The UK recorded its worst 12 months for automotive gross sales in 30 years in 2022, official figures have confirmed.
Gross sales of 1.61million motors final 12 months is the bottom since 1992, the Society of Motor Producers and Merchants mentioned on Thursday.
It blamed a ‘very tough 12 months’ for the business on provide shortages of semiconductor chips from locked-down China and different elements from elsewhere, together with Ukraine which spent most of 2022 at battle with Russia.
Nevertheless, there was some excellent news for the UK motor sector, with Nissan’s Qashqai topped the UK’s best-selling automotive of final 12 months – the primary time a British-built automobile has secured the highest slot since 1998.
New automotive gross sales slip to a 30-year low: Simply 1.61million motors had been registered within the UK in 2022, which is the bottom quantity since 1992, official information have confirmed immediately
The year-end figures from the SMMT revealed that 1.61million vehicles had been offered in a ‘subdued’ 2022 – a 2 per cent fall on pandemic-afflicted 2021 as provide shortages continued to place a stranglehold on deliveries of recent motors regardless of substantial shopper demand.
Whole gross sales had been round 700,000 vehicles fewer than had been offered in pre-Covid 2019, when registrations exceeded 2.3million models.
However the UK did reclaim its place as Europe’s second largest market overtaking arch-rival France to safe the runner-up slot behind Germany.
The SMMT warned that though the scarcity of semiconductors is anticipated to ease as provide chains start to stabilise, continued ‘erratic’ provide will doubtless impression manufacturing all through 2023.
The latest market outlook, printed in October 2022, predicts round 1.8 million new automotive registrations in 2023, value round £8.4billion in further turnover.
The SMMT mentioned: ‘Constrained provide noticed many producers prioritise deliveries of the newest zero emission succesful fashions.’
Chief government Mike Hawes described 2022 as ‘a really tough 12 months’ however highlighted indicators that offer issues are ‘starting to ease’.
He mentioned: ‘Producers have actually struggled to have the ability to make the autos in enough portions, primarily because of semiconductor shortages.
‘Lockdowns in China haven’t helped, excessive logistics prices, extra stress on uncooked supplies.’
Mike Hawes, chief government on the SMMT, mentioned automotive makers have actually struggled to have the ability to make the autos in enough portions, ‘primarily because of semiconductor shortages’
Mr Hawes continued: ‘The automotive market stays adrift of its pre-pandemic efficiency however may nicely buck wider financial developments by delivering vital progress in 2023.
‘To safe that progress – which is more and more zero emission progress – authorities should assist all drivers go electrical and compel others to speculate extra quickly in nationwide charging infrastructure.’
He careworn: ‘Producers’ innovation and dedication have helped EVs develop into the second hottest automotive kind. Nevertheless, for a nation aiming for electrical mobility management, that should be matched with insurance policies and funding that take away shopper uncertainty over switching, not least over the place drivers can cost their autos.’
On the intense facet, the SMMT mentioned the UK new automotive market recorded its fifth consecutive month of progress in December, with an 18 per cent improve to achieve roughly 128,000 new registrations.
However the SMMT famous: ‘This second half 12 months efficiency was not sufficient, nevertheless, to offset the declines recorded in the course of the first half of 2022.’
It has however put the UK on observe for a predicted 15 per cent rise in gross sales this 12 months – value between £8.4billion and £10billion throughout 2023 – regardless of fears of a recession and an financial downturn, sector bosses added.
Commenting on the figures, Jim Holder, editorial director of shopper journal What Automobile?, mentioned: ‘Regardless of the robust efficiency for the second half of the 12 months, 2022 completed behind 2021 and nicely under the pre-pandemic years, demonstrating simply how detrimental the supply-side shortages and ongoing power and price of residing disaster have been on the sector.’
‘Electrical automobile gross sales grew to become the success story for the business final 12 months, outperforming diesel for the primary time ever. The problem for 2023 is sustaining that progress because the power and price of residing disaster continues.’
Lisa Watson, gross sales director at Shut Brothers Motor Finance, added: ‘Trying ahead into 2023, automobile suppliers needs to be higher geared up to handle disruption and useful resource points, which is able to assist to alleviate the present backlog of orders.
‘Current progress also needs to assist to chill the file excessive costs of second-hand vehicles.’
Chris Knight, UK automotive companion at accountants KPMG, mentioned: ‘Regardless of the price of residing disaster, we enter the 12 months with new automotive registrations on the up and one in 5 shoppers with financial savings telling KPMG that they nonetheless plan on shopping for a automobile in 2023’.
