VAT rise fails to dent January new car sales -New car registrations rose 29.8 per cent in January to 145,479 units despite the return to 17.5 per cent VAT on 1 January.
There had been fears that the VAT change had pulled sales forward. Scrappage registrations accounted 17.8 per cent of the market.
Constrained outlook - Although January was the seventh month in a row to show growth, the SMMT, which published the figures, said the outlook was "constrained" and forecast sales would fall back 9 per cent to 1.82 million units in 2010. "The 29.8 per cent increase in January new car registrations provides a better than expected start to 2010 for the UK motor industry," said SMMT chief executive Paul Everitt.
Scrappage lift " - Scrappage continues to lift demand successfully and today's announcement of a continuation of the scheme to the end of March will allow the maximum number of people to benefit from the budget that's still available.
"Industry expects another difficult year with the availability of finance, consumer confidence and sustaining demand post-scrappage, key to performance in the second half of the year, but signs of recovery in the fleet and business sectors are encouraging," he added.(Motortrader, 04.02.10)

Fleets sales rise is “encouraging” - Sales to fleets rose 24.4 per cent in January, fuelling hopes that the business sector may be making a start on the long road to recovery.
The SMMT said the growth in fleet demand provided "encouraging news for a sustaining demand post scrappage".
SMMT chief executive Paul Everitt told Motor Trader: "This month has seen a significant increase in fleet. We always felt it had to happen at some stage."
Last month John Lewis, chief executive of the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association said fleet sales may recover this year.
Companies in the downturn had postponed buying new vehicles in order to keep a cap on costs and carmakers have also pulled out of fast-cycle daily rental business, reducing sales.
"Vehicle will need to be replaced soon and with an economic recovery underway, we expect fleet car sales to pass the million mark in 2010, providing a vital shot in the arm for manufacturers," said Lewis last month.  (Motortrader, 04.02.10)

Governement extends scrappage scheme - The government has added an extra month to the deadline for the ending of the scrappage scheme.
The scheme will now run until the end of March instead of February or whenever the money runs out, whichever is the sooner.
Carmakers' requests
The extension was given following requests from carmakers for more time to prepare dealers and inform consumers. Business Secretary Lord Mandelson said: "Against the background of the economic downturn the scrappage scheme has proved a great success, driving UK car sales, protecting jobs and supporting the supply chain for car manufacture at a time when this sector needed it most."
Market share
By 24 January 330,722 new vehicle orders were taken. Under the final stages of the scheme, carmakers will be allocated a share of the vehicles in line with their market share.
The scrappage scheme was last revised in September and extended to vans over 8 years old rather than the previous 10 year requirement.
The age qualification for cars was changed by 6 months to extend the benefits to cars registered on or before 29 Feb 2000.
The government provided an additional £100m of funding to scrap a total of 400,000 cars.
The £2,000 grant is made up of £1,000 from government with matched funding from vehicle manufacturers. (Motortrader, 04.02.10)

Dealers should refocus on new car sales during the first quarter of 2010 - Refocus on new cars, dealers urged.  Many dealers have put non-scrappage scheme new car sales on the back burner to concentrate on aftersales and used cars during the recession.
However, figures and anecdotal evidence suggest that the new car market is now beginning the long climb towards a recovery, says Colin Bruder, managing director of motor industry consultancy Network Automotive. Dealers need to ensure that they have structured plans in place.
“Dealer profitability has been heavily biased towards aftersales and used car sales in the last 18 months, and dealer managers have been focusing their attention on getting the most out of these sectors, sometimes just to survive," he said.
“New car sales have often been neglected as a result or, where dealers have successfully used the scrappage scheme to drive sales, strategies have been heavily skewed towards generating sales through the Government subsidy.
“Now, what dealers need to do is formulate plans to maximise new car sales in what remains a tough market, but one which shows some signs of recovery.”
Bruder explained that dealers needed to look closely at all the potential customer groups open to them, how the models they sold could be presented in these sectors, how best use could be made of finance and other offers, and how to generate additional revenue from add-ons such as warranties and service plans.
He said: “Dealers really need to have a fundamental rethink where new car sales are concerned.
"Depending on their franchise, some are facing very different scenarios compared to pre-recessionary times.
"In the future, they may find that they are selling different models to different customers in different ways.
“In addition, there are several unknowns on the horizon, such as the arrival of electric and other alternative fuel cars.
"Dealers need to have a clear strategy in place, implement it thoroughly and monitor their results regularly.
 “Many manufacturers have quite aggressive sales targets in place despite continuing market fragility.
"Whether these are realistic remains to be seen but what is certain is that there will be renewed accent on new car sales.”  (AM Online, 03.02.10)

Demand for commercial vehicles ‘outstrips supply’ - Demand for used commercial vehicles has consistently outstripped supply during January, boosting prices and keeping conversion rates high for medium-sized, good-quality vehicles.
This situation is expected to continue through the first half of the year, as the scarcity of late-plate vans remains an issue for dealers and prices threaten to climb even higher, according to Glass’s, publisher of Glass’s Guide to Commercial Vehicle Values.
“The only cloud on the horizon would be if, in desperation to secure new sales, manufacturers give the green light for significant discounts,” said George Alexander, Glass's chief commercial vehicle editor.
“In one blow, this would undo all the good work done by dealers over some very testing years which have seen prices for used CVs climb to their current highs.
"An increase in registrations is necessary for the long-term health of the market, but if this is achieved by underselling new product, the negative consequences for residual values will be felt over several years as happened in the early 1990s.”
He said dealers will be looking for good-quality examples – especially of higher-power models and 4x4s – to satisfy demand over the coming weeks, together with something that is a little different in order to attract retail buyers.
Hard-used stock will sell, but only at prices that remain "stubbornly low".
Despite the festive period witnessing some slowdown across the marketplace, momentum built steadily over the latter part of January, with few signs of the lacklustre start to used sales of previous New Years.
“By stark contrast, new vehicle sales have yet to find a forward gear and are unlikely to improve much until after the General Election.
"Even then, when a little more business confidence and clarity has returned, franchised dealers are likely to remain sceptical throughout this year in case the economy were to dip again, despite the UK having finally moved out of recession,” said Alexander. (AM Online, 03.02.10)

US orders investigation into Toyota Prius brake fault - Toyota, the biggest car manufacturer in the world, saw its woes deepen today after the US government ordered an investigation into braking problems on the Prius, the motor giant's award-winning green vehicle.
The US Transportation Department has launched the inquiry into the brakes on the 2010 model of the Toyota Prius.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it has received 124 reports of braking problems on the model, including four reports of crashes.
The Japanese government has also ordered Toyota to investigate brake problems and the company is considering a recall of the cars in the US and Japan.   (Timesonline, 04.02.10)