2021 was challenging enough, but the latest UK automotive production figures out this week lay bare just how difficult was 2022. Car manufacturing fell by -9.8% to 775,014 units due to persistent supply chain issues – most notably semiconductor shortages,…

Annual UK car production falls -9.8% to 775,014 units in 2022 as global chip shortages and structural changes depress output.
Record levels of electrified vehicle production with almost a third of all cars made fully electric or hybrid – worth £10 billion in exports alone.
Volumes for UK rise 9.4% but fail to offset declining exports, down -14.0%, with some eight in 10 cars shipped overseas.

While this week was host to ‘Blue Monday’, UK car buyers steered towards grey as their favourite new car colour in 2022. Taking pole position for the fifth year in a row, grey has cemented its place as the nation’s…

Grey is UK’s most popular new car colour for fifth consecutive year with 25.7% market share, followed by black and white to complete a monochrome podium. Maroon, pink and cream were bottom of the charts, taking just 0.02% of all…

The automotive industry has continued to battle significant challenges during the last three years, from lockdowns to component shortages, logistics costs to skills shortages. The most immediate threat to competitiveness – indeed, to the very viability of many operations –…

The new year brings with it annual new car and van registration figures, and data for 2022 shows that the UK new car market fell -2.0% last year to 1.61 million units. The pandemic continues to cast a long shadow…

Plunging temperatures and snow this week are a timely reminder of the importance of winter vehicle maintenance. It’s crucial, however, that motorists keep their vehicles in good order throughout the year and the annual MOT inspection plays an important role…

The fourth consecutive month of growth for the new car market gave us good reason for optimism this week, as the latest industry figures for November showed a 23.5% growth. As supply chain shortages begin to ease, albeit erratically, growth…

After what seems like a decade of uncertainty, from Brexit to lockdowns, there is finally some hope for growth. SMMT’s latest research reveals that the industry’s expected return to growth next year could be worth an additional £14 billion to…

UK CV production rises 10.7% to 8,740 units, marking best October since 2019 and 10th consecutive month of growth this year. Overseas demand grows by 50.2%, while production for domestic market falls -28.4%. Year-to-date output increases 45.5% to 85,547 units,…