UK SALES - FORD - The Blue Oval continues to dominate the UK market for nearly four decades.

Ford strengthened its UK market lead in 2014 while recording 38 consecutive years of car sales leadership and 49 years of UK commercial vehicle (CV) sales leadership.  Ford’s sales lead increased in all sectors: total vehicle, cars and commercial vehicles.

Highlights of the official full-year 2014 figures issued today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) include:

• Ford is the number one UK car brand for 38 successive years.
• Ford commercial vehicles have been the UK's favourite for 49 years.
• Ford CV sales and share up in 2014, LCV share up from 10.1 to 18.9 per cent.
• Fiesta is the UK best seller for the sixth successive year.
• Focus is second in total vehicle sales, Transit nameplate sales would be fourth.
• Fiesta sales exceed the total sales of all but five rival car makers.

Mark Ovenden, Ford of Britain chairman and managing director, said:  "Ford’s commitment has been consistently to provide UK customers with the best vehicle range and after-sales support supplied through the strongest dealer network.  Our long-standing market leadership is the reward for delivering on this promise.

“In 2014, Ford extended its sales lead in a fiercely competitive market and launched a number of award-winning vehicles and technologies. In 2015, following the recent launches of the new Focus and Mondeo, we will be strengthening our vehicle range further with new Focus ST, S-MAX, Mustang and Vignale models and providing a transformed customer experience in partnership with our dealers, who invested significantly in their dealerships during 2014, with more planned in 2015."

According to the official SMMT figures, full year car sales in the UK in 2014 were up 9.4 per cent at 2,476,435 registrations, compared with 2013.  Ford sold 326,643 cars in the UK last year, up from 310,865 in 2013.  Ford’s car sales lead in 2014, over its nearest rival, increased by 10 per cent to 57,466.

Ford Fiesta’s total registrations of 131,254 in 2014, up from 121,929 in 2013, made it the UK best-seller by a significant margin.  This sales total would place it seventh in the list of top-selling car manufacturers, meaning that Fiesta on its own outsells the car ranges of all but five of Ford’s rival car makers.

Ford’s broad customer appeal across its car range is demonstrated by Fiesta, B-MAX, Focus, C-MAX, Kuga and Galaxy all being placed in the top three in their respective market segments.

Ford Transit has led the UK CV sector from its launch in 1965 and Ford’s CV range secured a 23.5 per cent share in 2014, up from 20.9 per cent in 2013.  Ford’s CV sales lead of 52,884 in 2014 increased by 27.6 per cent compared with 2013, while Ford’s UK total vehicle 2014 sales lead of 109,075 units was up by 18 per cent compared with 2013.

The full availability of Ford’s extended CV family helped deliver Ford light commercial sales and share increases in 2014 (18,030 and 18.9 per cent versus 9,482 and 10.1 per cent in 2013).  In the new Ford light commercial range, the Ford Transit Courier has quickly taken leadership in its segment, joining the Ford Fiesta Van as further LCV segment leader for Ford.

The December registration figures released by the SMMT show that UK car sales were up by 8.7 per cent at 166,198 units, compared with December 2013.  Ford car sales were 20,509, up from 19,496 in December 2013.

UK commercial vehicle sales in December were down 10.6 per cent at 29,389, compared with December 2013.  Total sales of Ford CVs were up 25.3 per cent at 6,359, compared with December 2013.  Ford light commercials increased sales and share in December, compared with December 2013, up from 437 to 1,827 registrations and from 6.8 to 27.4 per cent, respectively.