New car sales increase for first time in 12 months

April’s registration figures show 10.4 per cent rise in sales, but year-to-date figures still down

UK car buyers purchased 10.4 per cent more cars last month than they did in April 2017, according to the latest industry figures. The rise bucks a 12-month trend of declining sales.
The data, released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), reveals 167,911 new cars were bought last month, up from 152,076 in April 2017. Private buyers drove almost all of the growth, with 26.3 per cent more private sales taking place in April 2018 than in 2017. The fleet market remained stable with growth of 0.9 per cent, but new business sales were down 12.9 per cent.
• Best selling cars 2018
The decline of diesel sales continued last month, with 24.9 per cent fewer diesel being sold in April 2017; this is an improvement on March 2017, when diesel sales dropped by 37.2 per cent. Sales of petrol cars increased by 38.5 per cent in April 2018, while 49.3 per cent more hybrids and EVs were sold.
Experts have advised caution in interpreting the data however, partly as year-to-date sales for 2018 remain down 8.8 per cent compared to last year. April 2017 also provided a low baseline with which to compare last month’s figures, as buyers flocked to showrooms in March 2017 - before shunning them in April - in order to take advantage of the outgoing road tax system. At the time, this was particularly favourable to diesel cars due to their comparatively low carbon dioxide emissions.

The Ford Fiesta retained Britain’s top-spot as the most popular new car, with 7,811 examples of Ford’s supermini finding homes last month. The Volkswagen Golf took second place with 5,482 units sold, while the Nissan Qashqai was third with 4,257 sales. The Ford Focus came fourth, with 3,784 examples being purchased in April.
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Commenting on April’s figures, Mike Hawes, the SMMT’s chief executive, said the data should not be looked at “in isolation”, adding: “Given the major disruption to last April’s market caused by sweeping VED changes, this increase is not unexpected.”
Hawes called the rise in hybrid and EV popularity “positive news”, but pointed out such vehicles still make up just 5.6 per cent of the overall market. He also reiterated calls for the Government to offer “certainty about future policies towards different fuel types, including diesel