Cars with plugs (EVs and plug-in hybrids) and Chinese brands drove all the growth in May’s new car registration results, according to numbers published this week by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
Although the overall market was up by about 7% over the same month last year, most of the growth was concentrated on Chinese car brands and plug-in cars. Most European, Japanese and Korean brands saw flat or falling sales in May.
These were also bought by a lot more consumers, with private sales up 17%. Fleet registrations, meanwhile, were up only 2%.
EVs and plug-in hybrids see large growth as petrol cars see large fall
Cars with plugs (EVs and plug-in hybrids) accounted for 41% of all new cars registered in May, up from 34% this time last year. That put them almost equal with purely petrol cars for the first time – give or take 100 cars – which saw a large drop in market share from 48% a year ago.
This was the most significant part of the month’s data, as it suggests customers are increasingly looking for cars that can be plugged into the grid rather than relying on petrol stations. Basic (non-plugged) hybrids have been leapfrogged by plug-in hybrids, which offer a more flexible combination of electric driving for everyday use and petrol backup for longer trips.
America’s war on Iran is obviously a key factor in driving this behavioural shift, and it will be interesting to see how things change if and when petrol prices start falling again. But the longer that the situation in the Middle East drags on without a resolution, the more likely it is that demand for plug-in cars will harden to become a permanent demand.
Good month, bad month
Although the overall market was up by 7%, plenty of big-name brands were a long way off the pace in May.
It was a good month for Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Alpine, BYD, Citroën, Jaecoo, Leapmotor, Lotus, Maserati, Mini, Omoda, Smart, Suzuki, Tesla and Xpeng. All of these brands outperformed the overall market by at least 10%, meaning they grew by at least 17% on last May’s performances.
Meanwhile, it wasn’t a great month for BMW, Dacia, DS Automobiles, Fiat, Ford, Genesis, GWM, Honda, Hyundai, Ineos, Jeep, KGM, Lexus, Maxus, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Peugeot, SEAT, Skoda, Subaru and Toyota. All of these brands underperformed against the overall market by at least 10%, meaning that they saw sales falling by at least 3%.
That means that the following brands were about where we’d expect them to be: Audi, Cupra, Kia, Land Rover, MG, Polestar, Porsche, Renault, Vauxhall, Volkswagen and Volvo. All of these brands were within 10% (plus or minus) of the overall market result, which is quite normal.
Volkswagen was, as usual, the best-selling brand in the UK, comfortably ahead of Audi, Kia, BMW and Vauxhall. However, Chery Group’s three connected brands (Chery, Jaecoo, Omoda), which currently operate as one collective brand, would be placed second if they were counted together.
Jaecoo had the largest absolute growth, increasing its sales compared to last year by more than 3,500 cars – a 210% increase. Going in the other direction, the biggest loser by volume was Nissan, registering 2,000 fewer cars in May (down 30%) than in the same month last year.
Chinese brands (not including Western brands that build cars in China, such as Tesla or Volvo) saw growth of about 13,500 units compared to last May, which was comfortably more than the overall market growth of 10,600 units. That means that established brands were collectively down by 2% compared to last year, which shows how the market growth is actually Chinese brands displacing more familiar names.
The China-on-China battle is also getting more heated. Jaecoo outsold BYD for the first time (despite BYD’s numbers being up 70%), helped by the fact that Jaecoo now has more than one model contributing proper volume. Chery outsold Omoda, Geely registered more than 1,000 cars despite not existing here this time last year, and Leapmotor went from fewer than 100 registrations to more than 900. And as these new brands start fighting each other harder, it will put everyone else under even more pressure.
Ford Puma stays on top
The Ford Puma has extended its lead in the 2026 new car sales race with another best-selling month in May. It finished the month comfortably ahead of its usual rival, the Kia Sportage. The Vauxhall Corsa recorded a strong month in third place, just ahead of the Jaecoo 7.
Both Volkswagen (Golf and Tiguan) and Vauxhall (Corsa and Frontera) had two models in the top ten in May.
For more on the top ten, you can read our more detailed analysis.
