February’s figures reinforce the robust performance of the UK automotive sector, maintaining a strong start to 2024 and signalling a nineteenth month of consecutive growth, said Sue Robinson, Chief Executive of the National Franchised Dealers Association, commenting on the latest SMMT new passenger car registration figures. In February, a total of 84,886 new cars were registered, an increase of … [Read more...]
Big shift expected in 2024 UK car market
The analysis of the average UK monthly search volume for the past six months reveals the Nissan Qashqai as the undisputed champion, attracting a remarkable 815,000 searches in the six months August 2023-Jan 2024. Interestingly, the second-place position goes to the KIA Sportage, likely accumulating 765,000 searches over the last six months due to its new efficient Hybrid and Plug-in Hybrid … [Read more...]
Best and worst cars to buy and own
When buying a new car, it’s always worth thinking about the potential resale value and how much it will depreciate over time. Some cars can prove to be very worthy investments, with their value increasing over time, while others may drop quickly in value as soon as they leave the forecourt. Elements such as age, condition, mileage and number of owners are all influencing factors, and there are … [Read more...]
Car makers want more EV incentives for private buyers
The UK new car market has recorded its best year since the pandemic as a strong December up 9.8%, wrapped up the 17th month of consecutive growth. Some 1.903 million new cars reached the road during 2023 – an increase of 17.9%, according to the latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. In Wales last year, registrations reached 66,761, a rise of nearly 16% over 2022 and … [Read more...]
BEV charge is running down
The UK new car market grew by 9.5% in November to reach 156,525 units, according to the latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, but there's a slowdown in EV interest among private buyers. In the market’s best November for four years, registrations almost returned to pre-pandemic levels, down just 96 units (-0.1%) on 2019. Registrations in Wales rose 13.7% to 5,467 … [Read more...]
SMMT gets new president
The 83rd President of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) will be Mick Flanagan, Vice President for Volvo, JLR, Toyota, Nissan at Adient. He will assume office from 1 January 2024, replacing Alison Jones, Senior Vice President Global Circular Economy at Stellantis, who steps down after completing her two-year tenure. Mick draws experience from a long career in the automotive … [Read more...]
KIA is king but Stellantis is hopeless, say traders
Kia is the best and Stellantis the worst brands to be selling, say car dealers. The NFDA Dealer Attitude Survey was conducted last month and asked franchised dealers questions about the on-going business relationship with their respective manufacturers. It brought 2,531 responses from 32 franchised networks, equating to a joint record response rate of 68%. The 2023 Summer Survey showed a general … [Read more...]
Families turn backs on electric cars
The UK new car market grew 21.0% in September with 272,610 registrations in the month, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. The 14th consecutive month of growth was also the second busiest of the year after March, with the new number plate delivering its traditional market surge despite a challenging economic backdrop. Growth continued to be driven by large fleets, which … [Read more...]
Weekend review: Old dogs & new tricks
More and more new names are appearing in the UK car market as it evolves into the electric age, but at the recent Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders annual southern test day for writers near Basingstoke it was two familiar names which caught my attention. The Nissan X-Trail has been a success in Britain for over 23 years while smart has been hanging around for even longer with a … [Read more...]
Tradelines 27 September
A new study by Auto Trader has found that the number of people claiming they’ll never buy an EV has nearly doubled, on the back of the government’s U-turn last week. Of the 1,700 in-market car buyers who responded to questioning, 37 per cent said they were unlikely to ever buy an EV and the figure is close to double the 21 per cent of people who said they would never go electric when the 2030 ban … [Read more...]