11:32 am, March 10, 2026
Chinese car brands have doubled their share of the UK new car market in the opening months of 2026, as car sales in general are outperforming the wider market.
New data presented by Autotrader on the most recent episode of the Car Dealer Podcast shows Chinese manufacturers have tightened their grip on the UK new car market.
‘January and February combined shows Chinese car brands now account for 13.5% of new car registrations – that’s roughly double their market share compared with the same period last year,’ Autotrader’s Marc Palmer told podcast hosts James Baggott and Jon Reay. The video version of this week’s show can be watched at the top of this story.
Palmer added: ‘It’ll be interesting to see how the Chinese brands perform in March, and what the response will be from the other brands.’
Data from the first two months of the year shows The rapid growth underlines the increasing presence of brands such as BYD, MG and others as they expand their UK line-ups and dealer networks.
The surge in Chinese brands comes as the wider car market has made a solid start to the year, with retail demand performing particularly well.
‘In the year-to-date picture, the market is up 5%. Retail’s actually ahead, which is sort of the first time that’s happened for a bit,’ Palmer explained.
That strong start suggests optimism heading into the busy plate-change month of March.
‘So it all points to a solid market in March, you’d be quite optimistic I think in terms of volume.’
Palmer explained how electrified vehicles are also growing their market share, with plug-in hybrid volume up nearly 50% year-on-year, and pure-EVs currently holding around a 22% share. He countered that this still ‘some way off’ the ZEV mandate target of 33% for cars.
Again, Autotrader has fired a warning over a shortage of vehicles aged five to seven years old, caused by the sharp drop in new car registrations during the pandemic years. Retailers are already feeling the impact, said Palmer, with many reporting challenges sourcing the right stock while trying to avoid buying vehicles that may take longer to sell.
However, opportunities are emerging elsewhere in the market.
Demand for older vehicles aged 10 years and over has strengthened considerably, with average prices rising by around 11% year-on-year. The average value of these cars has climbed to more than £7,000, up from around £6,300 this time last year.
As a result, some dealer groups are expanding their strategies to include older vehicles, with several retailers now actively targeting stock aged between seven and 14 years. One of these is Vertu, which revealed this in a trading update published last week.
Elsewhere, the used EV market is beginning to gather momentum, with an increasing number of dealers stocking them EVs. Autotrader data shows that around 21% of dealers are now selling at least one used electric model, up significantly compared with last year.
You can listen to entire Autotrader segment on the podcast by clicking the video at the top of this story.
The segment appeared in an episode that featured Baggott and Reay chatting with Celtic Auto Group’s Tony Sciascia. You can watch this interview by clicking the video above and rewinding it to the beginning.