‘An additional easing of world half shortages because the 12 months progresses will proceed to spice up new automotive provide. The query stays how a lot a rising price of residing will impression demand in the long run.’
Nissan has celebrated the Qashqai formally changing into the UK’s most-sold new automotive by making a gold-wrapped one-off particular
Nissan Qashqai tops gross sales charts
The Sunderland-built Qashqai household crossover was the most well-liked automotive out of showrooms final 12 months – even towards a background of part-supply shortages and a price of residing disaster within the wake of the worldwide Covid pandemic.
TOP 10 BEST-SELLING CARS OF 2022
Not solely is it the primary time ever that the Japanese model has the UK’s best-selling mannequin, the Qashqai has develop into the primary British-made motor to safe the crown because the nation’s favorite for the reason that Mk4 Fiesta in 1998.
This record consists of three Fords, a pair of Korean newcomers and final 12 months’s favorite, the Vauxhall Corsa.
Priced from £26,045, greater than 40,000 Qashqais had been offered to UK clients.
It completed simply forward of the second-place Vauxhall Corsa, which was the best-seller of 2021.
A big festive-season cargo of pure electrical Teslas to the UK – accounting for round one in eight of all automotive gross sales throughout final month – noticed the Mannequin Y catapult up the order to the third best-selling automobile in 2022.
The US model sometimes delivers a boat-full of recent vehicles on the finish of every quarter, nevertheless the variety of Mannequin Y autos arriving in December was sufficient to maneuver it up from ninth within the gross sales charts on the finish of November.
The inflow of Tesla vehicles additionally propelled the proportion of general electrical automobile gross sales for the month to a best-ever market share of round a 3rd.
Nevertheless, business chiefs mentioned this was ‘an anomaly’ with electrical vehicles accounting for round one-in-six registrations for the 12 months in full – which is projected to rise to a fifth of all new automotive gross sales in 2023.
It means electrical automotive gross sales have for the primary time exceeded these of diesel, and are second solely to petrol.
Lack of charging infrastructure threatens EV uptake
Automobile bosses additionally warned that ministers risked stalling demand for electrical vehicles – significantly amongst personal patrons – until it accelerated the roll-out of public charging factors that are lagging behind plug-in automobile gross sales.
They referred to as for a ‘vital ratcheting up of funding’ in public charging infrastructure in gentle of the chaos seen at charging websites throughout the UK over the Christmas break, which resulted in some drivers ready over three hours to plug their Teslas into a tool.
Poor provision of charging factors stays ‘a barrier’ to additional EV uptake, mentioned the SMMT noting: ‘The federal government’s EV Infrastructure Technique forecast that the UK would require between 300,000 and 720,000 charge-points by 2030.
‘Assembly simply the decrease quantity would nonetheless require greater than 100 new chargers to be put in each single day. The present fee is round 23 per day.’
It careworn: ‘Accelerated funding in charging infrastructure is required if shoppers are to be assured they’ll make the swap.’
A big festive-season cargo of pure electrical Teslas to the UK noticed the Mannequin Y (pictured) catapult up the order to the third best-selling automobile in 2022
Business bosses warned that regardless of a rising market share, the Authorities is threatening a future improve in gross sales of EVs by not investing sufficient in public charging infrastructure
All plug-in electrical autos taken collectively accounted for multiple in 5 (22.8 per cent) of recent registrations in 2022 – a brand new file excessive, though the speed of improve has been slowing, say automotive bosses (in 2020, the market share was 10.7 per cent and 2021 18.6 per cent).
Consequently, common new automotive CO2 fell by 6.9 per cent to 111.4g/km – the bottom in historical past.
The SMMT famous that whereas personal patrons accounted for greater than half of all new automotive registrations, fleets and enterprise patrons secured ‘the lion’s share’ of battery electrical autos, accounting for 2 thirds (66.7 per cent) of all fully-electric registrations and three-quarters (74.7 per cent) of elevated quantity in 2022.
The federal government is to ban gross sales of recent petrol and diesel vehicles and vans within the UK from 2030, however the SMMT didn’t consider potential chaos brought on by too few charging-points would persuade ministers to place the brakes on their plans.
Producers additionally face a Zero Emission Automobile Mandate from 2024 – particulars of which have but to be printed by the federal government – which is more likely to impose extra constraints.
The commerce physique additionally warned that plans to introduce Automobile Excise Obligation (VED) on pure electrical vehicles from 2025 – with the identical ‘premium’ threshold as inner combustion-engine vehicles – may disproportionately penalise these shifting to electrical vehicles.
