- UK new car registrations rose 5.9% in March with 394,806 registrations of 13-plate cars.
- Registrations in Q1 rose by 7.4% to 605,198 units.
- March marked the 13th consecutive month of growth in new car registrations, with volumes the highest since 2010 when the Scrappage Incentive Scheme supported the market.
- The uplift in the market follows strong demand in private registrations, which were up 11.2% in Q1.
- Registrations of all sales types rose in March, and across most segments – notably the Mini and MPV segments.
- The better than expected Q1 outturn should support net growth in the market in 2013. SMMT will review its full year forecast later in March.
“UK new car registrations out-performed expectations in March, the first month of the new 13-plate. The market increased more than 5% on March 2012 to almost 395,000 units,” said SMMT Interim Chief Executive, Mike Baunton. “Despite ongoing economic concerns, consistent monthly growth in the market is an encouraging sign of returning consumer confidence as motorists are attracted to forecourts by new models and the latest technologies.”
March 2013 new car registrations data
| March | Total | Diesel | Petrol | AFV | Private | Fleet | Business |
| 2013 | 394,806 | 187,239 | 202,249 | 5,318 | 204,299 | 171,728 | 18,779 |
| 2012 | 372,835 | 181,368 | 186,047 | 5,420 | 189,468 | 165,565 | 17,802 |
| % change | 5.9% | 3.2% | 8.7% | -1.9% | 7.8% | 3.7% | 5.5% |
| Mkt share ’13 | 47.4% | 51.2% | 1.3% | 51.7% | 43.5% | 4.8% | |
| Mkt share ’12 | 48.6% | 49.9% | 1.5% | 50.8% | 44.4% | 4.8% | |
| Year-to-date | Total | Diesel | Petrol | AFV | Private | Fleet | Business |
| 2013 | 605,198 | 292,403 | 304,356 | 8,439 | 294,656 | 282,695 | 27,847 |
| 2012 | 563,556 | 283,872 | 271,486 | 8,198 | 264,884 | 273,898 | 24,774 |
| % change | 7.4% | 3.0% | 12.1% | 2.9% | 11.2% | 3.2% | 12.4% |
| Mkt share ’13 | 48.3% | 50.3% | 1.4% | 48.7% | 46.7% | 4.6% | |
| Mkt share ’12 | 50.4% | 48.2% | 1.5% | 47.0% | 48.6% | 4.4% |
March 2013 best sellers
| Best sellers | March | Year-to-date | |||||||||||
| 1 | Fiesta | 22,748 | 1 | Fiesta | 34,309 | ||||||||
| 2 | Corsa | 16,169 | 2 | Focus | 25,081 | ||||||||
| 3 | Focus | 15,434 | 3 | Corsa | 24,561 | ||||||||
| 4 | Golf | 9,978 | 4 | Astra | 17,202 | ||||||||
| 5 | Astra | 9,559 | 5 | Golf | 15,726 | ||||||||
| 6 | Qashqai | 8,465 | 6 | Qashqai | 14,601 | ||||||||
| 7 | Polo | 7,431 | 7 | Polo | 11,753 | ||||||||
| 8 | 1 Series | 7,001 | 8 | 208 | 11,108 | ||||||||
| 9 | 208 | 6,726 | 9 | C-Class | 10,301 | ||||||||
| 10 | C-Class | 6,628 | 10 | Juke | 10,010 | ||||||||
New car registrations continue to grow in key March market, with demand for 13-plate cars up 5.9%
- UK new car registrations rose for a 13th consecutive month in March, up 5.9% at 394,806 units.
- Q1 registrations increased by 41,642 units, totalling 605,198 cars. This is still some 12.1% below the 2007 pre-recession market total, but was the best since the 2010, when more than 50,000 cars were registered through the Scrappage Incentive Scheme.
- Registrations over the past 12 months have risen by almost 140,000 units, or 7.2%, to 2.086 million units.
- The Q1 outturn was 2.7% above SMMT’s forecast, which could lead to the market exceeding SMMT’s 2.057 million unit full year outlook. However, trading conditions remain challenging, given the subdued wider economic setting.
- The market’s growth over the past 13 months has been supported by increases in private registrations, although all sales types reported growth in March and Q1 2013.
- Registrations of petrol-fuelled cars rose by 12.1% so far in 2013, outselling diesels. This has been spurred by growth in the small car and private sector markets. Registrations of alternatively-fuelled cars dipped in the month, but rose by 2.9% in Q1.
- The Mini segment again showed the strongest growth in March, up 56.5%, due to the success of new models. Double digit gains were also reported in the MPV and Dual Purpose segments. All segments, except Upper Medium and Luxury Saloon, grew in March.
- The Ford Fiesta was the best selling model in both March and Q1.
Click through to download the full March 2013 news release and data table.
The tables above show registration figures for Great Britain, Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands in detail. Providing that SMMT is cited as the source of this information, the figures may be quoted for editorial use only. Substantial reproduction needs specific approval by SMMT.
