Fleet sales in May were up 2.3%, giving a market share of 50.5%, while sales to businesses with 25 vehicles or fewer were up 18.8%, giving a 5.5% share. At the same time, private registrations were down 2%.
The performance has helped revive a market which has been in the doldrums since the start of the year. Sales across all three sectors are still down year-to-date (YTD) though, with fleet down 3.4%, business down 11.7% and private down 4.2%, according to figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
Chrisopher Macgowan, chief executive of the SMMT, said: ‘In what is proving to be a competitive market, the rise in May reflects a small upturn in consumer confidence. ‘It has been a tough year so far but the industry is proving to be resilient.’
In the fleet sector, Ford continues to be number one, with the Focus remaining the best-selling car thanks to a massive rise in diesel registrations (up 45.2%) and the facelifted Fiesta recording a massive 42.7% increase in overall fleet sales.
Kevin Griffin, director of fleet operations at Ford of Britain, said: ‘Ford fleet sales are reaping the rewards of new products and campaigns.
‘Fleet buyers have taken to the 2006 Fiesta freshening and the six to seven months of the ‘Dash for Diesel’ campaign advertisements is also bringing in new business.’
Another marque performing strongly in the fleet market is Peugeot, which has seen sales rise by 23.5%. This is attributable to strong demand for petrol-engined 307s – up a massive 79% – and a 23.8% increase in registrations of diesel 407s.
Elsewhere, there were strong performances from the new Vauxhall Zafira in petrol guise (up 43.8%) and the Volkswagen Passat (up 31.7% in diesel form).
Vauxhall remains the number two fleet manufacturer, although some models are showing losses. Most notable is the diesel-engined Astra, which is down by 29.6% YTD and the Vectra (down 13.1%).
The sales figures also make for bad reading for Renault, with overall fleet sales down by nearly 31% YTD. Much of this is down to a decrease in demand for diesel-engined Megane (down 42.6%), although petrol-engined Clio sales are also down by nearly 19%. Renault claims much of this is due to its move away from short-cycle, unprofitable daily rental business.
Top 10 fleet models
YTD 2006 | YTD 2005 | % Change | ||||
Ford Focus | 45,791 | 43,714 | 4.7 | |||
Vauxhall Astra | 34,321 | 37,444 | -8.4 | |||
Ford Fiesta | 19,249 | 13,412 | 43.5 | |||
Vauxhall Corsa | 18,511 | 23,869 | -22.5 | |||
Ford Mondeo | 18,507 | 20,678 | -10.5 | |||
Renault Megane | 17,675 | 25,970 | -32.0 | |||
Vauxhall Vectra | 15,293 | 17,787 | -14.1 | |||
Vauxhall Zafira | 15,132 | 14,111 | 7.2 | |||
Volkswagen Golf | 14,261 | 16,095 | -13.4 | |||
Peugeot 307 | 13,216 | 9,598 | 37.7 | |||
TOP 10s
HERE are the fleet-relevant performance tables for new car registrations in May 2006 from the SMMT...
Top 10 petrol models
Model | YTD 06 | (% change) | ||
1 Ford Focus | 30,034 | (-8.6) | ||
2 Vauxhall Astra | 24,312 | (4.6) | ||
3 Vauxhall Corsa | 16,765 | (-19.4) | ||
4 Ford Fiesta | 15,796 | (42.7) | ||
5 Vauxhall Zafira | 11,643 | (43.8) | ||
6 Renault Megane | 11,300 | (-24.1) | ||
7 Vauxhall Vectra | 7,297 | (-14.3) | ||
8 Peugeot 307 | 7,095 | (79) | ||
9 Renault Clio | 6,244 | (-18.9) | ||
10 VW Golf | 5,528 | (21.5) | ||
Top 10 diesel models
Model | YTD 06 | (% change) | ||
1 Ford Focus | 15,743 | (45.2) | ||
2 Ford Mondeo | 13,098 | (-9.5) | ||
3 VW Passat | 10,596 | (31.7) | ||
4 Vauxhall Astra | 9,992 | (-29.6) | ||
5 VW Golf | 8,733 | (-24.4) | ||
6 Vauxhall Vectra | 7,993 | (-13.1) | ||
7 Peugeot 407 | 7,670 | (23.8) | ||
8 Renault Megane | 6,375 | (-42.6) | ||
9 Peugeot 307 | 6,121 | (8.6) | ||
10 Audi A4 | 5,975 | (9.5) | ||
Top 10 manufacturers
Model | YTD 06 | (% change) | ||
1 Ford | 92,356 | (0.5) | ||
2 Vauxhall | 90,331 | (-10) | ||
3 Volkswagen | 41,139 | (8.2) | ||
4 Peugeot | 33,083 | (23.5) | ||
5 Renault | 30,216 | (-30.7) | ||
6 Toyota | 19,775 | (-16.8) | ||
7 Audi | 19,611 | (29.1) | ||
8 BMW | 19,585 | (11.7) | ||
9 Citroën | 16,004 | (11.9) | ||
10 Honda | 12,730 | (-9.3) | ||
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