BRENTWOOD, Essex, 7 September, 2017 – Ford led UK car sales and commercial vehicle (CV) sales in August as early indicators shows consumers keen to participate in Ford's scrappage scheme, removing older, polluting vehicles from UK roads.

According to the official August sales figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT):

•Ford is UK market leader in total vehicle and commercial vehicle (CV) sales

•Ford Fiesta (2nd), Ford Focus (4th) and Ford Kuga (6th) in the UK total car sales

•Year-to-date Ford Fiesta and Ford Focus lead UK car sales

•Ford Transit Custom and Ford Transit are first and second in CV sales

•Ford Fiesta, Kuga, Galaxy, Transit Courier, Transit Connect, Transit Custom, Tourneo Custom, Transit and Ranger all lead their respective segments

Andy Barratt, Ford of Britain chairman and managing director, said: 'August is typically a quiet month for the industry however with the launch our scrappage scheme we've seen a huge amount of interest through our dealer network. With over 1,000 orders taken in the first full week, it's been a positive step towards improving air quality, as we've seen other manufactures now follow Fords lead.

'The all-new Fiesta Ford is gaining momentum as we move into September, as additional derivatives start to reach the UK, including ST-Line and, for the first time on the Fiesta range, the Vignale. We've still so much to come with Fiesta, as we continue the launch of our most extensive model range yet, with Fiesta Active and the hot ST version planned for next year.'

The official figures released by the SMMT show that total car sales in August were down 6.4 per cent to 76,433 units, compared with August 2016. Ford car sales were 9,234, 2,311 registrations ahead of its nearest rival. For the year to date (end August) total UK car sales were 1,640,241 down 2.4 per cent, compared with the same period in 2016. Ford car sales for this period were 194,484, 63,791 registrations ahead of its nearest rival.

Ford's lead in retail car sales reflects the preferences of private buyers. In August, Ford's retail car share of 12.3 per cent was 3.2 percentage points ahead of its nearest rival and, for the year to date, its retail car share of 11.8 per cent was 4.5 percentage points ahead of its nearest rival.

The Ford Fiesta is in its ninth year as the UK top-seller and in August it secured 2,236 registrations, 43 sales and 0.1 percentage points of share behind its nearest non-Ford rival as launch of new Fiesta models, such as Vignale and ST-Line continues. With total registrations of 64,988 for the year to date, the Ford Fiesta is the UK best seller by a significant margin – 20,770 sales and 1.3 percentage points of market share ahead of its nearest competitor.

Ford Focus remains, year to date, the number two best-seller, while Ford Kuga sales are at the highest level since it was launched, recording sales and share increases for the month and for the year to date, compared with prior year figures.

UK commercial vehicle sales in August were up 1.5 per cent at 15,619, compared with August 2016. Total sales of Ford CVs were 5,151, compared with 4,176 in August 2016. For the year to date total UK CV sales were down 2.8 per cent at 231, 857 compared with 2016. Total sales of Ford CVs for the same period were up 2.4 per cent at 72,201, compared with 2016, and a market share of 31.8 per cent

The Ford Transit Custom continues to lead the UK sales, for the year to date sales have increased, compared with 2016, from 30,358 to 32,089 with share up from 12.7 to 13.4 per cent.