Revealed: Britain’s bestselling cars of 2015

UK new car registrations hit an all-time record in 2015, according to the latest trade industry figures.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said 2.63 million cars were sold in 2015, up 6.3% on 2014 – beating the previous record of 2.58 million set in 2003.

“Buyers took advantage of attractive finance deals and low inflation to secure some of the most innovative, high tech and fuel efficient vehicles ever produced,” said the SMMT’s Mike Hawes.

The Ford Fiesta was  the UK bestseller for the seventh successive year, though the new Vaxuhall Corsa managed to nudge the Ford Focus down to third place.

In the wake of the diesel emissions scandal, Volkswagen car sales fell by 0.4% in December compared with the same month in 2014. However, this was nowhere near as bad as the 20% decrease in registrations during November.

For the year as a whole, VW sales were up by 4.2% compared with 2014.

Most manufactures had record-breaking years. For instance, Jeep sold more vehicles in the UK than in the four years of 2011 to 2014 combined, while Jaguar Land Rover’s UK sales exceeded 100,000 for the first time ever.

Sales of all diesel cars during 2015 fell from 50.1% to 48.5%, while Alternatively Fuelled Vehicles (AFVs) grew 40.3%, securing the biggest ever market share of 2.8% for a year.