Ford Fiesta leads UK car sales

Ford Fiesta leads UK car sales

Ford Fiesta leads UK car sales

Ford Fiesta leads UK car sales

Ford Fiesta leads UK car sales

Ford Fiesta leads UK car sales

Ford Fiesta leads UK car sales

Ford Fiesta leads UK car sales

Ford Fiesta leads UK car sales

• Fiesta tops sales charts

• Supermini market grows to 34.2 per cent of overall sales

• Diesel cars increase market share to 52.4 per cent

The Ford Fiesta was the best-selling model in July and remains the best-selling car of 2011.

It leads a growth in the popularity of supermini models, which accounted for 34.2 per cent of all cars sold last month.

Diesel models have again increased in popularity, accounting for 52.4 per cent of sales in July. Despite being more expensive to buy than the petrol equivalent, customers are increasingly conscious of the extra fuel economy they can provide.

The most popular diesel model in July was the Vauxhall Insignia, followed by the Volkswagen Golf.

Overall new car sales were down 3.5 per cent in July as a result of the economic downturn, with a total of 131,634 models registered.

Businesses helped to support the market, however, with fleet sales up by 2.1 per cent in July and by 3.3 per cent so far this year.

“New car registration figures fell marginally by 3.5% to 131,634 units in July, reflecting the impact of slower economic growth and subdued consumer confidence,” said Paul Everitt, SMMT Chief Executive.

“Robust demand in the fleet sector helped to bolster weaker private demand. While the coming months remain challenging, performance in the second half of 2011 is expected to keep the market on course to reach around 1.93 million units.”

July 2011 sales figures:

Ford Fiesta – 6,695

Ford Focus – 6,235

Vauxhall Corsa – 5,122

Volkswagen Golf – 4,272

Vauxhall Astra – 4,084

Vauxhall Insignia – 4,037

BMW 3 Series – 3,693

Volkswagen Polo – 3,684

Nissan Qashqai – 3,391

Volkswagen Passat – 2,514