Record Levels Of New Reg Plates Registrations

David Crawford, Chief Executive Officer of the Motor Industry Association says “Registration of 10,635 vehicles for the month of April confirms robust growth in the new vehicle sector which continues to perform above market expectations. It could have been even greater if it were not for supply constraints faced by some distributors. Year to date the new vehicle sector is 13% (5,804 units) ahead of this time last year with 50,059 vehicles registered compared to 44,210 to the end of April 2016.”

Passenger car and SUV registrations of 6,996 units were marginally up 3.0% (207 units) above April 2016. There were 3,639 commercial vehicle registrations for the month of April, strongly up by 15.5% (489 units) on April 2016. It was the strongest month of April on record for the registration of new commercial vehicles.

Toyota remains the overall market leader with 17% market share (1,771 units), followed by Ford with 12% (1,267 units) and Holden with 8% market share (865 units).

Toyota was also the market leader for passenger and SUV registrations with 14% market share (961 units) followed by Mazda with 10% (710 units) and Hyundai with 8% market share (562 units). The top selling passenger and SUV models for the month were the Mazda CX-5 (264 units) followed by the Kia Sportage (250 units) and the Toyota RAV4 (237 units).

In the commercial sector, Toyota was again the market leader with 22% (810 units) followed by Ford with 21% (768 units) and Holden a distant third with 9% market share (322 units).

For the month of April, the Ford Ranger remains at the top of the bestselling vehicle model table with 698 units followed by the Toyota Hilux in second with 571 units and the Holden Colorado with 312 units. Year to date the top three selling models are Ford Ranger with 2,912 units followed by the Toyota Hilux with 2,289 units and the Toyota Corolla with 1,546 units.

For the month of April the top five vehicle segments were dominated by SUV’s and Utes (Pick Up/Chassis Cab), the SUV medium segment being the most dominant with 16% share (1,743 units) followed by Pick Up/Chassis Cab 4x4 with 15% (1,560 units), the SUV large with 12% (1,251 units), the SUV Compact with 12% (1,247 units) and the Pick Up/Chassis Cab 4x2 on 10% (1,112 units).

“Monthly registrations of 10,635 vehicles were the strongest month of April on record, and only the second time since the MIA began collecting data that the month of April has surpassed 10,000 units, the other time was way back in 1982” said Mr Crawford.

So what are the top selling number plates in the UK? The DVLA has been selling private plates to UK motorists since 1989. During this time, there have been a number of records set, but most of the top 10 have been bought in the past 15 years. Here’s what currently makes the list:

25 0 – A Ferrari dealer bought this for £518k in 2014. It is now on a £10 million Ferrari 250 SWB.
F 1 – A businessman, Afzal Khan, bought this for £440k in 2008 and put it on his McLaren-Mercedes SLR.
S 1 – This was bought in 2008 for £404k by an anonymous buyer.
1 D – Businessman Nabil Bishara bought this plate in 2009 (before One Direction was formed, so it is not a reference to the band) for £352k.
M 1 – Businessman Mike McCoomb bought this number plate in 2006 for £331k, apparently for his son, who was 10 at the time.
VIP 1 – Chelsea owner and businessman Roman Abramovich bought this plate for £285k in 2006.
51 NGH – This number plate, which looks like the surname Singh, was sold in 2006 for £254k.
1 RH – Businessman Robert Haverson bought this in 2006 for £247k.
K1 NGS – This reg plate, which looks like the word “kings”, was bought anonymously in 1993 for £231k.
1 0 – This very simple but striking number plate was bought anonymously in 2009 for £170k.

These are large amounts of money, but they are all small compared to the top-selling number plates found in other parts of the world. Abu Dhabi, in the UAE, has the record for the most expensive number plate ever sold. That number plate was a simple “1”. It was bought in 2008 by businessman Saeed Abdul Ghaffar Khouri for £7.25 million.

number plates