August new car market rises for first time in over a year
6 Sep 2011- The new car market in August rose by 7.3% to 59,346 units.
- This was the first rise since June 2010 (13 months of decline), but the outlook remains challenging.
- Registrations from January to August were 6.1% down on a year ago.
- Private demand grew by 10.7% in August, its first rise since June 2010. Fleet volumes continued to rise.
- The Supermini segment rose by 17.6% to account for 37.3% of the August market.
“New car registrations in August rose for the first time since June 2010, up 7.3% to 59,346 units. August represents a relatively small share of the new car market and the September new 61-plate registrations will be far more important for vehicle manufacturers and franchised dealers,” said Paul Everitt, 91³ÉÈË Chief Executive. “The September new car market is always important for the UK motor industry, accounting for around 17% of the full year’s registrations. Consumers are nervous about the future, but with industry offering unprecedented improvements in fuel economy, competitive finance offers and a wide variety of new models, buyers will find there is something to suit every taste and pocket.”
| August | Total | Diesel | Petrol | AFV | Private | Fleet | Business | ||||||||||||
| 2011 | 59,346 | 30,475 | 28,263 | 608 | 24,572 | 32,975 | 1,799 | ||||||||||||
| 2010 | 55,305 | 29,111 | 25,505 | 689 | 22,189 | 31,543 | 1,573 | ||||||||||||
| % change | 7.3% | 4.7% | 10.8% | -11.8% | 10.7% | 4.5% | 14.4% | ||||||||||||
| Mkt share ’11 | 51.4% | 47.6% | 1.0% | 41.4% | 55.6% | 3.0% | |||||||||||||
| Mkt share ’10 | 52.6% | 46.1% | 1.2% | 40.1% | 57.0% | 2.8% | |||||||||||||
| Year-to-date | Total | Diesel | Petrol | AFV | Private | Fleet | Business | ||||||||||||
| 2011 | 1,220,618 | 613,866 | 591,693 | 15,059 | 513,346 | 646,292 | 60,980 | ||||||||||||
| 2010 | 1,300,413 | 576,625 | 709,753 | 14,035 | 613,091 | 625,434 | 61,888 | ||||||||||||
| % change | -6.1% | 6.5% | -16.6% | 7.3% | -16.3% | 3.3% | -1.5% | ||||||||||||
| Mkt share ’11 | 50.3% | 48.5% | 1.2% | 42.1% | 52.9% | 5.0% | |||||||||||||
| Mkt share ’10 | 44.3% | 54.6% | 1.1% | 47.1% | 48.1% | 4.8% | |||||||||||||
| Best sellers | August | Year-to-date | |||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Fiesta | 3,213 | 1 | Fiesta | 61,551 | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | Corsa | 2,901 | 2 | Focus | 52,918 | ||||||||||||||
| 3 | Focus | 2,858 | 3 | Corsa | 46,620 | ||||||||||||||
| 4 | Golf | 1,995 | 4 | Golf | 39,385 | ||||||||||||||
| 5 | 3 Series | 1,739 | 5 | Astra | 38,580 | ||||||||||||||
| 6 | Astra | 1,613 | 6 | Insignia | 31,063 | ||||||||||||||
| 7 | Passat | 1,526 | 7 | Polo | 28,048 | ||||||||||||||
| 8 | Polo | 1,467 | 8 | 3 Series | 27,298 | ||||||||||||||
| 9 | Qashqai | 1,312 | 9 | Qashqai | 24,695 | ||||||||||||||
| 10 | A3 | 1,125 | 10 | 207 | 21,402 | ||||||||||||||
August market shows recovery from low base, but small volume nature of the market tempers optimism
- August is expected to be the smallest volume monthly new car market in 2011. In 2010 it accounted for just 2.7%Â of the market. The new 61 number plate was launched on 1 September.
- New car registrations rose by 7.3% or 4,041 units to 59,346 units in August 2011. This was the first rise in demand since June 2010, bringing a halt to a 13 month run of declining volumes. The August 2010 market was the lowest on record and the 2011 outturn was still more than 20% below the 1999-2010 average for the month.
- Registrations in the first eight months of the year have fallen by 6.1% or almost 79,795 units. Given the downgrade in economic growth forecasts, the outlook for the new car market is set to remain challenging. 91³ÉÈË forecasts the full year market to end on 1.93 million units, a 5% decline on the 2010 market and down from the current 1.95 million running rate.
- The growth in August reflected recovery within the private sector, which grew 10.7% in August, the first rise since June 2010. The fleet market continued to grow in August and is up by 3.3% over the first eight months of the year.
- Registrations of diesel cars rose by 4.7% in the month, but their market share slipped from 52.6% last year to 51.4% after stronger growth from the petrol car market in August.
- Most segments showed growth in August, with the Mini segment (up 34.5%) and the Supermini segment (up 17.6%), showing the strongest gains.
- The Ford Fiesta was again the best selling model in the overall new car market in both August and the year-to-date.
Click through to download the full August 2011 registrations news release and data tables.
