New car sales – seven record months, one record year
- 2001 new car registrations reached 2,458,769 units, up 10.7 per cent on
2000, beating the previous record set in 1989 by 6.9 per cent or 157,825 cars
- Registrations soared 17.3 per cent in December to 126,471 units
- Private buyers led market growth during 2001 with sales up 22 per cent
SMMT chief executive Christopher Macgowan said, ‘In each month of 2001, the
new car market grew with the previous year-end record, set in 1989, falling
by the end of November. December’s figures, which saw growth of 17 per cent,
are really the icing on the cake.
‘This was a year in which the sun shone on new car buyers with a more competitive
market than ever before and a raft of enticing new models to tempt the buying
public. Many commentators have waited for the market to cool, but I’m delighted
that this hasn’t happened.’
Notes to editors
- December was the seventh best-ever month for new car registrations in 2001.
Previous highs were seen in March, June, July, September, October and November. - Registrations of new cars to private buyers rose 22 per cent, from 993,890
units in 2000 to 1,212,964 in 2001. - Fleet and business registrations rose by 1.4 per cent and two per cent respectively
in 2001.
December 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.
