UK April 2026: Market up 24% on low year-ago volumes, Omoda 5 breaks into Top 10
First UK Top 10 finish for the Omoda 5.
UK new car sales in April soar 24% year-on-year to 149,247 units, however year-ago volumes were particularly weak as buyers pulled purchases forward to March to beat incoming vehicle tax increases. The year-to-date tally is now up by a robust 9% to 764,101 and local association of manufacturers SMMT now predicts a Full Year 2026 tally at 2,093,000 units, up 3.6% on 2025. Private sales improve 20.2% to 56,116 units and 37.6% share vs. 38.8% a year ago while fleets are up 26.8% to 90,462 and 60.6% share vs. 59.3% and business sales are up 15% to 2,669 and 1.8% share vs. 1.9%. Year-to-date, this time private sales fare better at +11.7% to 306,211 and 40.1% share vs. 39.1% over the same period in 2025, fleet sales are up 6.9% to 441,094 and 57.7% share vs. 58.9% and business sales are up 19.3% to 16,796 and 2.2% share vs. 2%.
Looking at sales by fuel type, BEVs surge 59.1% to 39,084 and 26.2% share vs. 20.4% in April 2025. SMMT noted that April marked the registration of the 2 millionth BEV in the UK. Meanwhile HEVs are up 18.8% to 19,711 and 13.2% share vs. 13.8% a year ago, PHEVs are up 46.4% to 20,597 and 13.8% share vs. 11.7%, petrol is up 8.2% to 63,541 and 42.6% share vs. 48.8% and diesel down -1% to 6,314 and 4.2% share vs. 5.3%. Year-to-date, BEVs are up 22.1% to 176,698 and 23.1% share vs. 20.7% over the first 4 moths of 2025, HEVs are up 8.3% to 111,083 and 14.5% share vs. 14.6%, PHEVs are up 46.5% to 99,263 and 13% share vs. 9.7% while petrol is down -1.5% to 340,230 and 44.5% share vs. 49.3% and diesel falls -8.4% to 36,827 and 4.8% share vs. 5.7%.

Volkswagen (+23%) follows the market to keep a comfortable distance with the other carmakers present at 8.6% share vs. 6% for #2 Kia (+7.2%). BMW (+7.6%) completes the podium as it does YTD. In fact the Top 5 is identical to YTD with Ford (+17.5%) at #4 and Audi (+0.9%) at #5. MG (+84.9%) surges ahead to #6 with 4.7% share, distancing Mercedes (+30.1%) and Skoda (+13.9%). BYD (+101.5%) delivers the biggest YoY gain in the Top 15 at #12 with Jaecoo (+268.2%), Omoda (+259.9%), Citroen (+167%) and Mini (+90%) also impressive.Β
Model-wise, the Ford Puma (+27.2%) reclaims the top spot it holds year-to-date with 2.8% share, ahead of the Kia Sportage (+3.7%). The Nissan Qashqai (+29.5%) stays at #3 ahead of two surging models: the VW Golf (+77.9%) scoring its best ranking since last October at #4 and the Mini Cooper (+58.7%) at #5. We have a new entrant in the Top 10: #1 in London over the Full Year 2025, the Omoda 5 lands directly in 6th place with 1.5% share. The VW Tiguan (+46.6%) and MG HS (+67.9%) also impress below. Surprise #1 in March, the Jaecoo 7 falls to #10 and #3 year-to-date.
Previous month: UK March 2026: Jaecoo 7 overall best-seller!
One year ago: UK April 2025: Peugeot (+37.9%), BYD (+654.1%) stand out in market down -10.4%
Full March 2026 Top 53 All brands and Top 10 models below.
