Best selling cars of 2022
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2022 is over and the latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) reveal the year’s best sellers.
Overall, there were 1,614,063 new car registrations across the entirety of 2022 in the UK. This figure is down by 2% compared to 2021 when 1,647,181 new cars were registered. Figures are yet to recover to the levels seen in the 2010s where new registrations would often surpass 2,000,000.
Nissan Qashqai
In yet another tricky year for the automotive industry, Nissan finished as the league leader with the Qashqai. In 2021 the Qashqai finished 7th with 29,992 registrations and last year it finished 1st as the UK’s most popular car with 42,704 registrations.
The Qashqai, which is built in Britain, becomes the first British-built UK best-seller since 1998. It is also the first time that Nissan has managed to top the UK’s annual sales chart.
1 in 5 cars built in Britain since its launch in 2007 has been a Qashqai. Furthermore, 3.8 million have been built in Sunderland since this date.
Those at Nissan are labelling it as a British automotive success story with Mat Weaver, Vice President of Design at Nissan’s design centre in Paddington, saying: “With its compact footprint and higher driving position, the first generation Qashqai broke the mould for how a mass-market vehicle should look and feel – it was a revolutionary ‘crossover’ design.
“‘It’s difficult to believe now that some industry observers were sceptical about Qashqai’s chances of success when it first arrived back in 2007. Yet, in 2023, crossovers are now the dominant car design trend with almost all manufacturers now featuring them in their line-up.
“It all started with our ground-breaking Qashqai - a British success story that’s assured of a place in the automotive history books.’’
Best of the rest
The Vauxhall Corsa, last year’s winner, came 2nd with 35,910 registrations, followed closely by the Tesla Model Y (35,551) and the Ford Puma (35,088) in 4th.
The Model Y’s total is particularly impressive as it stands clear as 2022’s best-selling battery electric vehicle with only Tesla’s own Model 3 coming close with 19,071 registrations. The 3rd best-selling EV was the Kia e-Niro with 11,197 registrations.
Following the Ford Puma, in the overall charts, is the MINI (32,387) in 5th, then the Kia Sportage (29,655), Hyundai Tucson (27.839), Volkswagen Golf (26,558), Ford Kuga (26,549) and the Ford Fiesta (25,070) in 10th.