Cilj istraživanja koje se provelo u kontekstu diplomskog rada bio je proširiti dosadašnja teorijska saznanja i spoznaje o automobilskom tržištu u svijetu, Europi i Hrvatskoj i utvrditi utjecaj ekonomskih, demografskih i socioloških prilika na potražnju za automobilima. Imajući u vidu teorijski okvir izložene problematike zajedno s postavljenim hipotezama, istraživanje je provedeno na uzorku od 95 ispitanika u 2018. godini.
Rezultati istraživanja pokazuju da postoji povezanost između visine osobnog dohotka i maksimalnog iznosa koji bi ispitanici bili spremni izdvojiti za automobil te da ispitanici s većim dohotkom preferiraju skuplje automobile. Također se zaključilo da mlađa populacija nije sklonija kupnji rabljenih automobila, već preferira nove automobile iz salona. Nadalje, uočeno je da je prosječna ocjena važnosti estetskih preferencija u muškoj i ženskoj grupi ispitanika bila jednaka. Najveći prosječan rang važnosti estetskih preferencija dali su ispitanici u dobi od 36 do 45 godina dok su najmanji prosječan rang dali ispitanici od 66 i više. Zaključeno je i da je ženska populacija sklonija kupnji automobila s manjom prosječnom potrošnjom goriva. Konačno, dokazalo se da ispitanici koji pripadaju starijoj populaciji ne preferiraju automobile čiji su rezervni dijelovi jeftiniji.The aim of the research that was carried out in the context of the graduate thesis was to extend theoretical knowledge and knowledge about the automotive market in the world, Europe and Croatia and to determine the impact of economic, demographic and sociological opportunities on car demand. Taking into account the theoretical framework of the problem, together with the hypotheses set, the survey was conducted on a sample of 95 respondents in 2018. The research results show that there is a correlation between the level of personal income and the maximum amount that the respondents would be willing to allocate for the car, and that the respondents with higher incomes prefer more expensive automobiles. It also concluded that the younger population is less prone to buying used cars, but rather prefers new cars from the salon. Furthermore, it was noted that the average grade of aesthetic preferences in the male and female group of respondents was the same. The highest average rank of aesthetic preferences was given by respondents aged 36 to 45 years, while the lowest average rating was given to subjects of 66 and above. It is also concluded that the female population is more inclined to buy cars with lower average fuel consumption. Finally, it was proven that respondents belonging to the older population do not prefer cars whose spare parts are cheaper
