Diesel demand down five per cent
Diesel cars continue to be faded out from the UK new car market, with just five per cent of new car buyers stating they’re looking to buy one.
This is according to the latest industry research by What Car?, which follows April’s new car registration figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) which showed electric cars have outsold diesel models by more than a factor of two so far this year.
New diesel registrations for the first four months of 2022 account to 30,411 cars, while more than 77,000 new fully electric vehicles have been sold in the same period.
The What Car? survey found that 89.56% of all car buyers were considering fuel types other than a diesel. Of these, 66.13% were confident they would never buy a diesel car in the future, while 22.94% weren’t sure.
Steve Huntingford, editor, What Car?, said: “Diesel’s rapid decline in sales comes as manufacturers continue to offer fewer models to new car buyers. Vauxhall was the latest manufacturer to drop the diesel option on its best-selling Corsa, with the car now available in petrol or fully electric powertrains only.
“As the new diesel car parc declines, this will eventually impact the used market for diesel cars – which are also impacted by the growing number of low emissions zones and other air quality initiatives.”
