Automotive market update - October: Manufacturers have work to do to hit EV targets

Welcome to the third in our new series of monthly market insight articles, where we provide a snapshot of what’s happening in the UK automotive market. Each month, we highlight key industry updates and trends, including electric vehicle (EV) adoption, plus our vehicle leasing insights.

Here our Managing Director Kelly Marshall gives her take on October’s performance.

What's happening with new car sales in the UK?

Electric car sales continued to rise in October, resulting in a 25.4% share of the market, according to The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), which publishes the new vehicle registration figures.

At Gateway2Lease, we consistently sell a high proportion of EVs and October was no different with EVs making up 41% of our lease rental sales.

Despite this positive uplift, the UK’s new electric car sales are still short of this year’s 28% Government target set by the zero emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate so car manufacturers have a lot of work to do.

Overall, the SMMT said that the market “held steady”, with registrations rising by 0.5% to reach 144,948 units. But, in my view, that level of growth is negligible and we would like to see a stronger end to the year.

As a broker, our reach across corporate, SME and employee markets, gives us a powerful platform to help OEMs accelerate zero emission uptake and move the dial on decarbonisation.

What does that mean for consumers and businesses?

We expect to see tactical discounting and extra incentives from OEMs to help close the gap, and as a leasing broker operating in the fleet, business and, in partnership with the Electric Car Scheme, the salary sacrifice market, we are uniquely placed to take commitments and support with the challenge.

Do October’s most popular new cars match with our sales?

The Ford Puma appears in both the SMMT’s top 10 best-selling cars in October and our own most popular models for that month.

When it comes to Chinese brands, the Jaecoo 7 made it into the SMMT’s listing, while both Omoda and Jaecoo are in our top 10.

The differences in the SMMT’s listing and our listing are partly because we take advantage of tactical offers, and our listing is for all business written, including salary sacrifice cars through our partner The Electric Car Scheme, and certain models perform particularly well in that channel.

The UK’s top 10 best-selling cars in October

1. Ford Puma
2. Kia Sportage
3. MINI Cooper
4. Volkswagen Golf
5. Nissan Juke
6. Jaecoo 7
7. Nissan Qashqai
8. Volkswagen Tiguan
9. Vauxhall Corsa
10. Audi A3

Gateway2Lease’s top 10 most popular cars in October

1. MG HS
2. Tesla Model 3
3. Dacia Spring
4. Tesla Model Y
5. Ford Puma Gen-E
6. Omoda E5
7. Hyundai Tucson
8. Jaecoo 5
9. Nissan Qashqai
10. Renault 5

What’s happening in the UK fleet market?

Fleet registrations fell by 1.5% in October compared to October 2024. However, if you combine fleet and business registrations, which gives a fuller picture of the market, the numbers were actually up 3.5%.

Our business leases, including salary sacrifice through The Electric Car scheme, were up about 45% in October compared to the same time last year.

What’s next for new car sales in November?

November is typically a slower month but with the ZEV mandate pressure increasing it will be interesting to see what deals are around in the market.

The Autumn Budget falls right at the end of the month (26 November) so the impact of any potential announcement around pay-per-mile charging for EVs is unlikely to be reflected in November’s sales.

Longer term, if that measure is introduced, it’s likely to affect the fleet market the most given the high mileages that company car drivers travel compared to your average motorist.