October’s 4% year-on-year increase in new car sales continued the resurgence in the automobile market, leading the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) to firmly project 2013 will achieve a six-year high. In fact new car sales this year compared to the same period last year (Jan-Oct) is over 10% higher – with 1.95million new registrations so far in 2013.

Interestingly there has been a shift t to smaller cars rather than family models. The Ford Fiesta remains the best-seller with a considerable lead over the Focus and Vauxhall Corsa.

The most popular new cars so far in 2013 have been:

1. Ford Fiesta (104,621)

2. Ford Focus (76,493)

3. Vauxhall Corsa (72,903)

4. Vauxhall Astra (57,756)

5. Volkswagen Golf (56,357)

6. Nissan Qashqai (44,649)

7. BMW 3 Series (37,066)

8. BMW 1 Series (36,529)

9. Volkswagen Polo (36,362)

10. Peugeot 208 (34,253)

Source: SMMT