5 July 2022
Sales of MG and Dacia models are rocketing as the cost-of-living crisis continues to fuel demand for small and affordable cars, says The Car Expert.
Despite a year-to-date drop in overall new car sales of 12% compared to the first half of last year, according to the latest figures from the SMMT, sales of cars to consumers are up by over 4%.
While many mainstream and premium manufacturers struggle to sell cars due to faltering demand and supply chain issues, sales of electric vehicles continue to surge, reaching a market share of over 16% in June and over 14% for the year-to-date.
“Although there’s been a lot of disappointment surrounding the government axing the plug-in car grant, the reality is that demand for electric cars is still greater than what the manufacturers can supply. If supply was not such a significant hurdle, we could easily see an EV market share of over 20%” commented Stuart Masson, Editorial Director at The Car Expert.
The rising popularity of smaller, greener and cheaper vehicles has seen UK brand MG increase its sales by over 84% so far this year. Another value brand, Dacia, has experienced a sales boon of nearly 76%, and the compact Vauxhall Corsa city car is the best seller so far this year.
“It is really encouraging to see that the consumer market for new cars is actually doing better than is being reported. It is easy to paint a picture of negativity about the overall reduction in sales, but with more people buying electric cars than ever before and small, affordable vehicles proving popular with consumers, there’s a lot to celebrate as well,” continued Stuart.
“The two ends of the car-buying spectrum are thriving: on the one hand cheaper, smaller cars are doing very well, and on the other, luxury brands like Bentley and Porsche are booming.”
“As we saw during the financial crisis more than 10 years ago, the current squeeze on the cost of living is opening the door to new brands that represent great value. Back then, Hyundai and Kia were the beneficiaries and are now well established, this time around both MG and Dacia may emerge as popular options in the long term.”
Manufacturers are also prioritising their most profitable cars due to parts supply issues, meaning some brands are halting orders on popular vehicles, including Ford which is limiting sales of its popular Fiesta and Focus models among others.
While consumer sales are up, sales to fleets have dropped by over 26% in the year-to-date, which means the overall market is still down. That is likely to mean that used car prices will remain high in the long term as the ongoing shortage of new cars flows into the used car market.
ENDS
The Car Expert
Founded in 2011, The Car Expert is the UK’s most comprehensive automotive consumer advice site. With an audience of over two million readers a year, The Car Expert provides independent and impartial advice on every aspect of buying, financing, owning, and selling new or used vehicles.
The Rotten Tomatoes equivalent for the automotive world, The Car Expert consolidates reviews from 30 of the UK’s top automotive websites to create the Expert Rating Index. Bringing together science and data analysis, the index calculates a weighted average to give an aggregated score – Expert Rating – that is comparable across different brands and models.
The Expert Rating Index factors in the age of each review, so that newer reviews carry more weight than older reviews. It also breaks down the complex web of different scoring systems that various websites use in their reviews.
The Car Expert has logged over 12,000 reviews covering more than 400 cars and over 50 manufacturers, with its Expert Rating Index now trusted as the gold standard for rating and ranking new cars in the UK.
To find out more, please visit: https://www.thecarexpert.co.uk/
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