- February new car registrations climbed 3.8 per cent to 91,460 units
- Year-to-date registrations rise 5.2 cent to 289,051 units
- Diesel cars up 20 per cent to 27,255 units in February, 29.8 per cent of the market
Commenting on today’s new car registration data, SMMT chief executive Christopher Macgowan said, ‘Strong growth in a traditionally small month has pushed the UK market forward once more. The road has been paved for a record March market of around 450,000 units, generating approximately £6 billion worth of business.’
He added, ‘However, the industry is concerned that the DVLA has chosen March, one of the two busiest months of the year, to upgrade its IT systems used by dealers and fleets to register new cars. It’s a bit like your local authority digging up the roads on the busiest day of the year. You know they’re going to do it, you just can’t understand why.’
Notes to editors
1. New car registrations in the UK reached a record 2,579,050 million in 2003, up from 2,563,631 units in 2002 and 2,458,769 units in 2001. The 2004 market is expected to remain stable at 2.5 million units.
2. Diesel registrations continued to climb month-on-month in February leading to an increase in their market share from 25.8 per cent in February 2003 to 29.8 per cent in February 2004. The rise in diesel penetration is expected to continue, reaching 31 per cent by the end of 2004 and 33 per cent in 2005.
