The two oldest automobiles registered in New Canaan are from 1915, tax records show—a Ford Model T and a Harley Davidson Twin.
After that, the oldest autos are a 1922 Seagrave Pumper, 1923 Model T, 1923 Alfa Romeo and 1927 Rolls Royce, according to the recently completed Grand List, which includes taxable real and motor vehicle property.
Once again in New Canaan—host of the popular Caffeine & Carburetors car show and home to 92-year-old dealership in Karl Chevrolet, one of the best-established companies in town—two makes of cars stand out atop the list of the most commonly owned vehicles. Both BMW and Chevrolet cracked the 1,500 mark, whereas no other single car company reached 1,200 locally registered vehicles.
Here’s a look at the the top-10 most popular car makes:
New Canaan's Most Popular Cars
| Make | No. of Cars |
|---|---|
| BMW | 1,544 |
| Chevrolet | 1,502 |
| Toyota | 1,189 |
| Mercedes | 1,189 |
| Jeep | 1,149 |
| Honda | 1,021 |
| Audi | 987 |
| Ford | 949 |
| Subaru | 801 |
| Lexus | 702 |
Other notable makes that didn’t crack the top-10 include Land Rover (511), Porsche (473), Volkswagen (464), Volvo (427), Acura (387) and Nissan (345).
Asked how he’d describe the tastes of local auto enthusiasts, Caffeine & Carburetors founder Doug Zumbach said “Porsches top the list.”
“Performance, reliability, drivability,” he said. Porsches are “easily used as a everyday car,” Zumbach added.
“McLarens, Ferraris are most likely next on the list for the driving experience for the enthusiasts here in New Canaan,” he said.
New Canaan has two McLarens, five Rolls Royces, 20 Aston Martins, 27 Alfa Romeos, 32 Ferraris, 37 Maseratis, eight Lotuses and 89 Teslas, according to the Grand List.