New car sales in the UK are expected to be down this year - but only because of the ending of the scrappage incentive scheme.
Car maker's body the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has announced that 395,4999 new car registrations have now been processed under the scrappage scheme, and that the scheme accounted for 18.1 per cent of new car sales between May 2009 and March 2010.
However, scrappage registrations in April accounted for just eight per cent of sales - the lowest number while the scheme ran - and the SMMT says this suggests the new car market will remain buoyant without the incentive.
“The scheme helped support our economy and played a vital role in providing a much-needed boost to the UK automotive industry," said SMMT chief executive, Paul Everitt.
"Our latest registration forecasts suggest the 2010 market will perform better than expected, but will appear subdued compared to the peaks achieved during the scrappage scheme.”
The SMMT also revealed that average CO2 emissions of a car bought through the scrappage scheme were 132.9g/km of CO2, more than 27 per cent below the scrapped car’s figure and 9.5 per cent below the overall new car market average.
