What Cars Do Lottery Winners Buy?

Lottery winners make the news for the enormous jackpot prizes they win. The staggering amounts of money they take home leads to the inevitable question, “What did they buy with it?” Some players purchase a new home or take an exotic vacation, but many more spend their winnings on luxury vehicles. The expensive cars they buy vary between different countries.

Some lottery players have already achieved their dreams of buying a luxury car, like the powerful Hypercar. Others keep playing the lottery, hoping to win a huge prize like those offered by American lotteries Powerball and Mega Millions, or famous European lotteries EuroMillions and SuperEnalotto. Whatever your dreams are, the important thing is to be confident, try your luck, and play!



Lottery players enjoy reading about successful lottery wins along with statistics and popular play methods. Here you’ll find 4 sets of recent statistical data, 3 of which are from official lottery operators. These include the United Kingdom National Lottery, the National Lottery of Ireland, and Veikkaus Oy, operated by the Finnish Government. The 4th data source is based on the results of a survey conducted by TheLotter.

Keep in mind, it isn’t only about numbers. We’ve included cases of lottery winners who have a unique story behind the wheels they bought. So fasten your seatbelts – it’s about to get crazy!

Statistical Data of 3 National Lotteries

The United Kingdom National Lottery

There’s nothing better than a little statistical data to fully understand what cars are most frequently bought by lottery winners. The UK National Lottery surveyed 3,000 British citizens who won US US$1 million or more. They wanted to know how many luxury cars were purchased by these lottery winners and which models they bought.

According to the stats, these winners purchased more than 17,000 cars at an average price of US$73,000! The most frequently purchased cars are Land Rovers, followed by Audi cars in second place. German cars appear to be the most popular choice of lotter winners as you can see in the list.

This is the final list of the top 10 most popular cars purchased by the winning millionaires in the UK according to the results of the National Lottery survey.


  1. Land Rover (England)
  2. Audi (Germany)
  3. Jaguar (England)
  4. Mercedes-Benz (Germany)
  5. Ford (United States)
  6. BMW (Germany)
  7. Peugeot (France)
  8. Porsche (Germany)
  9. Toyota (Japan)
  10. Vauxhall (England)

One surprising fact is that Ferrari – one of the most popular manufacturers in the luxury vehicle market – didn’t even make the list! Instead, British winners chose to support national brands like Land Rover, Jaguar, and Vauxhall. However, the facts also show that nothing can really argue against personal taste, since Porsche, a German brand, was one of the top 10, as well.


Veikkaus Oy

What cars do lottery winners buy in Finland? The Helsinki-based lottery operator Veikkaus organized its own survey among lottery millionaires in Finland. Veikkaus surveyed players who won a minimum of €500,000 between 2007-2017. The survey began on 8 December 2017 and was completed in January 2018. A total of 155 winners were surveyed. The responses were completely anonymous and the responses were received in a manner that would not reveal the winners’ identities.


  1. Audi (Germany)
  2. Mercedes-Benz (Germany)
  3. Nissan (Japan)
  4. Volvo (Sweden)
  5. Volkswagen (Germany)
  6. BMW (Germany)
  7. Renault (France)
  8. Toyota (Japan)
  9. Suzuki (Japan)
  10. Citroen (France)

The results of the survey included one critical piece of data: just 66% of the respondents bought a new car after their lottery win. This was surprising because of how many winners usually make this kind of purchase. It would be hard to imagine a lottery winner buying a secondhand Nissan versus a top-of-the-line luxury car.

What’s interesting about the Finnish survey is that Porsche, Land Rover, and Jaguar didn’t make it into the top 10. They were on the UK list, but maybe Finnish lottery players think (and spend money) differently.

Interestingly enough, famous luxury brands like Ferrari and Lamborghini didn't make either list!


The National Lottery of Ireland

In 2016, The National Lottery of Ireland surveyed lottery winners from this same year to study their consumer purchasing behavior. The results showed that 7 in 10 winners were male and aged 45 or older at the time of their winnings. The Irish survey included Ferrari, with some different results and a few interesting facts:

  • 27.5% said that their first purchase with their lottery winnings would be their dream car

  • E32.5% of respondents said that Ferrari is their dream car. 27.5% preferred Mercedes-Benz, and 15% chose Audi

  • Only 5% said they would quit their jobs

  • Speaking of their winning numbers, 42% won with randomly chosen numbers, while 37.5% used birthdays

The results of the 3 national lotteries’ surveys showed no favorite car manufacturer among lottery winners, but a clear preference for German automakers as a whole. We may just have to add the phrase “If I win the lottery, I’m buying a Ferrari” to the list of lottery myths.

Findings from Other Lotteries

As you can see from the surveys we’ve reviewed, the country of residence can affect a lottery winner’s car-buying decisions. The table below lists the car purchasing data of some well-known lottery winners and can be compared to the survey results.

