New car registrations increased 10.4% year-on-year in March, representing the industry’s 20th consecutive month of growth, according to new figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. A total of 317,786 cars were registered across the country, with growth attributed to the first plate changeover of the year (from 73 to 24) plus continued fleet investment. While numbers increased year-on-year, though, the industry is still down 30.6% compared to pre-pandemic numbers.
Registrations from private buyers also dropped by 7.7%, which the SMMT claimed was down to “a challenging economic backdrop of low growth, weak consumer confidence and high interest rates”. Demand for petrol cars increased by 9.2% year-on-year, while plug-in hybrid and hybrid vehicles grew by 34.0% and 12.5% respectively. Diesel sales, meanwhile, dropped by 5.3%. Registrations of battery electric vehicles increased by 1