SMMT News

Business Secretary Vince Cable has launched a £75 million competition, challenging automotive manufacturers to develop new engine technologies that will make cars more energy efficient and invigorate R&D in the UK. The initiative will act as the pilot scheme for…

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has launched a call for evidence to the automotive industry, seeking opinions on how government’s £500 million investment, announced earlier in the year, can be spent to position the UK as a global leader in ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEVs).

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Autocar and Courland have announced the six finalists of the 2013 Next Generation Award, who will attend a panel judging day today at Haymarket Consumer Media’s Teddington Studios.

Bus and coach registrations showed third consecutive month of growth, up 13.2% to 550 units in October.

Jaguar Land Rover has today launched its 2014 apprenticeship recruitment drive, with the hope that more young women will be encouraged into an engineering career.

Total CV registrations up strongly in October, rising 27.3% to 27,578 units in the month. The overall commercial vehicle market is up 9.8% for the year-to-date, at 266,934 units.

SMMT has published Electric Vehicle (EV) registration figures for October and the year-to-date.

New car registrations hit 157,314 in October, an increase of 4.0%. Registrations for 2013 to-date climb 10.2% to 1,952,238 units. SMMT new car forecast raised from 2.22 million to 2.25 million units for 2013, with the market set to stabilise and grow at around 1% in 2014 and 2015.

A report published today calls for government and engineering firms to put their weight behind the UK’s engineering future, and to address skills shortages.