Top 10 Best-Selling Cars In The UK - August 2010

At the same time Ford is struggling to get the new 2011 Fiesta to North American dealerships, the little Ford holds onto its crown as the best-selling car in the United Kingdom. Across The Pond, Best Sellers lists are completely different. Only two cars which appear on either of GCBC's two best selling cars lists (Canada and the USA) are seen in the group below. One of them is the same in name only. The other is a success in Canada but not even close to being popular in the USA. 

We're talking about the Ford Focus - Europe's Focus has moved on from our anitiquated model - and the Volkswagen Golf. Luxury nameplates are prevelant on the UK's best-selling cars list. Of course, this doesn't mean the cars sold are hugely expensive. In the UK and across Europe, you can purchase BMWs and Audis and Volvos with smaller engines and less equipment and pay only for the potential snobbery. Also, "cars" has a slightly different meaning. These are the UK's best-selling vehicles. There's no potential for pickup trucks or jumbo SUVs to crack the Top 10, so the fact that a crossover wends its way into the best-selling cars list is something you'll just have to accept without complaints for a Top 10 Best-Selling SUVs/CUVs In The UK Graph.

A couple more things before you scroll down to the list. Pessismists among us teach that, "Promises made are promises broken". The Good Car Guy, therefore, won't promise that you'll be able to see Best Sellers lists for other countries on a monthly basis, but efforts will be made. Second, if you know of Sales Stats data which can be mined for countries you'd like to see displayed, use the Contact button in the top right of this screen to send The Good Car Guy a link.

And now, the Top 10 Best-Selling Cars In The UK, Britain's most popular cars in August 2010. Remember, August 2010 sales were down 17.5% in the UK, and it's not as though new car registrations in August 2009 were anything more than decent. Pictures of all ten cars are in the slideshow below.

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#10 - Audi A3: 1037
In August, the much larger U.S. car market purchased 564 Audi A3s. Of 62,122 cars sold in Canada in August 2010, only 100 were Audi A3s. Obviously Britons understand the Volkswagen Golf-based A3 better.

#9 - Volkswagen Polo: 1193
Volkswagen long ago gave up on this segment in North America, but the Polo and its platform-mates from Skoda (Fabia), Audi (A1) and Seat (Ibiza) are proof that Volkswagen knows Europeans love subcompacts. Plus, Volkswagen should be sending the Polo our way in the near future.

#8 - Vauxhall Insignia: 1193
Delivered to North America as the 2011 Buick Regal, the Insignia ushered in a new era of stylish large Vauxhalls (and Opels in the rest of Europe). Competitors include the handsome Ford Mondeo and once-ubiquitous Volkswagen Passat.

#7 - Nissan Qashqai: 1456
Related to the Nissan Rogue but not identical, the Qashqai was introduced with Nissan thinking it had the potential to invade the traditional hatchback C-segment. Nissan's thinking was obviously on the mark. You don't see a typical Toyota or Honda or even Nissan "car" on this list, do you? 

#6 - Volkswagen Golf: 1511
The Golf is Volkswagen's global juggernaut. In our neck of the woods, the 2011 Volkswagen Jetta is grabbing all sorts of attention for its enlarged cabin and lower price. In the United Kingdom, the Golf is as common a choice as strawberries and cream at Wimbledon.

#5 - BMW 3-Series: 1600
Generally among America's top 20 best-selling cars (but not the Top 10), the 3-Series competes directly with a vastly larger fleet of competitors in the UK. There, the 3-Series can be had with as little as 116 horsepower and pricing around £16,000 less than the 335d.

#4 - Vauxhall Corsa: 1629
The Vauxhall Corsa is GM's equivalent to the Chevrolet Aveo. Except, well, the Corsa is light years ahead of the Aveo in every meaningful and measurable way.

#3 - Vauxhaull Astra: 1906
To get a handle on the Astra's segment, think of the 2011 Chevrolet Cruze. And no, this isn't the same car as the Saturn Astra North America was offered for a couple years. This is the next-generation of that car; better in every way.

#2 - Ford Focus: 1926
Still not available in North America after having gone through complete transformations and facelifts in Europe, the Focus's greatest claim to fame isn't its #2 spot on this list but its victory over GM's Vauxhall Astra and Volkswagen Golf.

#1 - Ford Fiesta: 2660
Long a popular car in Europe, the current Fiesta is an easy sell in the UK as a result of its ability to combine a grown-up driving experience with fun and frugality.




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