Infiniti grows with a new dealership in the South West of England, situated in Bristol, the hub of regional growth.

• New Infiniti centre to open in Bristol
• First Infiniti Service Partner to open in Exeter

Infiniti has announced the introduction of a new centre and a new service partner, to cover customer sales and aftersales requirements in the South West of England from January 2016.

Infiniti Centre Bristol, part of the Motorline Group, is expected to be operational from late January 2016. Located on the Bath Road the centre will utilise a temporary structure until the full redevelopment work, to meet with the Infiniti Retail Environment Design Initiative (IREDI) standards, has been completed.

Glen Obee, Chairman of Motorline Infiniti Centre Bristol, said: “We are pleased to be joining Infiniti at this time just as the brand is starting to introduce many new and exciting products into its portfolio. The Infiniti Q30 will appeal to a far wider audience and we are looking forward to welcoming our customers to the new car and the Infiniti Brand.”

Providing a ‘closer to home’ aftersales support service, Infiniti will be adding several Service Partners across the UK. These Partners are designed to complement the Infiniti centres by providing a more local aftersales service expected by both private and fleet customers.

The first aftersales support centre, opening up in January 2016, will be Service Partner Exeter. The facility will be incorporated within the Nissan JFE dealership located on Grace Rd, Central, Exeter and will provide a full customer support process for all Infiniti products. Personnel at the Service Centre have been specifically trained in the Infiniti customer service program to ensure the standards expected by Infiniti customers are continually maintained.

The new facilities join Infiniti just as the brand registers new sales performance records in the UK, as well as globally. In January 2016, the new Q30 Active Compact, produced in the Sunderland manufacturing plant, arrives in Infiniti showrooms and is available with four different engines, manual and automatic (dual clutch) transmissions and in both two or four wheel drive formats. Prices start from £20,550.

Later in 2016 the QX30 Active Crossover will arrive, providing a higher stance than the Q30 with more of an SUV like appearance. This will be followed by the two door sports coupe Q60, due to have its first global public exposure at this year’s Detroit Auto show.

UK SALES 2015 - Vauxhall has become the biggest retail brand for commercial vehicles in the UK..

• Brit-built Vivaro has best ever year, with sales up 42.2 per cent
• Movano sales up by 28 per cent with over 5,000 sold

Vauxhall Commercial Vehicles sold more vans to retail customers in 2015 than any other manufacturer, according to figures released today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.

In an extremely competitive segment of the market, the Luton-based manufacturer sold 13,000 vehicles to small businesses. As a result, Vauxhall’s retail market share was an impressive 16.2 per cent, up 1.8 percentage points on last year.

Total Vauxhall Commercial Vehicle sales were up 28 per cent with over 41,000 sold. Market share increased to 11.2 per cent, up a percentage point on 2014.

The Brit-built Vivaro enjoyed another successful year in 2015 with more than 27,000 units sold of the multi award-winning medium van. It was also the best-seller at retail. Movano, the largest van in Vauxhall’s range, saw sales increase 28 per cent with over 5,000 sold.

“We are delighted to be back in a segment-leading position,” said Richard Collier, Vauxhall’s National Commercial Vehicle Sales Manager. “Vauxhall continues to provide customers with compelling offers supported by high quality, fuel-efficient vehicles with low running costs and superb manufacturer support.”

Growth was seen across the board last year making it the best ever year for light commercial vehicles with 371,830 registrations, surpassing the previous record set in 2007.

UK SALES 2015 - MINI copies everyone else by having a record year in the UK, but only just.

• 63,581 registrations in 2015 – a record year for MINI UK driven by a strong retail sales performance
• 5-door Hatch and new MINI Clubman delivered 44 per cent increase in Corporate sales
• John Cooper Works performance brand achieved best performance since launch

MINI UK is today reporting a record sales year in 2015, with 63,581 full year registrations. The milestone represents MINI’s 6th year of consecutive growth in the United Kingdom, with vehicle registrations up 17.9 per cent on 2014, securing the brand 2.41 per cent of the market.

