Mobility News | February – March 2020

Strong growth in hybrid model
sales helps Volvo outperform the
UK’s new car market in January
Volvo Car UK has sustained
the sales momentum it
enjoyed through 2019 to start
the new decade strongly, with
4,107 new car registrations in
January – a total boosted by
growing customer preference
for its recently expanded range
of plug-in hybrid models.
The brand’s performance
– a 1% rise on the figures for
January last year – stands out
in a national market which
declined overall by 7% year-onyear.
Significantly, Volvo also
increased its market share by
9%, from 2.53 to 2.75%.
With the recent launch of
the XC40 Recharge Plug-in
Hybrid, every model in the
Volvo range is now available
in plug-in hybrid form, and
the public has responded
enthusiastically to the
combination of environmental
efficiency and powerful
performance the petrol-electric
technology offers. Sales of
Volvo plug-in hybrids are up
by three-quarters compared
with January 2019, accounting
for 14% of all the brand’s UK
sales and putting the company
on course to achieve its target
of a 25% sales share for its
PHEVs this year. This ambition
is being supported by a tripling
of Volvo’s hybrid production
capacity to meet the demand.
The benefits of hybrid –
notably substantially lower
benefit-in-kind company car tax
rates – were also a contributing
factor in double-digit growth
in Volvo’s fleet and business
sales. These rose 10% year on
year, to 1,675 units.
Volvo’s multi-award-winning
SUVs remain the top choice for
customers, with the compact
XC40, mid-size XC60 and
large XC90 occupying the
top three sales positions in
January, followed by the V90
large estate. The XC90 enjoys
a pre-eminent status as the
best-selling model in its class
for the month, claiming almost
15% of all large premium
SUV sales. Likewise, the V90
dominated the large premium
estate segment, accounting
for more than a third (35%) of
total sales.
The sales picture is also
strong for Volvo Selekt, Volvo’s
approved-used car programme,
which posted a 9% yearon-year
increase in January,
selling 3,376 cars in what was
its 37th consecutive month
of growth. The acceleration in
sales follows a record-breaking
year in 2019, when more than
33,000 approved-used Volvos
were sold.
Matt Galvin, Volvo Car UK’s
Operations Director, said:
“With many issues making
customers cautious about
buying a new car, Volvo stands
out as a brand that people
are confident to invest in. The
across-the-board appeal of our
comprehensively renewed
model range and the relevance
and performance of our plug-in
hybrid technology are key to
our growth, supported by the
excellent work of everyone in
our retail network.”
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