Top 10: UK car sales 2015 - winners and losers

A record 2,633,503 new cars were registered in the UK during 2015, a rise of 6.3% versus the previous year. However, that average market change hides a very broad range of individual manufacturer performances.

For example, Jeep volumes grew by 6,885 units, a relatively massive increase which was fuelled by the arrival of the new Renegade small SUV.

Jeep Renegade Trailhawk (2015) Side
The Jeep Renegade, responsible for many
of Jeep's extra UK registrations in 2015.

Other notable entries on the 2015 ‘winners list’ include Smart. Its sales almost doubled thanks in part to the introduction of a second-generation forfour model.

Top 10: Total UK Car Registrations 2015 - Winners
Manufacturer 2015 2014 Change Change %
Jeep 10,794 3,909 6,885 176.1%
SsangYong 3,344 1,542 1,802 116.9%
Smart 8,455 4,342 4,113 94.7%
Abarth 2,743 1,642 1,101 67.1%
Infiniti 1,195 746 449 60.2%
Lotus 375 235 140 59.6%
Mitsubishi 22,693 15,805 6,888 43.6%
MG 3,152 2,326 826 35.5%
Porsche 12,167 9,160 3,007 32.8%
Jaguar 23,954 18,401 5,553 30.2%
Total Market 2,633,503 2,476,435 157,068 6.3%

At the other end of the spectrum, two American marques recorded the greatest decreases.

Chevrolet’s drop followed General Motor’s decision to effectively withdraw the make from Europe. A similar fate has now befallen Chrysler, because new products bearing that badge are no longer available in the UK.

Chrysler 300C Platinum (2015) Front Side
While Jeep enjoyed a successful year, sister
brand Chrysler all but disappeared from the UK.

Seat achieved the greatest absolute reduction of any brand, with 5,858 fewer vehicles registered versus 2014. To what extent this was due to the current Volkswagen Group diesel emissions scandal is difficult to quantify, but the bulk of that deficit did occur during the fourth quarter.

Strictly speaking, Citroën should appear on the ‘losers list’ too, as the French firm’s registrations fell by 3,385 to 80,012 in 2015. That -4.1% decline was primarily caused by the separate reporting of DS since May, though. Adding the two together for year-on-year comparison purposes actually shows a combined 6.3% lift.

Top 10: Total UK Car Registrations 2015 - Losers
Manufacturer 2015 2014 Change Change %
Chevrolet 12 2,774 -2,762 -99.6%
Chrysler 137 1,982 -1,845 -93.1%
Seat 47,654 53,512 -5,858 -11.0%
Alfa Romeo 5,069 5,523 -454 -8.2%
Suzuki 34,437 37,395 -2,958 -7.9%
Bentley 1,379 1,472 -93 -6.3%
Fiat 64,257 67,162 -2,905 -4.3%
Å koda 74,692 75,488 -796 -1.1%
Honda 53,417 53,544 -127 -0.2%
Vauxhall 269,766 269,177 589 0.2%

Related posts:
Top 10: UK car sales 2015
Top 10: New cars due in 2016
Top 10: UK car sales 2014 - winners and losers

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