Cars
Residents of the United Kingdom registered 2.04 million new vehicles in the twelve months of 2012, a 5.3% improvement over 2011. Car registrations in the UK haven't been this high since 2008 when, at the time, sales had reached what was thought to be a low point.
December 2012 was predictably the third-lowest sales month of the year. We won't spend much time analyzing December numbers, but it should be noted that BMW outsold Volkswagen in the final month of the year. Among major brands, BMW's 35% year-over-year increase in December was topped only by Kia, Honda, and Fiat.
Brands and manufacturers are ranked by 2012 year end volume in the two tables below. (This explains why, before sorting, Volkswagen is shown above BMW, and Audi above Nissan.) Fortunately, as you might have already guessed, this post is the first to include a new GoodCarBadCar.net feature: it's sortable. Click any of the headings in order to sort all 43 brands by name, December 2012 sales, year-over-year change from December 2011, year end volume, or year-over-year change for the full year as compared with 2011. While we regret not offering this feature in the past, it's an exciting addition. At any time, click the column heading again to switch the direction.
In 2012, Ford was most definitely the best-selling automotive brand in the United Kingdom. Lacking partner brands, however, Ford didn't come close to challenging the Volkswagen Group for the overall lead in new car registrations. The VW Group - Audi, Bentley, Porsche, Seat, Skoda, Volkswagen - generated a 7% improvement to 408,385 sales in 2012. That 7% jump was topped by Hyundai-Kia, up 21%, and the gains made by Toyota, Daimler, Fiat, JLR, and BMW.
As for British brands, Lotus was the only deep disappointment in 2012. Sales plunged 58% from 2011's already low 329 sales, which you might recall, was down from 43% from 577 in 2010. Jaguar and Mini were up just 2.3% and 2.4%, respectively, but Land Rover registrations shot up 29%, undoubtedly helped by the addition of the Range Rover Evoque.
What do North American car enthusiasts know of British car culture? Historically, the magazine covers we saw included plenty of WRX Imprezas and Mitsubishi Evos. Subaru UK won't be selling the WRX any longer, not that it was helping much. Subaru sales plummeted 23% in 2012, dragging the brand down to a ranking of 32, behind smart, Chrysler, and Jeep. Meanwhile, Mitsubishi sales fell 33.5% in 2012. Neither of these two brands fared well in 2011, either, as Subaru had already dropped 32% and Mitsubishi slid 19% before 2012 brought with it further declines.
BMW's late surge produced a premium brand victory for the Munich brand over Ingolstadt's Audi in 2012. Audi's lead had appeared tenuous, but BMW's 35% jump in December, combined with Audi's 24% decline, was certainly enough to undo what Audi had done. Sales victories aren't the be-all and end-all. Audi UK sales jumped 9% in 2012 in a market which rose just 5%. Moreover, Audi ended the year as the United Kingdom's fifth-best-selling brand. Compare that with what the brand achieved in Canada and the United States.
UK 2012 auto sales figures for 43 brands are in the first table below. The twelve largest automotive conglomerates are then shown in a secondary table, which is also sortable. GoodCarBadCar.net posted the UK's best-selling cars earlier this morning. Click either of the two accompanying market share pie charts in this post for larger views.
Click Any Column Heading To Sort Table By Rank, Automaker, % Change etc.
Click Any Column Heading To Sort Table By Rank, Automaker, % Change etc.
UK Auto Sales Brand Rankings - 2011 Year End
UK Auto Sales Brand Rankings - November 2012
UK Auto Sales Brand Rankings - December 2011
Historical Monthly & Yearly UK Total Car Market Size Figures
Top 10 Best-Selling Cars In The UK - 2012 Year End
Top 10 Best-Selling Cars In The UK - December 2012
- 2012 Year End Top 10 Best-selling Cars In The United Kingdom
The Ford Fiesta once again ended a calendar year as the best-selling car in the United Kingdom. In 2012, not only did the Fiesta post a 14% year-over-year increase in UK registrations, it overcame last year's decline to record a 6% improvement compared...
- 2012 Year End United States Auto Sales Brand Rankings
GCBC has already posted early December 2012 U.S. sales figures for a number of brands, and although those numbers are important, this 2012 Year End U.S. Auto Sales Brand Rankings post is the one that most people will come to see. Through the end...
- November 2012 United Kingdom Auto Sales By Brand
New car registrations in the United Kingdom rose 11% in November 2012. Ford remained on top with more than 21,000 sales and 14.2% of the market. Six Volkswagen Group brands together owned one-fifth of the market. Audi's year-to-date lead over BMW...
- United Kingdom Auto Sales By Brand - May 2012
Brits registered 162,288 new vehicles in May 2012 according to the SMMT, a 7.9% increase over May 2011. The United Kingdom's new car market is up 2.6% through five months. Ford is very clearly the best-selling new car brand in the UK; Volkswagen is...
