UK car output was broadly stable for a second consecutive month in April, according to SMMT data. In April it was down just 0.7% to 56,135 units.

In the year to date, UK car output is down 5.4% to 257,024 units.

The SMMT said the news comes as the sector urges action to ensure the EU’s recently proposed ‘Made in Europe’ policy does not restrict UK-produced vehicles, parts, batteries and raw materials from accessing their largest export market. Given the deep integration of UK and EU automotive supply chains, SMMT maintains that such a move would ‘damage competitiveness, disrupt investment and weaken manufacturing capability on both sides of the Channel’.

Both sides already face the looming threat of tariffs when more onerous rules of origin requirements for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles take effect in January 2027. Both issues, if not resolved, would put an €80 billion-a-year trading relationship at risk, posing a major threat to the wider European automotive industry at a time of fierce global competition, according to the SMMT.

Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, said: “April’s figures suggest production is stabilising, albeit at reduced levels, when the ambition remains to grow the sector. UK manufacturers still face high costs, notably in energy, and uncertainty in the trading relationship with key trading markets.

"More serious is the UK sector’s carve out from the EU’s ‘Made in Europe’ proposals which, coupled with tougher rules of origin requirements from next year, risk undermining the industry on both sides. The forthcoming EU-UK Summit must address these issues and deliver solutions that safeguard our mutual competitiveness and growth.”