- Year-to-date registrations rise 3.9 per cent to 943,010 units
- Diesel car registrations take record 32.5 per cent of April market, at 60,692 units
- Specialist sports, dual purpose 4×4 and MPV segments report strongest growth
- Overall April market dips 3.8 per cent to 187,004 units
SMMT chief executive Christopher Macgowan commented, ‘Despite a slight dip in April, we are confident of a fourth consecutive record year for the new car market. March registrations exceeded expectations by nearly 17,000 units, so it is not surprising that this momentum has not continued in April.
‘However, in the context of the year-to-date, the market is still significantly up on last year. A strong underlying economy, raft of new model launches and intense competition should see total registrations hit 2.6 million units by the end of the year.’
Notes to editors
- 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.
- April specialist sports car registrations rose by 29 per cent to 6,248 units, dual purpose 4×4 rose by 11 per cent to 12,189 units and MPV registrations were up 11 per cent to 9,345 units.
