04 Dec 08 16:22
Year-to-date sales down 11%
The largest monthly drop in new car sales in 28 years was recorded last month, according to the SMMT.
New car sales fell in the UK in November by 36.8% compared to November 2007, with just 100,333 vehicles registered. Year-to-date sales are now nearly 11% down on last year.
Private car registrations fell 45.1%, indicating extreme caution from consumers in these early stages of a recession.
The SMMT (Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders) suggests that some buyers many have been waiting for the fall in VAT to take effect before making their purchase, but says that access to credit and finance is necessary to kick-start the market again - many potential buyers are now simply unable to borrow enough money.
The steepest falls in sales were noted at Chrysler (down 76%), Lotus and Aston Martin (both down 73%) and Mitsubishi (down 70%). Standing firmer were Volvo (down 7%), Jaguar (down 11%), Ford (down 12%) and Smart (down 14%).
Diesel cars took a record 47% of all sales. The UK's best-seller last month was the new Ford Fiesta (6,154 sold), followed by the Ford Focus (4,893), Vauxhall Corsa (4,442), Ford Mondeo (3,739) and Volkswagen Golf (3,052).