MINI 3-door Hatch remained the brand’s biggest selling model, closely followed by its 5-door sibling. In the first full calendar year of sales, 44,560 Hatch models were sold in 2015 (3-door Hatch 25,443, 5-door Hatch 19,117).

MINI’s performance brand, John Cooper Works, also celebrated a record year following the June launch of MINI John Cooper Works Hatch. The fastest production MINI ever built with a 0-62 time of just 6.1 seconds, 1,487 John Cooper Works Hatch models were sold last year. Total John Cooper Works sales across the range increased 134 per cent to 2,213 vehicles.

Ending the year in style, new MINI Clubman joined the model family in the last quarter of 2015. The largest and most refined MINI to date, Clubman contributed 1,676 registrations from its launch on 31st October. 2016 will see the first full calendar year of sales, with MINI Clubman expected to make further inroads into the retail and corporate market.

Overall corporate sales continued to drive the brand forward, with MINI 5-door Hatch delivering sustained growth. The brand recorded 44 per cent increase in sales to business and fleet customers, totaling 8,450 vehicles.

Chris Brownridge, Director, MINI UK, said: “2015 was a record busting year for MINI in the UK. Not only did MINI achieve its best ever retail and corporate sales performance, driven by new models including 5-door Hatch, but the John Cooper Works brand also achieved remarkable growth courtesy of the MINI John Cooper Works Hatch.

“With the recently launched MINI Clubman and the forthcoming MINI Convertible on sale in time for spring this year, 2016 is set to be another record breaking year for the brand.”

In March, the all-new MINI Convertible will launch in the UK. With major refinements against its predecessor, the car features a striking new design and significant enhancements to make open-topped MINI motoring even more dynamic, stylish and practical.

SCOTLAND SALES 2015 - Vauxhall, for the Eighth year running takes #1 for brand sales and #1 for model in 2015.

Vauxhall was the largest selling manufacturer in Scotland in 2015, a position it has held for the last eight years.

With almost 15 per cent of the overall market share in the region, the Corsa was also Scotland’s best-selling car with over 10,000 sold last year. The top-selling Corsa has been Scotland’s best-selling car for six out of the last seven years.

“The Scottish market is of great importance to Vauxhall,” said Gordon Hannen, Vauxhall’s Regional Operations Manager for Scotland. “We are delighted to be Scotland’s biggest-selling car manufacturer for the eighth year running and that Corsa is back where it belongs as Scotland’s best-selling car. We are confident the new Astra, in showrooms now, will contribute to Vauxhall holding its ranking at the top of the Scottish car charts.”

Meanwhile, the new Astra, launched last autumn, is already gaining ground on its rivals with first deliveries imminent. The Brit-built family hatchback’s recognition as 2015 Scottish Car of the Year at theAssociation of Scottish Motoring Writers’ annual awards cemented its success even further.

Vauxhall also took the Eco and Family car awards, while the company’s new VIVA drove away with the Compact car gong.

UK SALES 2015 - New MG has record sales, and with the new SUV coming shortly, this will surely grow significantly.

MG Motor UK finished 2015 on a fantastic high last year with December figures more than doubling those of the previous year; a success that came off the back of a number of great deals that were on offer to all new customers.

This year, MG has decided to start 2016 with a bang and offer not just one, but four incredible offers to its customers.

Those looking to buy a new car need look no further as, with the purchase of the super-fun MG3 or the fully-loaded MG6, customers will be entitled to some of the following offers:

£2,000 minimum part exchange – Following an incredible uptake by customers at the end of last year, this incredible offer has been extended until the end of January. Hundreds of customers took advantage of this deal when they exchanged their existing vehicle for a brand new MG at their local dealer. Those who thought they had missed out need only take their old car in, regardless of its make, model or age, and get £2,000 towards a new one.

One year’s free insurance – Everyone loves to save money, so when MG is offering one year’s free insurance on all new 2016 MG3 models, customers won’t be able to resist checking out these great superminis; particularly when the only thing to worry about for the next 12 months is adding fuel. Plus, this offer is also available in conjunction with the £250 Hilton voucher and 0% APR finance deal.