UK March 2026 β brands:
| Pos | Brand | Apr-26 | % | /25 | Mar | 2026 | % | /25 | Pos | FY25 |
| 1 | Volkswagen | 12,884 | 8.6% | + 23.0% | 1 | 59,878 | 7.8% | β 5.9% | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Kia | 8,922 | 6.0% | + 7.2% | 3 | 43,538 | 5.7% | + 0.4% | 2 | 4 |
| 3 | BMWΒ Β | 8,700 | 5.8% | + 7.6% | 2 | 42,607 | 5.6% | β 2.4% | 3 | 2 |
| 4 | FordΒ Β | 8,230 | 5.5% | + 17.5% | 4 | 41,004 | 5.4% | β 1.7% | 4 | 3 |
| 5 | AudiΒ Β | 8,090 | 5.4% | + 0.9% | 5 | 38,133 | 5.0% | + 6.4% | 5 | 5 |
| 6 | MG | 7,005 | 4.7% | + 84.9% | 10 | 30,883 | 4.0% | + 8.6% | 8 | 10 |
| 7 | MercedesΒ Β | 6,989 | 4.7% | + 30.1% | 7 | 35,285 | 4.6% | + 7.6% | 6 | 9 |
| 8 | Skoda | 6,244 | 4.2% | + 13.9% | 14 | 30,675 | 4.0% | + 9.3% | 9 | 11 |
| 9 | Hyundai | 6,077 | 4.1% | β 6.9% | 13 | 30,278 | 4.0% | β 3.6% | 11 | 6 |
| 10 | VauxhallΒ Β | 5,889 | 3.9% | + 14.1% | 8 | 33,729 | 4.4% | + 3.7% | 7 | 13 |
| 11 | PeugeotΒ Β | 5,368 | 3.6% | β 9.2% | 12 | 30,196 | 4.0% | β 12.3% | 12 | 12 |
| 12 | BYD | 5,059 | 3.4% | + 101.5% | 11 | 26,396 | 3.5% | + 124.0% | 14 | 17 |
| 13 | Volvo | 4,992 | 3.3% | + 18.0% | 16 | 24,117 | 3.2% | + 4.0% | 16 | 14 |
| 14 | Toyota | 4,981 | 3.3% | β 6.0% | 6 | 30,389 | 4.0% | β 3.4% | 10 | 7 |
| 15 | Renault | 4,801 | 3.2% | + 9.9% | 18 | 23,645 | 3.1% | + 7.2% | 17 | 15 |
| 16 | Mini | 4,774 | 3.2% | + 90.0% | 20 | 18,814 | 2.5% | + 20.9% | 19 | 18 |
| 17 | NissanΒ Β | 4,079 | 2.7% | β 16.7% | 9 | 28,389 | 3.7% | β 13.3% | 13 | 8 |
| 18 | Jaecoo | 3,877 | 2.6% | + 268.2% | 17 | 22,789 | 3.0% | + 431.5% | 18 | 23 |
| 19 | Land Rover | 3,834 | 2.6% | + 1.2% | 15 | 25,313 | 3.3% | + 1.5% | 15 | 16 |
| 20 | Cupra | 3,372 | 2.3% | + 52.9% | 21 | 15,171 | 2.0% | + 24.0% | 20 | 20 |
| 21 | Omoda | 3,275 | 2.2% | + 259.9% | 23 | 12,324 | 1.6% | + 200.3% | 22 | 27 |
| 22 | Chery | 2,900 | 1.9% | new | 28 | 10,977 | 1.4% | new | 25 | 34 |
| 23 | Citroen | 2,558 | 1.7% | + 167.0% | 26 | 12,142 | 1.6% | + 127.1% | 23 | 26 |
| 24 | Dacia | 1,798 | 1.2% | β 9.1% | 27 | 10,250 | 1.3% | β 8.8% | 26 | 22 |
| 25 | Geely | 1,649 | 1.1% | new | 35 | 3,244 | 0.4% | new | 35 | 47 |
| 26 | Porsche | 1,560 | 1.0% | + 27.3% | 31 | 6,041 | 0.8% | β 7.9% | 29 | 28 |
| 27 | Suzuki | 1,321 | 0.9% | + 30.1% | 24 | 9,909 | 1.3% | + 42.8% | 27 | 29 |
| 28 | Lexus | 1,159 | 0.8% | + 11.1% | 32 | 5,223 | 0.7% | β 4.1% | 32 | 31 |
| 29 | Honda | 1,155 | 0.8% | β 4.2% | 25 | 8,506 | 1.1% | β 15.8% | 28 | 24 |
| 30 | Mazda | 1,126 | 0.8% | β 26.9% | 22 | 11,669 | 1.5% | β 6.9% | 24 | 21 |
| 31 | Polestar | 1,076 | 0.7% | + 25.3% | 33 | 5,227 | 0.7% | + 14.8% | 31 | 30 |
| 32 | Jeep | 838 | 0.6% | + 2.8% | 30 | 4,609 | 0.6% | β 5.9% | 33 | 32 |
| 33 | Tesla | 831 | 0.6% | + 62.3% | 19 | 12,570 | 1.6% | β 3.2% | 21 | 19 |
| 34 | Seat | 790 | 0.5% | β 57.1% | 29 | 5,620 | 0.7% | β 36.1% | 30 | 25 |
| 35 | Fiat | 708 | 0.5% | + 145.0% | 36 | 2,320 | 0.3% | β 46.9% | 36 | 33 |
| 36 | Leapmotor | 580 | 0.4% | + 437.0% | 34 | 3,676 | 0.5% | + 1121.3% | 34 | 35 |
| 37 | Alpine | 373 | 0.2% | + 554.4% | 38 | 1,085 | 0.1% | + 996.0% | 37 | 39 |
| 38 | Changan | 216 | 0.1% | new | 37 | 969 | 0.1% | new | 38 | 49 |
| 39 | Alfa Romeo | 210 | 0.1% | + 0.5% | 40 | 949 | 0.1% | β 0.1% | 39 | 36 |
