MG Motor UK was the big winner in September’s new car registrations with strong gains also for VW Group brands, but some of Britain’s biggest names struggled, SMMT data reveals.
The Chinese-owned British brand registered 3,668 cars during the month – a rise of 169 per cent compared to the same month last year.
Audi, Bentley and Volkswagen all recorded strong rises too, with registrations up by 71.8 per cent, 71.9 per cent and 39.2 per cent respectively.
It was a good month for other small brands like Smart and Suzuki which registered rises of 153.9 and 39.2 per cent respectively.
Meanwhile, Subaru headed the month’s losses with a decline of 48.2 per cent.
The Japanese car brand registered 272 cars in September – a sharp contrast to a year ago when it registered 526.
Speaking to Car Dealer last week, new Subaru MG John Hurtig called August’s tally of 34 registrations an ’embarrassment’ and vowed to turn the brand around in the next 12 months.
Jaguar recorded a 33.8 per cent fall in registrations in September – down from 6,052 12 months ago to 4,006.
Mini was down 28.3 per cent, Mitsubishi was down 38.4 per cent and Vauxhall, while leading the best-sellers chart with its Corsa, was overall down by 28.4 per cent.
The figures should be treated with some caution however, says ASE Global chairman Mike Jones.
Speaking to Car Dealer Live, he said: ‘Volkswagen and Audi’s strong figures are a reflection of how few vehicles they had in the UK last year that they were able to deliver.
‘Mercedes, BMW, Vauxhall and Ford all suffered double digit falls so this feeds into the view that there are supply issues coming through.’
New car sales fall by 4.4 per cent
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