Ford was the UK market leader in total vehicle, car and CV registrations, achieving its highest February sales since 2004. Ford was also the clear leader in retail car sales with a sector share more than double that of its nearest rival, putting Ford in prime position heading into March, when sales increase significantly due to the registration plate change.
According to the official sales figures issued by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT):
- Ford leads UK overall, car and CV sales in February.
- Ford has four models in the top five best-selling vehicles (Fiesta 1st, Transit Custom 3rd, Focus 4th and Transit 5th).
- Ford car sales and share up in February.
- Fiesta leads February sales in its ninth year as the UK best seller.
- Fiesta leads retail sales with registrations more than four times those of its nearest rival.
- Ford CV sales and share up in February and for the year to date.
Andy Barratt, Ford of Britain chairman and managing director, said: “It’s been a record month and Ford’s long-standing market leadership is being consolidated by our growth in more profitable retail sales, supported by the industry’s most successful scrappage scheme so far.
“At the Geneva motor show this week there is further evidence of our investment in exciting products and industry-leading technologies, which drives our sales success. On show are the new Fiesta Active, new KA+ and KA+ Active, new Mustang and the special edition Mustang Bullitt, Edge ST-Line, and the Ford GT continues to take a starring role as our technological and performance flagship model.”
According to the official SMMT figures, February car sales in the UK were down 2.8 per cent at 80,805 registrations, compared with February 2017. Ford reversed the industry trend with car sales up 21.6 per cent compared with the same period in 2017. Ford sold 12,046 cars, of which 6,563 were retail sales, securing 18.5 per cent of the retail segment, more than double that of its nearest rival. Ford’s retail share increased more than four percentage points this month compared with a 14.4 per cent retail car sales share in February 2017 and, for the year to date, Ford’s retail car sales share is up from 13.2 to 15.7 per cent, compared with the same period in 2017.
Fiesta’s February registrations of 5,201 again made it the clear UK best-seller. This sales total would place it fifth among the top-selling car manufacturers, meaning that Fiesta, on its own, outsells the car ranges of all but four of Ford’s rival car makers. At 3,461, Fiesta’s retail sales were more than four times those of its nearest rival.
Ford’s broad customer appeal across its car range is demonstrated by Fiesta, B-MAX, Focus, C-MAX, Kuga, Mustang and Galaxy all occupying top three places in their respective market segments in February.
UK light commercial vehicle sales in February were up 6.4 per cent at 14,135, compared with February 2017. Total sales of Ford LCV sales were up 30.2 per cent at 5,414, compared with February 2017. Ford’s LCV share in February was 38.3 per cent, up from 31.28 for the same period in 2017. Ford strengthened its sales leadership position this month, out-selling its nearest rival with a sales volume over three times that of its closest competitor.
Ford’s CV models are a success across the whole range with Transit Courier, Transit Connect, Transit Custom, Transit and Ranger all placed at the top of their respective market segments. Ranger sales continued to strengthen, up almost 50 per cent, to over 500 sales, compared to February 2017, leading the growing pickup segment with over 33 per cent of the segment share.
