In 2019, the Ford Fiesta was again the best-selling car model in Britain followed by the Volkswagen Golf and the Ford Focus.
The Ford Fiesta was again Britain’s favorite car in 2019 with the VW Golf in second place for the second consecutive year. The Ford Focus regained third place at the expense of the Vauxhall Corsa. The Nissan Qashqai was again the best-selling SUV in the UK followed by the Ford Kuga and the Kia Sportage. The total British new car market contracted by 2.4% to 2,3 million cars with Ford still the best-selling manufacturer.
Latest British Car Sales Data: 2023: Market Overview, Brands, Models, Electric; 2022-2008.
List of the Top 10 Best-Selling Cars in Britain in 2019
The ten best-selling car models in the UK in full calendar year 2019 according to the SMMT were as follows:
| Brand & Model | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | |
| 1 | Ford Fiesta | 77,833 | 95,892 | 94,533 | 120,525 | 133,434 |
| 2 | Volkswagen Golf | 58,994 | 64,829 | 74,605 | 69,492 | 73,409 |
| 3 | Ford Focus | 56,619 | 50,492 | 69,903 | 70,545 | 83,816 |
| 4 | Vauxhall Corsa | 54,239 | 52,915 | 52,772 | 77,110 | 92,077 |
| 5 | Mercedes-Benz A-Class | 53,724 | 43,527 | 43,717 | NA | NA |
| 6 | Nissan Qashqai | 52,532 | 50,546 | 64,216 | 62,682 | 60,814 |
| 7 | Ford Kuga | 41,671 | 40,398 | NA | NA | NA |
| 8 | Mini | 41,188 | 44,904 | 47,669 | 48,328 | 47,075 |
| 9 | Volkswagen Polo | 37,453 | 45,149 | 47,855 | 54,448 | 54,900 |
| 10 | Kia Sportage | 34,502 | 35,567 | NA | NA | NA |
| Source: SMMT |
Ten Top-Selling Cars in the UK in 2019
Although around 350 car models are on sale in UK, the ten best-selling car models in Britain in 2019 were the same ten cars as in 2018. The rank order changed somewhat.
The Ford Fiesta was again the best-selling car model in Britain in 2019. However, Fiesta sales in Britain were at historic lows in 2019. For the third consecutive year, Fiesta sales were lower than 100,000 cars and more than 50,000 lower than the high 133,000 sold in 2015.
The Ford Fiesta has been Britain’s favorite car since 2009. Although Fiesta sales were at historic lows in 2019, the Fiesta remained well ahead of other car models in the UK.
The Volkswagen Golf was the second-most-popular car in Britain in 2019 for the third consecutive year. Golf sales were also down but the Golf may benefit from the launch of the Golf 8 early in 2020.
The Ford Focus regained third place with higher unit sales, although Focus sales were at a historic low in 2018. Vauxhall Corsa sales were also slightly higher but sales in the previous two years were rather dismal. The Corsa slipped one rank position but might be helped in 2020 by the launching of the new model on the PSA platform.
The Mercedes-Benz A-Class improved three ranked positions and also sold 10,000 more cars than a year ago in Britain. No other top-ten model improved as much. Mercedes-Benz was recently named the most-trusted car brand in Britain.
Despite higher sales, the Nissan Qashqai slipped two rank positions. however, the Nissan Qashqai remained the most-popular SUV in Britain in 2019. It was followed by the Ford Kuga that improved two rank positions.
The Mini slipped one rank position with weaker sales while the VW Polo slipped three positions with markedly weaker sales in Britain in 2019. The Kia Sportage rounded out the top ten as it did for the first time a year ago.
The total British new car market contracted by 2.4% to 2,3 million cars with Ford still the best-selling manufacturer. British automotive production in 2019 was lower – cars -14%, commercial vehicle -8% and engines -7%.
