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SALES got off to a slow start in March with the new W-plate failing to stimulate showroom traffic.
TEXT: Emrys Rees, managing director of CEM Day in Swansea, said figures were down on the same time last year and blamed uncertainty on the delay in publishing the findings of the Competition Commission investigation into new car prices.
“We have to bear in mind that last year was the first time the March plate change was used to boost sales, so figures may have been disproportionately high. But we also have to acknowledge that everyone is still waiting to hear what the report says before they splash out on a new car,” he said.
Keith Hill, chairman of Brooklyn Motors, Redditch, said the W-plate was suffering from a lack of public awareness:
“Registrations haven’t built up as quickly as they have done in the past because people aren’t so conscious of the March change. It’s gone quite well compared to our expectations, but there’s still a long way to go before the end of the month.”
Newport-based Vauxhall dealer Welch of Newport reported poor sales of W vehicles. “We’ve probably only sold about half of what we wanted to for February,” said general sales manager Keith O’Connell. “Customers are probably holding out to see whether prices will really come down.”
National Franchised Dealers Association director Alan Pulham said: “The delayed Competition Commission report will certainly impact on sales as more people are delaying their purchase decision in the belief that prices may come down.”
New registrations were also down almost across the board in February, according to figures obtained by MotorTrader. With one day left in the month, the market as a whole was down 11 per cent, from 86,089 registrations in February 1999 to 72,018 this year. Top registration casualties were Renault, down 31 per cent, and BMW, which saw registrations fall 30 per cent on the same month last year. Volkswagen and Nissan both saw a slide of 28 per cent on 1999 figures, while Ford ended a troubled month with registrations down 11 per cent. Fiat dropped 14 per cent on last year, and Peugeot recorded a downturn of 12 per cent. Vauxhall registrations were down 10 per cent in February, while Rover did slightly better, slipping only 9 per cent overall on last year.