UK new car market enjoys record 2015
THE strength of the UK new car market has been underlined with the announcement of record registrations for 2015.
Figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders show new car registrations topped 2.6 million units for the first time last year, an increase of 6.3%.
The performance, aided by strengthening consumer confidence and attractive finance deals, seals four years of consecutive growth and the market has posted increases in all bar one (October 2015) of the past 46 months.
The strength of the sector was underlined last month, with the figures showing 180,077 new cars being registered, an increase of 8.4% – the best December on record.
Overall, the market rose 6.3% in 2015 to 2,633,503 units – exceeding forecast and outperforming the last record year in 2003 when 2,579,050 new cars left the UK’s showrooms. This is only the fourth time that the market has surpassed 2.5 million vehicles in a full year.
Growth was enjoyed across all sectors, with UK fleets boosting demand by 11.8% to reach an all-time high of 1.3 million units. Appetite in the private sector, meanwhile, was also robust, up 2.5%.
Gains were reported across all fuel types, with petrol and diesel registrations up 8.4% and 3% respectively with equal market shares. Alternatively fuelled vehicle (AFV) demand, meanwhile, grew 40.3%, securing the biggest ever market share of 2.8% for a year. Plug-in hybrids experienced phenomenal growth, with volumes more than doubling, while pure electric vehicles saw an uplift of around 50%.
Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, said: “The new car market defied expectations in 2015, hitting an all-time record driven by strong consumer and business confidence.
“Buyers took advantage of attractive finance deals and low inflation to secure some of the most innovative, high tech and fuel efficient vehicles ever produced. The past four years have seen a remarkable period of sustained growth, and the outlook remains positive with every reason to expect the market to hold broadly steady in 2016.”
Ford retained its top spot in terms of market share due largely to the continued success of its Fiesta model, which topped the best seller for the year with 133,434, way ahead of its nearest competitor Vauxhall’s Corsa (92,077). Ford’s Focus was the year’s third best seller (83,816), followed by the Volkswagen Golf (73,409).
The Golf may well have achieved better had it not been for the emissions scandal which rocked VW in the autumn. The group’s Polo was the sixth best-selling vehicle for 2015 but the impact of the scandal is best illustrated by the model’s absence from the top ten best-selling vehicles for December, which followed a consistent showing during the early part of the year.
Nevertheless, VW retained third place in terms of market share at 8.5%, with Vauxhall retaining second place with 10.24% – the only other manufacturer apart from Ford with a double digit share and the only one to have three models in the list of top ten bestsellers for 2015.
BMW Group achieved its best ever UK sales in 2015, a performance that saw it emerge as the fourth best-selling brand with 6.36% of the market, meaning it just shaded fierce rival Audi, which came in fifth with 6.33% – the difference between the two being a mere 682 vehicles.
Rounding out the top ten best-selling brands were: Nissan (6th), Mercedes-Benz (7th), Peugeot (8th), Toyota (9th) and Hyundai.
The best-selling vehicles for 2015 were, in order: Ford Fiesta, Vauxhall Corsa, Ford Focus, VW Golf, Nissan Qashqai, VW Polo, Vauxhall Astra, Audi A3, MINI and Vauxhall Mokka.
