The 2023 ranking of car brands among Russian buyers highlighted Lada, Kia, and Toyota as the most popular makes, according to RIA Novosti citing SberAuto data. Within models, Lada Granta, Hyundai Solaris, and Kia Rio led demand across the country.
In Moscow, the favorite models skewed toward Skoda Octavia, with St. Petersburg showing strong interest in the Ford Focus. Across multiple major cities—Yekaterinburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Chelyabinsk, Samara, and Perm—the Lada brand topped local preference lists.
Earlier market developments showed the Russian auto market expanding significantly, with a 120.5 percent rise in sales in September 2023 versus the same month a year earlier and a 42.8 percent increase over the first nine months of 2023. For January through September, Lada led sales by volume with roughly 242.6 thousand units, followed by Chery (86.9 thousand), Haval (73.6), Geely (57.6), GAZ (37.6), Omoda (31), Exeed (29), UAZ (24.9), Changan (11.3), and Kia (9.4).
Export-oriented data at the same time showed notable growth in financing for new car purchases, with auto loans for new vehicles doubling in unit terms and rising 2.6 times in ruble value compared with the prior year. Used-car loans also climbed, increasing by 31 percent in volume and 66 percent in ruble terms.
Inquiries about the market also asked how many Chinese automobile brands operate in Russia, reflecting ongoing interest in import dynamics and brand distribution within the country.