto categories (supercar, electric and ‘everyday’) are below:
The Ten Most Eye-Catching Electric Cars:
Electric cars are some of the newest on the market, and their early designs were hotly discussed in the motoring world. EVs have since made huge leaps in their aesthetic appeal, with brands like Porsche and Tesla pushing the market to create ever-more attractive designs.
Auto Trader’s study reveals the Porsche Taycan as having as the most eye-catching design, with a score of 86%, followed by the Tesla Model 3 (84%) and the MG4 EV (64%). Other notable entries in the top 10 include the likes of South Korean brand Kia’s EV6, the MINI Electric and the Audi e-tron.
The Ten Most Eye-Catching Supercars
Luxury cars are truly in another league of their own, and these supercars really are some of the most beautiful in the world from a design perspective. According to Auto Trader’s study, the Porsche 911 is the supercar that takes the crown as being the most ‘eye-catching’.
It achieved the highest score out of all car categories (everyday, luxury and electric) with a score of 91%. Italian brands held gazes for the longest, with the Lamborghini Urus and Porsche 911 holding participants’ eyes in place for 2.40 and 2.51 seconds respectively, while the German Bugatti Veyron was the car that participants’ eyes flicked to the quickest.
The Ten Most Eye-Catching Bestselling Everyday Cars:
When it comes to everyday cars, even if their primary purpose is functional, the exterior design is still hugely important to drivers; some of us like to do the school run in something sporty-looking, and some of us enjoy doing the weekly shop in a dramatic-looking 4x4.
Auto Trader’s study shows that the BMW 3 Series is the most eye-catching ‘everyday’ car, earning a score of 84%, followed by the Volvo XC40 and the Volkswagen Golf.
Other notable models in this top 10 include the subcompact Mercedes-Benz A-Class (also scoring above 70%), the Land Rover Defender with a respectable 68% score and the iconic MINI Cooper getting an ‘eye-catching’ score of 61%.