Monthly car sales fall again
* Sales fall for 13th consecutive month * Slow economic growth blamed * Rate of decline is slowing, though...
New car sales have fallen for the 13th consecutive month, according to figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
Sales for July were down 3.5% on the same period in 2010, with new registrations dipping to 131,634.
SMMT chief executive Paul Everitt said the fall in sales reflected the 'impact of slow economic growth and subdued confidence'. However, the rate of decline is continuing to slow.
While private sales continue to fall, fleet sales have bolstered the market with an increase of 2.1% over the same period last year. Mr Everitt believes the stronger results in this sector of the market should help the industry meet its full-year sales forecast of 1.93 million vehicles.
Diesel vs petrol
Despite the fall in sales, new registrations of diesel cars remain strong, and now account for 50.2% of the market overall up from 44% last year. Vauxhall's Insignia was the top-selling diesel in July, just pipping the year-to-date best-selling VW Golf.
The Ford Fiesta was the best-selling car overall in July, and year-to-date.
July and year-to-date sales
July and year-to-date sales
July
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.Model
Ford Fiesta
FordFocus
Vauxhall Corsa
VW Golf
Vauxhall Astra
Vauxhall Insignia
BMW 3 Series
Vauxhall Polo
Nissan Qashqai
PassatSales
6695
6235
5122
4272
4084
4037
3693
3684
3391
2514Year-to-date
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.Model
Ford Fiesta
Ford Focus
Vauxhall Corsa
VW Golf
Vauxhall Astra
Vauxhall Insignia
VW Polo
BMW 3 Series
Nissan Qashqai
MiniSales
58,338
50,060
43,719
37,390
36,967
29,987
26,581
25,559
23,383
20,337
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