Top 10: UK car sales Q1 2016

With monotonous predictability, the Ford Fiesta remains at the top of the UK's new car registration charts.

Indeed, official figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders prove just how loath people are to change their buying habits: the first quarter's eight most popular models were identical to 2015's eight most popular models, in the same order.

Top 10: Cumulative UK Car Registrations Q1 2016
Position Model Registrations Market Share
1 Ford Fiesta 36,327 4.7%
2 Vauxhall Corsa 24,579 3.2%
3 Ford Focus 20,656 2.7%
4 Volkswagen Golf 19,428 2.5%
5 Nissan Qashqai 18,680 2.4%
6 Volkswagen Polo 15,162 2.0%
7 Vauxhall Astra 14,764 1.9%
8 Audi A3 13,046 1.7%
9 Vauxhall Mokka 12,505 1.6%
10 Fiat 500 11,400 1.5%

Ford Focus Black Edition Hatchback (2016) Front Side
Still in third place: the Ford Focus.

Overall, first quarter market volume was 771,780, an increase of 5.1% compared to the same period last year. The Fleet and Business segments were responsible for most of the growth, which could of course be an indication of additional pre-registration and dealer demonstrator activity.

March alone accounted for 518,707 of those registrations, making it the industry's best single month since the introduction of bi-annual plate changes in 1999.

Alternative-fuel vehicles (mostly equipped with hybrid or full-electric powertrains) rose in popularity, but not by much in absolute terms. Perhaps the salient point is that diesel demand hasn't been affected significantly by the recent Volkswagen Group emissions scandal.

Fuel Diesel Petrol Alternative
Q1 2016 YTD 47.1% 49.6% 3.3%
Q1 2015 YTD 47.6% 49.6% 2.8%
Change -0.5% 0.0% +0.5%

Related posts:
Top 10: UK car sales 2015 - winners and losers
Top 10: UK car sales 2015

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