UK new car registrations rose 7.7% year on year to 194,032 units in May, the 27th consecutive month of growth, breaking a record set in the late 1980s.

SMMT data showed year to date sales passed the 1m mark, rising 11.6% to 1,058,974.

Go deeper with GlobalData

Data Insights

The gold standard of business intelligence.

Find out more

Discover B2B Marketing That Performs

Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.

Find out more

Chief executive Mike Hawes said: “The new car market has now grown in every month since March 2012 – the longest period of growth on record and a reflection of the UK’s ever-improving economic conditions.

“Over the past 27 months, increasingly confident consumers have been drawn to some fantastic new products, attracted by innovative technologies, improved fuel economy and competitive deals helping make a new car more affordable.

“With SMMT forecasting an overall rise of around 6% over the year, the coming months should see some levelling off in growth rates as underlying demand stabilises.”

The Ford Fiesta, Volkswagen Golf and Vauxhall Corsa topped the sales charts in May.

YTD, the top sellers were the Fiesta, Ford’s Focus and the Corsa. The Focus was fourth in May.

Data from SMMT:

May Total Diesel Petrol AFV Private Fleet Business
               
2014 194,032 99,580 91,008 3,444 90,711 95,702 7,619
2013 180,111 91,577 86,535 1,999 84,201 89,899 6,011
% change 7.7% 8.7% 5.2% 72.3% 7.7% 6.5% 26.8%
Mkt share ’14   51.3% 46.9% 1.8% 46.8% 49.3% 3.9%
Mkt share ’13   50.8% 48.0% 1.1% 46.7% 49.9% 3.3%
               
Year-to-date Total Diesel Petrol AFV Private Fleet Business
               
2014 1,058,974 525,462 514,335 19,177 522,150 488,129 48,695
2013 948,666 466,074 470,296 12,296 460,557 447,666 40,443
% change 11.6% 12.7% 9.4% 56.0% 13.4% 9.0% 20.4%
Mkt share ’14   49.6% 48.6% 1.8% 49.3% 46.1% 4.6%
Mkt share ’13   49.1% 49.6% 1.3% 48.5% 47.2% 4.3%
               
  2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Total cars 2,404,007 2,131,795 1,994,999 2,030,846 1,941,253 2,044,609 2,264,737
               
Best sellers May       Year-to-date
               
  1 Ford Fiesta 9,450   1 Ford Fiesta 58,940
  2 Volkswagen Golf 7,134   2 Ford Focus 37,355
  3 Vauxhall Corsa 6,536   3 Vauxhall Corsa 34,324
  4 Ford Focus 5,824   4 Volkswagen Golf 31,596
  5 Vauxhall Astra 5,035   5 Vauxhall Astra 26,062
  6 Nissan Qashqai 4,144   6 Nissan Qashqai 20,834
  7 Audi A3 3,886   7 Volkswagen Polo 20,687
  8 Volkswagen Polo 3,607   8 Audi A3 19,223
  9 Fiat 500 2,896   9 Fiat 500 17,509
  10 Vauxhall Mokka 2,801   10 BMW 3 Series 16,246

Just Auto Excellence Awards - Nominations Closed

Nominations are now closed for the Just Auto Technology Excellence Awards. A big thanks to all the organisations that entered – your response has been outstanding, showcasing exceptional innovation, leadership, and impact.

Excellence in Action
Continental has secured the Window Displays Innovation Award in the 2025 Just Auto Excellence Awards for its Window Projection solution, transforming side windows into dynamic, data-rich canvases. Discover how this compact projection technology and intelligent software are reshaping in-car UX and opening fresh revenue streams for OEMs and mobility providers.

Discover the Impact