BRENTWOOD, Essex, 6 October 2009 – Ford car sales were up by over 22 per cent in September, compared with the same month in 2008. This is twice the size of the market increase after a busy month of new "59" plate and "scrappage" registrations.
Over 54,500 new cars left Ford dealerships – 22.2 per cent more than during September 2008.
The market leader, Ford, took 14.8 per cent of all car sales and 15.7 per cent of the total UK vehicle market last month once commercial vehicle registrations are factored in. In either case, Ford's share is around a percentage point higher than a year ago.
September's top selling car in the UK was the Ford Fiesta – the seventh time the model has topped the monthly sales charts in 2009. For the year to date, the Ford Fiesta is the UK's top seller with the Ford Focus at number two.
Ford's 2009 success, with its stylish and affordable car and commercial vehicle ranges, means that so far this year the Blue Oval brand accounts for more than one in seven new vehicle sales.
While the scrappage scheme has added over 22,700 Ford registrations since its launch in May, sales of Ford Fiesta and Ford Kuga models have increased for the full year to date period compared with last year, despite the weaker market. In fact, compared with 2008, the Ford Fiesta has added over 18,000 sales during this period, raising its share of the UK car market from 4.1 per cent to 6.1 per cent.
For the year to date, Ford has increased its share of the UK car market by 1.7 percentage points to 16.4 per cent, compared to the same period in 2008, while its share of the total UK vehicle market is 1.2 percentage points higher at 17.3 per cent.
Nigel Sharp, Ford Britain managing director, said: "September is of course a very important month for the British car market. As market leader, we expect to do well, but for us to have achieved a sales increase that was twice as big as the overall market growth proves that, once again, the twin strengths of our new and exciting product range and our tremendous dealer network have enabled us to increase our market share. The importance of the government's scrappage scheme, not least for the automotive supplier base, has been well documented, and we welcome its extension because the underlying level of demand remains weak. In this context, it is gratifying to note that the SMMT have increased their estimate for full year sales for the UK to 1.825 million units (compared with 2.132 million sales in 2008)."
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