| 40 | Smart | 157 | 0.1% | + 124.3% | 39 | 740 | 0.1% | + 32.9% | 40 | 38 |
| 41 | KGM | 93 | 0.1% | + 29.2% | 43 | 671 | 0.1% | + 14.7% | 42 | 41 |
| 42 | Xpeng | 88 | 0.1% | + 877.8% | 42 | 441 | 0.1% | + 880.0% | 43 | 45 |
| 43 | Genesis | 71 | 0.0% | + 73.2% | 45 | 363 | 0.0% | β 21.1% | 44 | 42 |
| 44 | Lotus | 64 | 0.0% | + 45.5% | 44 | 299 | 0.0% | β 56.5% | 45 | n/a |
| 45 | Subaru | 52 | 0.0% | β 42.9% | 41 | 709 | 0.1% | β 22.6% | 41 | 37 |
| 46 | Abarth | 38 | 0.0% | + 52.0% | 49 | 129 | 0.0% | β 18.9% | 47 | 50 |
| 47 | Maserati | 32 | 0.0% | + 166.7% | 47 | 136 | 0.0% | + 19.3% | 46 | 48 |
| 48 | Ineos | 18 | 0.0% | β 18.2% | 48 | 101 | 0.0% | + 31.2% | 49 | 51 |
| 49 | GWM Ora | 16 | 0.0% | β 57.9% | 46 | 125 | 0.0% | + 0.8% | 48 | 46 |
| 50 | DS | 13 | 0.0% | β 59.4% | 50 | 59 | 0.0% | β 74.3% | 50 | 43 |
| 51 | Chevrolet | 12 | 0.0% | + 200.0% | 51 | 22 | 0.0% | β 29.0% | 51 | 52 |
| 52 | Skywell | 4 | 0.0% | + 100.0% | 52 | 19 | 0.0% | + 111.1% | 52 | 54 |
| 53 | Jaguar | 0 | 0.0% | n/a | Β β | 7 | 0.0% | β 99.6% | 53 | 40 |
| Β β | Other British | 201 | 0.1% | + 47.8% | Β β | 1,105 | 0.1% | β 16.8% | Β β | Β β |
| Β β | Other Imports | 98 | 0.1% | β 21.6% | Β β | 446 | 0.1% | β 39.0% | Β β | Β β |
UK April 2026 β models:
| Pos | Model | Apr-26 | % | /25 | Mar | 2026 | % | /25 | Pos | FY25 |
| 1 | Ford Puma | 4,211 | 2.8% | + 27.2% | 2 | 20,339 | 2.7% | + 11.5% | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Kia Sportage | 3,645 | 2.4% | + 3.7% | 4 | 17,835 | 2.3% | + 8.9% | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | Nissan Qashqai | 2,846 | 1.9% | + 29.5% | 3 | 15,699 | 2.1% | + 12.2% | 4 | 3 |
| 4 | VW Golf | 2,845 | 1.9% | + 77.9% | 8 | 12,021 | 1.6% | β 2.6% | 6 | 6 |
| 5 | Mini Cooper | 2,577 | 1.7% | + 58.7% | n/a | 10,686 | 1.4% | n/a | 9 | 12 |
| 6 | Omoda 5 | 2,308 | 1.5% | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 29 |
| 7 | Vauxhall Corsa | 2,236 | 1.5% | β 5.9% | 5 | 12,788 | 1.7% | β 7.7% | 5 | 4 |
| 8 | VW Tiguan | 2,234 | 1.5% | + 46.6% | n/a | 10,252 | 1.3% | β 3.9% | 10 | 9 |
| 9 | MG HS | 2,146 | 1.4% | + 67.9% | 7 | 11,293 | 1.5% | + 2.5% | 8 | 8 |
| 10 | Jaecoo 7 | 2,099 | 1.4% | n/a | 1 | 17,668 | 2.3% | #DIV/0! | 3 | 13 |
| n/a | Volvo XC40 | 2,072 | 1.4% | + 3.2% | 6 | 11,360 | 1.5% | + 7.0% | 7 | 7 |
Source: SMMT
The BYD Sealion 7 ranks inside the Australian Top 10 in April.
Once again the ridiculously cheap Leapmotor T03 ranks #3 in Italy.
Peugeot places the 2008 at #3 this month.
The BMW iX3 hits a record ranking for the nameplate.
First Top 20 finish for the BYD Atto 2.
Omoda Jaecoo hits a record share in Israel this month.
The Toyota C-HR+ ranks #9 in the Netherlands in April.
The Mitsubishi Colt lands at #7 in Iceland in April.
The Renault 5 is the best-selling BEV in France in April.
The Dongfeng Box has a great start in New Zealand.
Suzuki holds 10.6% of the New Caledonian new car market over Q1.
Chery sells the Omoda and Jaecoo brands in Singapore
The BYD Seal manages its first ever Serbian Top 10 finish in March.













BYD Great Tang


BYD Seal 08
BYD Sealion 08
BYD Yuan Plus / Atto 3






The BMW X1 ranks #10 in Poland in March.