Free hotel break – There’s no better way to celebrate a new car than with a road trip. So, as well as their shiny new car, all MG customers will receive a £250 Hilton Hotel voucher for them to enjoy a weekend getaway.

0% APR finance – The popular deal is available on both the MG3 and MG6. Customers looking to spread the cost of buying their new car over a longer period, and avoid interest charges, will benefit from this great offer.

Matthew Cheyne, MG’s Head of Sales and Marketing, said: “December was a fantastic month for us. We sold 155 more cars in 2015 compared to 2014, which put us in the top five amongst other manufacturers for biggest growth in December. We are thrilled to be seeing these kind of figures for what would normally be a quiet month.

“Based on this success, and knowing that we are seeing more and more new customers, we’ve decided to extend some of these offers as well as introduce new ones. We think there’s something for everyone amongst our latest deals, so why not pop down to your local dealer and test drive one of our great cars.”

WORLDWIDE SALES 2015 - JLR continues to grow, with sales doubled over 2009, and expected to grow more.

• Jaguar Land Rover delivers best full year global sales retailing 487,065 vehicles in 2015, up 5%
• Sales have more than doubled since 2009
• Land Rover retails over 400,000 vehicles for first time, up 6% year-on-year
• Jaguar delivers strongest full year performance in a decade retailing 83,986 vehicles, up 3% year-on-year
• Record performance in UK, North America and Europe
• Global sales driven by award-winning product portfolio
• New and updated versions across the range

Jaguar Land Rover, the UK's leading manufacturer of premium luxury vehicles has achieved its best ever full year global sales performance in 2015, retailing 487,065 vehicles, up 5% on the prior year. This is the company’s 6^th successive year of growth in sales, with retails in 2015 more than double the 2009 figure.

Commenting on the full year performance Andy Goss, Jaguar Land Rover Group Sales Operations Director, said: “This has been a significant year for Jaguar Land Rover, with updated models being introduced across the range, as well as the addition to our portfolio of the completely new Jaguar XE and Land Rover Discovery Sport.

“Customer response has been extremely positive, resulting in record retails across UK, North America and Europe.  The appeal of our Jaguars and Land Rovers has also been recognised through over 95 global awards in 2015, including 15 for the Land Rover Discovery Sport and 19 for the Jaguar XE alone.  

2016 promises to be another exciting year, with the start of sales of the Range Rover Evoque Convertible and the Jaguar F-PACE, along with further all-new and refreshed vehicles.”

Jaguar Land Rover’s global performance for the full year 2015 shows a balanced regional portfolio with record retail sales in UK, North America and Europe.  

Sales to Europe and UK each topped 100,000 vehicles for the first time ever:  Europe was the company’s largest sales region in 2015 with sales of 110,298, up 28% year on year; and with a growth of 21% over 2014 figures, a total of 100,636 Jaguars and Land Rovers were bought by customers in the UK.  

North American sales of 94,066 were 25% up on the previous year.  The growth in these markets offset the performance in China and other overseas markets, at 92,474 and 89,592 down 24% and 7% year-on-year respectively.  

This reflected local market conditions, model transitions and the impact of the major industrial explosion at the Chinese port of Tianjin in August. 

Land Rover retailed over 400,000 vehicles for the first time, with sales of 403,079, 6% up on 2014. The company sold more Range Rovers and Range Rover Sports in 2015 than ever before, on the back of continued strong customer demand.  Sales of the new Discovery Sport beginning in early 2015 have increased to over 10,000 per month, second only to the best-selling Range Rover Evoque.  

Jaguar sales were up 3% for the year, retailing 83,986 vehicles.  This was the brand’s strongest full-year performance in a decade, driven by sales of the Jaguar XF and the new Jaguar XE, which has recently been shortlisted for the European Car of The Year 2016.  

The recently launched all new lightweight aluminium Jaguar XF  and 16 Model Year XJ , together with the launch in 2016 of the new Jaguar XE in North America and the F-PACE performance crossover worldwide are expected to accelerate Jaguar sales growth.

