Ford models top Britain's best-loved first cars of all time
Ford favourites are revealed as the most popular first cars of all time in a newly published league table by the UK's largest insurer, Aviva.
The Ford Escort and Fiesta top the list, with the iconic Anglia, famously seen flying through the air in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, taking third spot. The Anglia, a British classic, was also the most popular car for first-time owners in the 1960s.
Top 10 most popular first cars of all time
Make/model (of all time)
1. Ford Escort
2. Ford Fiesta
3. Ford Anglia
4. Vauxhall Corsa
5. Nissan Micra
6. Vauxhall Viva
7. Morris Minor
8. Volkswagen Golf
9. Renault Clio
10. Mini Cooper
However, Aviva research found that over the last 50 years there has been a fundamental change in who pays for that first car and at what age drivers buy it.
Today there is an increased reliance on parents to support the initial outlay and cost of running a first car. In the 1960s, eight in 10 (80%) first-time car owners funded the
purchase themselves. Fast forward to the 2010s and a third (33%) of first cars are now paid for by someone else, most likely by mum and dad or other family members.
Alongside the general increase in cost of living over the years, the case is similar when it comes to insuring first cars. Today, one in five (21%) first car owners now has their own insurance paid for by someone else, compared with just one in 20 (6%) in the 1960s.
Changing face of the typical first car owner
The typical first car owner has changed dramatically over the past 50 years:
In 2012, the average age of a first car owner is 25 compared to only 21 in the 1960s
A quarter (23%) of today's first car owners is living with a partner or married by the time they get a run-around of their own. This has risen sharply from just 9 per cent in the 1960s
First car owners are now more likely to be studying full time at college or university (37%), compared to the 1960s when four in five (84%) were working full time and only 13% were in education
First cars in the 2010s are more than three times as likely to be new (26%) than in the 1960s (8%) when 92% of first cars were second-hand
Commenting on the research, Heather Smith, director of marketing at Aviva said: "Owning a first car is a fantastic milestone of independence and whether it's a much-loved treasure or a shiny new set of wheels it provides an important rite of passage for any driver.
"Over the past five decades, we have seen a fundamental shift in the typical first car owner. However, despite these changes the nation's love for affordable classics, from Corsas to Golfs, Ford has stayed at the forefront in the history of the first car and feature as firm favourites across Britain's driveways."
Parents could save up to 1/3 off with Aviva MultiCar insurance when adding their child's car to their policy, even for a student living away during term time. Visit aviva.co.uk/multicar-insurance/ for more information.