Sales of newcomer Chinese car brands led the market in an otherwise flat October market.
BYD saw a 349% increase in sales to 3,499 units while Omoda saw sales accelerate 142% to 2,102 units for the month.
Cupra turned in a strong performance in October with registrations up 66% to 3,335 units, followed by Japanese brand Suzuki, up 65% to 1,462 units for the month.
Polestar was also on a run, up 64% to 1,248 units for the month.
At the other end of the table new entrants to the market new entrants were beginning to make inroads. Xpend sold 140 units, Skywell 2, Maxus 2, Leapmotor 856, Jaecoo 2,851 and Chery 1,263 and Changan 73.
Some players found the going tough. DS sold 14 cars, Abarth 12, Genesis 54, Fiat 296 and GWM 20.
According to the figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers & Trader, the latest quarterly industry outlook anticipates the overall new car market for 2025 will top two million units (2.012 million) for the first time since pre-pandemic 2019.
BEVs are expected to account for 23.3% of uptake. For 2026, the overall market is expected to reach 2.032 million units, a moderate improvement on the previous outlook, with the BEV outlook maintained at 28.2%.
The SMMT said while this would represent “exceptional progress”, it would still fall short of mandated targets for 2026, which call for zero emission vehicles to comprise one in three new car registrations.
The gap is set to widen in 2027, with BEV share anticipated to hit 32.2% against a 38% target.
