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UK 1st Half 2015: Registrations up 7% to highest-ever half year score

Vauxhall Corsa UK June 2015. Picture courtesy autoexpress.co.ukThe Vauxhall Corsa is up to 2nd place overall in the UK thanks to the new model.

* See the Top 10 best-selling models and Top 40 brands by clicking on the title *

All the planets are aligned for the UK market this year: low interest rates, attractive finance deals and a flow of new models priced aggressively have spruced up new car demand to record-high levels. Over the First Half of the year, 1.376.889 new cars found a buyer, just slipping past the previous record of 1.376.565 established over ten years ago in 2004. June marked the an incredible 40 consecutive month of year-on-year gains, also an all-time record for the UK car industry. SMMT predicts “a flatter second half of the year as the market finds its natural running rate”. At this rate, the UK new car market is headed towards a record 2.6 million annual units for 2015 which would be an all-time record, beating the 2.579.050 units hit in 2003. The UK market only managed over 2.5 million sales 3 times in the past: from 2002 to 2004.

Mercedes C-Class UK June 2015. Picture courtesy whatcar.co.ukThe Mercedes C-Class breaks into the UK Top 10.

Brand-wise, Ford (+2%) and Vauxhall (+1%) gain less ground than the market, resulting in lower market shares of 12.9% and 10.3% respectively, while Volkswagen (+8%) powers ahead to 8.7%, historically outselling Vauxhall in April. Audi holds onto a splendid 4th place with 86.009 units, Nissan is up a fantastic 18% to #5, Mercedes up 17% to #7 and Hyundai up 9% to #10. Outside the Top 10, Renault (+15%), Mazda (+18%), Land Rover (+20%), Lexus (+23%), Porsche (+33%), Mini (+46%), Mitsubishi (+120%) and Jeep (+229%) impress.

Mini UK June 2015. Picture courtesy largus.frMini

In the models ranking, the Ford Fiesta is headed towards an easy 7th consecutive win with sales up 3% to 71.990 units, over 20.000 above the next best-seller, and this time it’s the Vauxhall Corsa boosted 19% by a mix of previous gen runout prices and the new gen gracefully sliding into dealerships. The Ford Focus is kicked down to #3 above the VW Golf while the Nissan Qashqai is up a stunning 32% to break into an intermediate Top 5 for the very first time. The VW Polo (+26%) and Audi A3 (+11%) also shine, while the Mercedes C-Class and Mini, both up a spectacular 36% thanks to new generations and the addition of a 5-door variant as far as the Mini is concerned, break into the UK Top 10.

Previous post: UK June 2015: Mini and Vauxhall Mokka shine in market up 13%

Q1 2015 post: UK 1st Quarter 2015: Now with all-models ranking (BSCB exclusive)

FY 2014 posts:

UK Full Year 2014: Now with Top 365 All-models (BSCB exclusive)

UK Full Year 2014: Market up 9% to highest level in a decade

One year ago: UK 1st Half 2014: Now with Top 350 All-models (BSCB Exclusive)

Complete models data will be uploaded in August-September.

Full H1 2015 Top 10 models and Top 40 brands vs. Full H1 2014 figures below.

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