2013 (Q3) Britain: Best-Selling Car Makes and Models

The top-selling car brands in the UK during the first nine months of 2013 were Ford and Vauxhall. The Ford Fiesta remains Britain’s favorite car.

Fordd Fiesta ST 2013 Geneva Auto Salon

The British new car market continued to expand in September 2013 with the strongest sales in 66 months. Year to date in 2013, new passenger vehicle registrations in Britain increased by almost 11%. The most popular car marques in the UK remained Ford, Vauxhall, and Volkswagen while the Fiesta and Focus were the most popular car models.

The Car Market in the UK in 2013 (Q3)

New passenger vehicle registration in Britain increased in September 2013 for the 19th consecutive month with unit sales the highest for a single month since March 2008.

During the first nine months of 2013, 1,794,924 cars were sold in the UK – an increase of 10.76% over the same period a year ago. Private car sales were particularly buoyant with an increase of 17% and a market share of 48%.

Best-Selling Car Marques in the UK in 2013 (Q3)

Top-selling car brands in Britain in the period January to September 2013 according to car sales statistics released by the SMMT were:

MARQUE Jan-Sep 2013 % Market share Jan-Sep 2012 % Market share % Change
1 Ford 249,017 13.87 224,369 13.84 10.99
2 Vauxhall 200,357 11.16 179,698 11.09 11.50
3 Volkswagen 154,536 8.61 146,720 9.05 5.33
4 Audi 114,261 6.37 101,390 6.26 12.69
5 BMW 105,313 5.87 97,692 6.03 7.80
6 Nissan 94,541 5.27 84,519 5.22 11.86
7 Mercedes-Benz 86,624 4.83 73,401 4.53 18.01
8 Peugeot 86,019 4.79 81,145 5.01 6.01
9 Toyota 72,831 4.06 68,889 4.25 5.72
10 Citroen 63,773 3.55 58,398 3.60 9.20
11 Hyundai 61,210 3.41 56,119 3.46 9.07
12 Kia 58,307 3.25 52,899 3.26 10.22
13 Skoda 49,576 2.76 41,522 2.56 19.40
14 Fiat 47,587 2.65 39,780 2.45 19.63
15 Honda 45,494 2.53 44,144 2.72 3.06
16 Land Rover 43,916 2.45 38,847 2.40 13.05
17 MINI 40,264 2.24 38,136 2.35 5.58
18 SEAT 35,468 1.98 30,443 1.88 16.51
19 Renault 32,320 1.80 30,369 1.87 6.42
20 Suzuki 27,187 1.51 20,964 1.29 29.68
21 Mazda 26,027 1.45 22,713 1.40 14.59
22 Volvo 24,851 1.38 24,250 1.50 2.48
23 Jaguar 13,256 0.74 11,139 0.69 19.01
24 Dacia 11,631 0.65 0 0.00 0.00
25 Chevrolet 9,982 0.56 11,692 0.72 -14.63
Total 1,794,924   1,620,609   10.76

Source: SMMT

Best-Selling Car Manufacturers in the UK in 2013 (Q3)

Car manufacturers generally showed very positive growth in the UK during the first nine months of 2013. Of the top 25 carmakers, only Chevrolet failed to increase unit sales. Half the carmakers outperformed the broader market, including top-selling Ford and Vauxhall – in most other European markets Ford and Opel continue to lose appeal.

Compared to the first three quarters of 2013, the only rank change amongst the top ten best-selling car manufacturers was a change in positions for Mercedes-Benz and Peugeot. Mercedes (+18%) was also the strongest performer of the top-selling car marques in Britain while third-placed VW showed the weakest growth.

Renault’s budget brand entered the UK market at 24th place at the expense of Lexus, which slipped out of the top 25 brands. Chevrolet was the only top-25 brand to have had weaker unit sales during the first nine months of 2013. Suzuki showed the strongest growth and pushed Volvo out of the top 20.

Best-Selling Car Models in Britain in 2013 (Q3)

The top-selling car models in Britain during the first three quarters of 2013 according to the SMMT were:

Rank Brand & Model Q1-3/2013
1 Ford Fiesta 96,047
2 Ford Focus 71,424
3 Vauxhall Corsa 67,748
4 Vauxhall Astra 53,338
5 Volkswagen Golf 51,795
6 Nissan Qashqai 41,070
7 BMW 3 Series 34,484
8 BMW 1 Series 34,448
9 Volkswagen Polo 34,302
10 Peugeot 208 32,222

Source: SMMT

The Ford Fiesta remains Britain’s favorite car model with unit sales over 7,000 more in 2013 than during the first three quarters of 2012. The top seven most popular cars in the UK were the same models as a year ago but with small rank changes: the Focus overtook the Corsa to regain second place while the Vauxhall Astra narrowly outsold the VW Golf.

The VW Polo slipped one place while the BMW 1 Series and Peugeot 208 are new entries at the expense of the Mercedes C Class and Fiat 500.

About the author:

Henk Bekker

Henk Bekker is a freelance writer with over 20 years of experience in online writing. His best-selling cars website has been reporting car sales statistics since 2008 with classic car auction prices focusing on the most expensive automobiles sold at public auctions in the past decade. He also owns the travel websites European-Traveler.com and Lake Geneva Switzerland. Henk holds an MBA from Edinburgh Business School and an MSc in Finance from the University of London.