September new car registrations soar, boosted by private sales
- In a record month, September registrations rose 25.4 per cent to 443,265
units - Registrations by private buyers soared 29.4 per cent, the largest rise in
12 consecutive months of growth - In the first nine months of the year, total registrations were up 9.2 per
cent at 1,962,700 units
Commenting on the figures, SMMT chief executive Christopher Macgowan said,
‘In what was a very difficult month for everyone, we are delighted to announce
this excellent news. Total September registrations were far better than we had
predicted and the really positive thing is that private buyers were responsible
for the sales surge.’
‘These figures show that car buying decisions do not seem to have been affected
by the terrible events of 11 September. They represent a clear vote of confidence
by consumers in both the economy and strong competition in car showrooms’, he
added.
Notes to editors
- Private buyers registered 243,049 new cars in September 2001, compared
to 187,791 in September 2000, taking the highest market share since August
1997. - The full year forecast for new car registrations stands at 2.3 million units.
In 1989, 2,300,944 units were registered, the highest annual total on record. - In September 2000, a total of 353,494 new cars were registered.
- September fleet and business registrations rose by 16.6 per cent and 39.1
per cent respectively, the strongest performance so far in 2001.
September 2001
The attached tables show the registration figures for Great Britain, Northern
Ireland, The Isle of Man and the Channel Islands in detail. Top performers by
range and UK penetration figures are also listed. Providing the SMMT is acknowledged
as the source of this information, the figures may be quoted. Substantial reproduction
needs specific approval by the SMMT.