2015 was also a significant year for the expansion of the company’s manufacturing footprint to support continued growth, most recently with the announcement that Jaguar Land Rover will be the first British carmaker to open a manufacturing facility in Slovakia.  

2015 saw significant progress with the construction of Jaguar Land Rover’s first manufacturing plant in Brazil; local production of the Land Rover Discovery Sport will commence there in 2016.  During the year the company announced the doubling of the size of its UK Engine Manufacturing Centre and confirmed that it had agreed a manufacturing partnership with Magna Steyr to build some future vehicles in Graz, Austria.  

In March 2015, Jaguar Land Rover reaffirmed its long-term commitment to the UK, with confirmation of a £600 million investment across its Castle Bromwich Advanced Manufacturing Plant, Whitley Advanced Design and Development Centre and the National Automotive Innovation Centre to support product creation and advanced vehicle manufacturing. 

These mark significant steps in Jaguar Land Rover’s strategy to become a truly global business and meet the growing international demand for its two iconic brands.

• Over the past five years, Jaguar Land Rover has doubled sales, more than tripled turnover, and invested over £11 billion in new product creation and capital expenditure;
• The company’s headcount has more than doubled over the past few years to 37,000 globally, of which 35,000 are in the UK;
• With a balanced regional distribution of sales, in 2014, Jaguar Land Rover sold 462,678 vehicles, up 9%. Of that, Jaguar sold 81,570 vehicles and Land Rover sold 381,108 vehicles;
• For Fiscal 2014 / 15, Jaguar Land Rover reported full year revenue of £21.9 billion, EBITDA of £4.1 billion and Profit Before Tax of £2.6 billion;
• Jaguar Land Rover will invest over £3 billion in its products and facilities in Fiscal 2015 /16
• Jaguar Land Rover has four manufacturing facilities in the UK:
  • Castle Bromwich is home to the Jaguar XF, Jaguar XJ and Jaguar F-TYPE, employing 3,500 people;
  • Halewood is home to the Range Rover Evoque and Land Rover Discovery Sport, employing 4,500 people;
  • Solihull is home to the Range Rover, Range Rover Sport, Land Rover Discovery, Land Rover Defender and the Jaguar XE, employing 9,000 people;
  • The Engine Manufacturing Centre is home to the 'Ingenium' engine family, starting with the 2.0 litre diesel in the Jaguar XE. It will employ 1,400 people.

• Jaguar Land Rover’s top 5 markets in 2015 were:
  • UK
  • China
  • USA
  • Germany 
  • Italy

• A number of individual markets had record sales figures in 2015, including:

• Australia
• France
• Germany
• Korea
• UK and USA

UK SALES 2015 - Jeep has it's best year ever in the UK, and contributes to a worldwide large expansion of sales.

Jeep’s continued and growing popularity in the UK is illustrated in today’s new car registrations figures, which show the best year in the UK for the legendary 4x4 manufacturer since it started trading here.

Jeep capped a hugely successful 2015 ending the year strongly in December, and increasing its sales, compared with the previous year, by 137.2 per cent. December sales took the total for the year to a record-breaking 10,794, making Jeep the fastest-growing car brand in the UK last year.

The latest figures represent an annual increase of 176.1 per cent, when compared with total sales for 2014. Leading the way was the popular new Jeep Renegade B-segment SUV, which accounted for 6334 sales alone.

Jeep market share increased to 0.41 per cent compared with last year’s 0.16 per cent, according to figures supplied by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

“In 2015 we sold more Jeeps in the UK than in the four years of 2011 to 2014 combined,” says Steve Zanlunghi, managing director, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles UK and head of Jeep brand, EMEA region. “We will now look to build on that momentum in 2016 – Jeep’s 75th Anniversary year. I’m very pleased that the UK has accepted the Jeep brand in the way that it has over the past year.

“The success has been a combination of the right product and the strength of our re-vamped dealer network, which is driving strong consideration by the UK public.”