- Uk Auto Sales By Brand - January 2012
In January 2012, Ford was once again the United Kingdom's leading automaker as Blue Oval sales rose 2% to 20,061, or 15.6% of all new vehicles sold in the UK. Volkswagen and its numerous brands led the way in terms of market share, reaching 20.8%,...
Cars
December 2012 And 2012 Year End United Kingdom Auto Sales By Brand
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| Not Their Biggest Seller, But Land Rover's Defender Is Positively British |
December 2012 was predictably the third-lowest sales month of the year. We won't spend much time analyzing December numbers, but it should be noted that BMW outsold Volkswagen in the final month of the year. Among major brands, BMW's 35% year-over-year increase in December was topped only by Kia, Honda, and Fiat.
Brands and manufacturers are ranked by 2012 year end volume in the two tables below. (This explains why, before sorting, Volkswagen is shown above BMW, and Audi above Nissan.) Fortunately, as you might have already guessed, this post is the first to include a new GoodCarBadCar.net feature: it's sortable. Click any of the headings in order to sort all 43 brands by name, December 2012 sales, year-over-year change from December 2011, year end volume, or year-over-year change for the full year as compared with 2011. While we regret not offering this feature in the past, it's an exciting addition. At any time, click the column heading again to switch the direction.
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| Click December 2012 Market Share Chart For Larger View |
As for British brands, Lotus was the only deep disappointment in 2012. Sales plunged 58% from 2011's already low 329 sales, which you might recall, was down from 43% from 577 in 2010. Jaguar and Mini were up just 2.3% and 2.4%, respectively, but Land Rover registrations shot up 29%, undoubtedly helped by the addition of the Range Rover Evoque.
What do North American car enthusiasts know of British car culture? Historically, the magazine covers we saw included plenty of WRX Imprezas and Mitsubishi Evos. Subaru UK won't be selling the WRX any longer, not that it was helping much. Subaru sales plummeted 23% in 2012, dragging the brand down to a ranking of 32, behind smart, Chrysler, and Jeep. Meanwhile, Mitsubishi sales fell 33.5% in 2012. Neither of these two brands fared well in 2011, either, as Subaru had already dropped 32% and Mitsubishi slid 19% before 2012 brought with it further declines.
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| Click 2012 Market Share Chart For Larger View |
UK 2012 auto sales figures for 43 brands are in the first table below. The twelve largest automotive conglomerates are then shown in a secondary table, which is also sortable. GoodCarBadCar.net posted the UK's best-selling cars earlier this morning. Click either of the two accompanying market share pie charts in this post for larger views.
Click Any Column Heading To Sort Table By Rank, Automaker, % Change etc.
Rank | Automaker | December 2012 | % Change | 2012 Year End | Year End % Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
#1 | Ford | 15,656 | + 6.6% | 281,917 | + 6.0% |
#2 | Vauxhall | 16,272 | + 3.1% | 232,255 | - 1.1% |
#3 | Volkswagen | 9651 | - 8.5% | 183,098 | + 2.1% |
#4 | BMW | 10,175 | + 35.0% | 127,530 | + 9.3% |
#5 | Audi | 4786 | - 24.2% | 123,622 | + 8.6% |
#6 | Nissan | 6441 | + 11.3% | 105,835 | + 9.9% |
#7 | Peugeot | 4757 | + 2.5% | 99,486 | + 4.7% |
#8 | Mercedes-Benz | 5261 | + 9.3% | 91,855 | + 12.2% |
#9 | Toyota | 4149 | - 24.5% | 84,563 | + 14.9% |
#10 | Hyundai | 5551 | + 2.4% | 74,285 | + 18.1% |
#11 | Citroen | 3935 | - 2.4% | 73,656 | + 7.6% |
#12 | Kia | 3890 | + 55.0% | 66,629 | + 24.3% |
#13 | Honda | 3331 | + 47.3% | 54,208 | + 7.2% |
#14 | Skoda | 3199 | + 11.2% | 53,602 | + 19.0% |
#15 | Mini | 4499 | + 5.2% | 51,324 | + 2.4% |
#16 | Fiat | 3260 | + 48.0% | 49,907 | + 19.9% |
#17 | Land Rover | 2532 | - 7.8% | 48,626 | + 29.2% |
#18 | Renault | 3733 | - 17.9% | 40,760 | - 40.5% |
