New car registrations DOWN in August – but PHEV and EV sales are UP

New car registrations in the UK fell by 2.0% in August  2025, but EV and PHEV sales grew. The month’s best-selling car was the Ford Puma.

August is a quiet sales month for new cars as buyers wait for September’s plate change, so numbers are always low compared to most months, and this year things are no different, with just 82,908 new cars shifted, a fall of 2.0% on August 2024.

As has become the norm in recent years, it was Fleet sales which took the lion’s share of the market, accounting for almost 60% of all registrations, although there was a 4.6% reduction in volume, with Private registrations rising by a tiny 0.7% and accounting for a 39% market share.

Despite the fall in overall numbers, EV sales grew by 14.9% for a market share of 26.5%, with  PHEV sales doing even better with a 69.4% rise to deliver an 11.8% market share, but sales of hybrids fell by 13.9% for an 11.4% market share, Petrol sales fell by 14.2% for a 45.1% market share, and Diesel sales fell by 16.6% for a 5.2% share.

Mike Hawes, SMMT CEO, said:

August was the best month yet this year for EV market share and, while it is often volatile due to low overall volumes, the overall trend is positive. September will be critical, with the new number plate factor typically driving around one in seven new car registrations for the year.

The best-selling model in August was once again the Ford Puma, followed by the Kia Sportage, Tesla was back in the top ten with both the Model Y and Model 3, and the Chinese Jaecoo 7 grabbed sixth spot.