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Scrappage deals boost September sales to 11pc improvement
publication date: Oct 7, 2009
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author/source: Robin Roberts
 | | | New car sales shot up 11pc in September compared to a poor month a year ago, thanks to the scrappage scheme.
The
scrappage scheme pushed up registrations to over 367,900 with private
sales in particular jumping to a remarkable 57.4pc as buyers went for
the 59-plates. One in five new registrations followed a car being
scrapped.
“New car registrations rose for the third month in a row in September.
Market conditions remain challenging with demand being underpinned by
the extremely successful scrappage incentive scheme,” said Paul
Everitt, SMMT chief executive.
“The extension of the scheme will help to sustain demand through the
latter part of this year and into 2010. This will allow economic
recovery to strengthen and safeguard valuable industrial capability.”
David Raistrick, UK Manufacturing Leader at Deloitte, said the boost was very positive for the industry.
“Today we’ve seen the third consecutive month of growth in new car
registration figures, with an increase of 11.4pc. September is an
important month for new car registration figures given the demand for
new number plates; hence it is critically important that the figures
have risen significantly.
“The 11.4pc rise in new car registrations exceeds market expectations
and is a much more promising increase than the previous two months’ 6pc
and 2.7pc rises, giving hope that the industry is on the slow road to
recovery.
“Reports suggest that scrappage currently accounts for almost 25pc of
new car sales and this has no doubt added to September’s increased
registration figures. It is a relief for the industry that the scheme
has been extended. The extension of an extra 100,000 vehicles will
hopefully maintain the momentum that the automotive sector needs to
achieve a long lasting recovery.”
Commenting on the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) new
car registration figures out this morning, Marc Summers, auto director
at KPMG, said,
"The importance to the car retail industry of the expansion of the
scrappage scheme in the UK by another £100m of government support is
further underlined by the decrease of 23pc in new registrations in the
US in September when the scrappage scheme there ended.
"These contrasting figures between the UK and US markets clearly
demonstrate that the car industry is far from over the economic crisis
and that the rollercoaster of a year will continue into next year.
“Within the UK and European markets, given the success of the scrappage
schemes, carmakers are planning for a slight downturn in car volumes in
2010 across major European countries and hence production plans will
reflect this in the medium term with an accelerated focus on product
development to ensure original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) have the
right product mix to gain market share and position themselves for the
upturn.
"It is likely that the car industry, void of government support, will
only start to improve in line with the general economy as employment
rises and companies revive their company car schemes.
"Given this backdrop, it is clear that the industry still needs
continued government support in the short-term to allow it to meet its
medium-term goals."
Good though the figures were for September the total is still 51,361 units off the September 2007 high.
Ford gained volume and share with the Fiesta (above) top seller, but second placed Vauxhall saw overall
sales dip below September 2008. Land-Rover and Volvo saw its share
climb but Jaguar, Mercedes-Benz, Audi and Lexus slipped backwards in
the premium brands. Hyundai and Kia more than doubled registrations
with Mazda, Honda, Toyota, Nissan and Subaru also improving but
Mitsubishi and Suzuki slightly slipped.
The SMMT expected a more modest improvement last month and is delighted
by the additional sales which surpassed the March total by 54,107,
although it acknowledges that sales will not peak again this year.
With scrappage sales now accounting for about a fifth of new business
the running tally of private sales this year is now within 2pc of last
year’s level.
Small car registrations went up almost 200pc in September as buyers
looked to dramatically cut costs with cleaner and more economical cars
and Ford Fiesta continued to hold onto the top spot.
With more alternative fuelled models now available their sales climbed
45.5pc, helping push down the average emissions to 150.2gkm, nearly
21pc better than two years ago, with petrol engine models seeing sales
climb 20pc in the month while diesels slipped back. |
| Top ten best sellers in September | | UK | | | Wales | 1 Ford Fiesta
| 22,635 | | | Ford Fiesta
| 1,591 | 2 Vauxhall Corsa
| 16,370 | | | Ford Focus
| 586 | 3 Ford Focus
| 13,622 | | | Vauxhall Corsa
| 523 | 4 Vauxhall Astra
| 13,190 | | | Vauxhall Astra
| 393 | 5 VW Golf
| 11,787 | | | VW Golf
| 348 | 6 Peugeot 207
| 9,161 | | | Peugeot 207
| 344 | 7 Mini
| 8,634 | | | Toyota Yaris
| 339 | 8 BMW 3 Series
| 7,465 | | | Hyundai i10
| 336 | 9 Toyota Yaris
| 6,896 | | | Ford Ka
| 332 | 10 BMW 1 Series
| 6,671 | | | Mazda 2
| 305 |
| Confidence and business is weak in the van and bus market |
"Business confidence remains fragile in
the commercial vehicle sector despite an increase in registrations at
the heavy end of the market," said Paul Everitt, SMMT chief executive.
"As
anticipated, September registrations were given a temporary boost, by
both the new '59 plate and the end of availability of Reduced Pollution
Certificates for Euro 4 and 5 trucks. This demonstrates the positive
effect a small incentive can have on the market but does not yet signal
an end to the severe impact of the recession."
He was commenting after the latest registration figures showed a collapse in cv sales.
• Registrations: 34,904 in September. 234,325 for the rolling year, down 37.9%.
• Trucks: 6,522 in September. 42,127 for the rolling year, down 28.3%.
• Vans: 28,382 for the month. 192,198 for the rolling year, down 39.7%.
• Big buses down 4.9% at Q3 2009 on Q3 2008.
• Annualised trend in big coach registrations may stabilise at 600 units.
• Order context and outlook is poor; uncertain period anticipated ahead.
"In
September, all bus and coach segments fell short of 2008 volumes with
the market down almost a third, despite the plate change," said Paul
Everitt SMMT chief executive. "On the back of a good order book meaning
year-to-date registrations are down only fractionally, this marks the
start of a period of uncertainty in the sector." |
| Is scrappage really good for the environment? asks one commentator |
The true environmental impact of the boom in new car registrations is being questioned.
Energy
consumption building new models and disposing of old ones can offset
some of the claimed emissions and pollution savings and recent research
show that people with new cars drive them further than those who have
ten year old models.
Despite evidence that the scheme is helping to
reduce car emissions, the public remain unconvinced that the reduction
in tailpipe emissions usually shown in the exchange of an old car for a
new car through the scheme actually completely counters the energy and
emissions created during the scrapping of the old vehicle and the
manufacture of the new one.
“The scheme is undoubtedly good for the
economy, but is the scheme for our environment?
|
 | "Our survey shows that
people aren’t convince it is,” explains the website’s editor, Faye
Sunderland (left).
“You have to bear in mind that the total energy
consumption of car use is on average 54.7 per cent higher than the
tank-to-wheel energy consumption alone,” she explains.
“It is
often presumed that those who scrap an old car and buy a new one will
exhibit the same or similar driving habits when they get behind the
wheel of their new purchase, while research from the Netherlands has
shown that the average yearly distance driven by cars 10 years or older
is less than half that of a new car. | | | | Owning a new car encourages
motorists to use their cars more, so arguably the fuel efficiency of
the new car needs to be twice that of the old car for the scheme to
make environmental sense.
“You have to look at the whole picture;
including individual car use, whether a new car is lower in emissions
and consider whether there is a better option for your old car like
proper maintenance or a hybrid or LPG retrofit.
While an undoubted
success, which we have welcomed on the grounds that we hope to see the
carmakers invest profits made through the scheme back into research and
development on the next generation of low emission cars, the public
quite rightly remain sceptical of its current environmental benefits,”
she concluded. | | | |
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