 Winner  Lottery*  Prize  Car Purchased
Lisa and John Robinson
 Powerball
 US$528.8 millon Gold Tesla Model S
GMC Yukon Denali 2017
Aaron Fawden
 EuroMillions €1 millon
 Audi SQ5
Matt Topham and Cassey Carrington
 EuroMillions £45 million Jaguar XK 2-door coupe
Range Rover Evoque
William Shanteau
 Powerball
 US$1.2 million
 Chevrolet Corvette
Ford
Petra L.
 Germany Lotto
 €15.28 million
 Polish-made Fiat Panda
Garina Fearon
 Mega Millions
 US$54 million
 BMW 5 Series
Gillian Bayford EuroMillions £148 million Three: Audi Q7 SUV
Two: Audi Q5s
Mark and Cindy Hill Powerball US$587.5 million Yamaha Rhino 700 UTV
Ira Curry Mega Millions US$324 million BMW
Lexus
Simon Fagan Ireland Lotto £3.6 million Secondhand Kia
Derry Ryan Magee EuroMillions £6.4 million Ferrari 458
Tom Naylor UK Lotto £15.5 million Mustang V8
Jaguar XJR
Jaguar XJ220
Jaguar F-Type
Aston Martin DB9
(limited edition)
Aston Martin DB9
Land Rover Discovery

Additional Information and Interesting Facts

Each lottery winner has their own unique story about how they chose their numbers, why they chose their payout options, and of course, how they spent their winnings. What would you do with yours?

  • Adrian and Gillian Bayford of Haverhill, Suffolk, became Britain’s second-largest jackpot winners in 2012 when they claimed the £148 Million EuroMillions jackpot . They used a portion of their massive winnings on a small fleet of 5 Audi cars and a 6-car garage to store them in.

  • Lottery winners are not all alike. In 2007, Petra L. won €15.28 million in the German National Lottery, but instead of indulging in a luxury vehicle, Petra purchased a small compact car. She bought a Fiat Panda, reportedly worth just US$10,000. Commenting on the purchase, she said she wanted a simple car with an airbag instead of spending her money on luxuries.

    Would you have done the same?

  • The massive US$587.5 Million Powerball jackpot in November 2012 was won by 2 players. Mark and Cindy Hall took home their share of the winnings, which amounted to US$136.5 Million, after taxes. Mark famously told reports of his plans to buy a new Camaro. In the end, he did something people had a hard time believing. Like Petra L., he bought something simpler, a Yamaha Rhino 700 UTV. It may sound like a racing machine, but in reality, it’s a small 2-seater often used for transporting goods.

    Well, there’s no accounting for personal taste.

  • Simon Fagan from Castlebellingham, Ireland, won big in the Ireland Lotto back in May 2013. He won £3.6 million and used a small bit of the money to buy a secondhand Kia. The car had 150,000 km on it at the time of the purchase. Simon told reporters he had no plans to move out of his parents’ house, either.

  • Derry Ryan Magee won £6.4 million in the EuroMillions lottery. His first purchase was a £170,000 Ferrari. Soon after, Derry’s life changed drastically. First he got divorced, then he received 13 traffic tickets, then he crashed the Ferrari, had his driving license confiscated, and was given a court sentence of 200 hours of community service. Derry just might need another lottery win to rebuild his life after all this!

  • Can you imagine driving a different car each day of the week? That’s exactly what 1 lucky UK Lotto winner did. Tom Naylor scooped up a £15.5 million jackpot back in 2001. The self-proclaimed car lover bought 7 cars, one of every day! On Mondays, he drives a V8 Mustang, on Tuesdays, it’s a Jaguar XJR, on Wednesdays, he hops in a Jaguar XJ220, a Jaguar F-Type is for Thursdays, a limited edition Aston Martin DB9 for Fridays (James Bond would be so proud), another Aston Martin DB9 for Saturdays and a Land Rover Discovery for Sundays or for shopping. Who could keep up?

What Car Would You Buy with Your Lottery Win? Would You Get More Than One?

As you can see, where a person lives can greatly influence their car-buying decisions. When it comes to winning the lottery, the most popular cars bought by winners aren’t always the kinds of luxury cars that most people dream about. As shown by multiple surveys, German automakers were consistently in the top 10, as their different makes and models were chosen by multiple lotto winners.

Those who buy lottery tickets online with TheLotter have told us about their favourite cars. Their picks include top brands like Ferrari, Tesla, and Mercedes Benz.

Will your dream car become a reality? We certainly hope so, but for a chance to win, you first have to play! Don’t want to be glued to your desktop? Play on mobile with versions for iOS, or Android, so you can take your shot at huge jackpots on-the-go.