Jeep’s 759 cars sold in December – the 28^th consecutive year-on-year increase – compared favourably with the 320 for the same month in 2014. Market share was 0.42 per cent for the month, compared with 0.19 per cent in December last year.

Along with the strong performance of Renegade, the brand’s Cherokee sold 2258, Grand Cherokee 1624, and Wrangler 575.

“It was important that we ended 2015 on a high point, and we certainly did that,” says Damien Dally, head of brand, Jeep UK. “It is quite clear that more and more people are turning to Jeep for their next car, as we continue to bring exciting and desirable new models to the UK.”

Nissan is expecting the next generation Micra to be more successful than the current version.

Nissan’s new Micra will have higher sales than the current car thanks to its larger size and wider range of engines, the brand’s Europe chief, Paul Willcox, said.

The next Micra will fit its segment better than the current car, Willcox told Automotive News Europe. “The car will be positioned right in the heartland. We will sell more than current Micra,” he said at a press event at Nissan’s factory here.

Willcox wasn’t specific about the wider engine line-up. The current Micra is available in Europe with two versions of a 1.2-liter gasoline engine.

Willcox said he expects European sales of hatchbacks such as the Micra to remain strong despite the growing popularity of small crossover/SUVs.

The new-generation Micra will go on sale later this year. It will be built for European markets at alliance partner Renault’s factory in Flins, France, instead of in Chennai, India. Renault is adding annual capacity of 82,000 units for the Micra at the plant, which also builds the Renault Clio and Zoe subcompacts.

Nissan’s head of performance, Trevor Mann, said the Micra will be built on a hybrid platform including some elements of Renault-Nissan alliance’s new CMF-A small-car platform. The first car to use the platform in its entirety will be the next Nissan Juke, which will go into production in 2018 in Sunderland.

The Micra is Nissan’s third best-selling car in Europe after the Qashqai and Juke.

Sales of the Micra rose 5 percent to 61,431 in Europe in the first 11 months of 2015, according to market researchers JATO Dynamics. Qashqai sales for the same period were 214,833, up 26 percent. Juke sales increased 5 percent to 94,706.

Nick Gibbs

REPORT HERE

UK SALES 2015 - Kia breaks all previous sales records in the UK, but will it carry on in 2016 !

• Sales total 78,489 – a new yearly record
• Sportage hits record of 23,010 in its run-out year
• New model programme heralds an even better 2016

Kia Motors (UK) Limited has recorded a new annual sales record of 78,489 in 2015 in the face of increasing competition in the new car market.

During what President and Chief Executive Paul Philpott described as a “tumultuous year” in the marketplace, Kia saw its overall sales volume grow thanks to  organic and profitable development amongst its 188 dealers across the country.

And the remarkable success of Kia’s Sportage SUV led the way in what was its run-out year, with a new record of 23,010 delivered during 2015. The all-new Sportage, featuring even higher quality and refinement levels along with state-of-the-art new technologies, arrives in showrooms in February.

The European built Sportage was Kia’s best-seller, but the brand enjoyed strong sales right across its range with the cee’d and Venga – also built at the Zilina, Slovakia plant – recording sales of 12,395 and 6,510 respectively. The long-standing favourite Picanto  held on to its number two spot with sales of 14,279 followed in third with cee’d and then by Rio with 12,152 units delivered to customers.

Paul Philpott said: “The second half of this year has seen cut-throat competition in showrooms due to the weak Euro. Whilst heavy discounts are good news for private buyers the after-effects include falling second-hand values and reduced profitability for dealers – which is not good for customers in the long run.

“I am delighted that our dealers have seen their sales increase in a way that preserves their stability, their commitment to our brand and their ability to create more jobs in their businesses.

“But most importantly we go into 2016 with a raft of new products arriving in showrooms – all-new Optima saloon in January, all-new Sportage in February, our new dedicated Niro hybrid in the summer and then Optima wagon and GT and plug-in hybrid in the early autumn. Plus there is more to come in following years and I am totally confident that this will bring even more motorists to the Kia brand over the next few years to enable us to reach our sales goal of 100,000 car a year by 2020,” he added.