#19 | Seat | 2799 | + 12.6% | 38,798 | + 7.5% |
#20 | Volvo | 2030 | + 1.5% | 31,790 | - 2.7% |
#21 | Mazda | 970 | - 40.7% | 26,183 | - 16.1% |
#22 | Suzuki | 1564 | + 28.0% | 24,893 | + 22.7% |
#23 | Jaguar | 1054 | + 29.6% | 14,109 | + 2.3% |
#24 | Chevrolet | 436 | - 38.2% | 13,476 | + 7.6% |
#25 | Lexus | 390 | - 42.9% | 8404 | + 1.6% |
#26 | Porsche | 761 | + 6.0% | 7998 | + 25.3% |
#27 | Alfa Romeo | 290 | - 52.3% | 7253 | - 37.3% |
#28 | Mitsubishi | 735 | + 56.7% | 6549 | - 33.5% |
#29 | Smart | 514 | + 53.4% | 5616 | + 11.3% |
#30 | Chrysler | 135 | + 23.9% | 3333 | + 182.0% |
#31 | Jeep | 120 | - 43.7% | 2306 | + 7.5% |
#32 | Subaru | 92 | - 34.8% | 2023 | - 23.2% |
#33 | Abarth | 120 | + 53.9% | 1292 | + 0.8% |
#34 | Bentley | 83 | + 62.8% | 1267 | + 22.2% |
#35 | Aston Martin | 64 | + 20.8% | 932 | - 9.0% |
#36 | Ssangyong | 65 | + 27.5% | 875 | + 351% |
#37 | MG | 93 | - 16.2% | 782 | + 117% |
#38 | Infiniti | 42 | + 23.5% | 530 | + 38.7% |
#39 | Perodua | 22 | + 4.8% | 416 | - 23.4% |
#40 | Maserati | 14 | - 22.2% | 309 | - 20.4% |
#41 | Saab | 0 | - 100% | 232 | - 94.4% |
#42 | Proton | 1 | - 95.2% | 208 | - 53.4% |
#43 | Lotus | 14 | + 40.0% | 137 | - 58.4% |
Click Any Column Heading To Sort Table By Rank, Automaker, % Change etc.
Rank | Automaker | December 2012 | % Change | 2012 Year End | YTD % Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
#1 | Volkswagen Group | 21,279 | - 7.4% | 408,385 | + 7.0% |
#2 | Ford Motor Company | 15,656 | + 6.6% | 281,917 | + 6.0% |
#3 | General Motors | 16,708 | + 1.3% | 245,731 | - 0.6% |
#4 | BMW-Mini | 14,674 | + 24.2% | 178,854 | + 7.2% |
#5 | PSA Peugeot & Citroen | 8692 | + 0.2% | 173,142 | + 5.9% |
#6 | RNA Renault, Nissan & Infiniti | 10,216 | - 1.5% | 147,125 | - 10.9% |
#7 | Hyundai-Kia | 9441 | + 19.0% | 140,914 | + 20.9% |
#8 | Daimler AG | 5775 | + 12.1% | 97,471 | + 12.1% |
#9 | Toyota UK | 4539 | - 26.5% | 92,967 | + 13.6% |
#11 | Fiat Group & Chrysler-Jeep | 4384 | + 35.8% | 64,845 | + 10.8% |
#10 | Jaguar-Land Rover | 3586 | + 7.3% | 62,735 | + 22.0% |
#12 | Honda | 3331 | + 47.3% | 54,208 | + 7.2% |
--- | Total | 123,557 | + 3.7% | 2,044,609 | + 5.3% |
Source: Automakers & SMMT
Related From GoodCarBadCar.netUK Auto Sales Brand Rankings - 2011 Year End
UK Auto Sales Brand Rankings - November 2012
UK Auto Sales Brand Rankings - December 2011
Historical Monthly & Yearly UK Total Car Market Size Figures
Top 10 Best-Selling Cars In The UK - 2012 Year End
Top 10 Best-Selling Cars In The UK - December 2012
- 2012 Year End Top 10 Best-selling Cars In The United Kingdom
The Ford Fiesta once again ended a calendar year as the best-selling car in the United Kingdom. In 2012, not only did the Fiesta post a 14% year-over-year increase in UK registrations, it overcame last year's decline to record a 6% improvement compared...
- 2012 Year End United States Auto Sales Brand Rankings
GCBC has already posted early December 2012 U.S. sales figures for a number of brands, and although those numbers are important, this 2012 Year End U.S. Auto Sales Brand Rankings post is the one that most people will come to see. Through the end...
- November 2012 United Kingdom Auto Sales By Brand
New car registrations in the United Kingdom rose 11% in November 2012. Ford remained on top with more than 21,000 sales and 14.2% of the market. Six Volkswagen Group brands together owned one-fifth of the market. Audi's year-to-date lead over BMW...
- United Kingdom Auto Sales By Brand - May 2012
Brits registered 162,288 new vehicles in May 2012 according to the SMMT, a 7.9% increase over May 2011. The United Kingdom's new car market is up 2.6% through five months. Ford is very clearly the best-selling new car brand in the UK; Volkswagen is...
- Uk Auto Sales By Brand - January 2012
In January 2012, Ford was once again the United Kingdom's leading automaker as Blue Oval sales rose 2% to 20,061, or 15.6% of all new vehicles sold in the UK. Volkswagen and its numerous brands led the way in terms of market share, reaching 20.8%,...