Volvo Car UK is celebrating after beating the downturn with rising sales of its new cars during 2009. According to figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), Volvo enjoyed a sales increase of 4.49% in comparison to 2008's full year sales. Market share in the UK was also up over 12% on the previous year - rising from 1.56% to 1.75%.
Volvo sold a total of 34,857 cars during 2009 and was the only premium manufacturer to have experienced positive sales growth. The results are in contrast to the new car market as a whole, which experienced an overall drop of 6.4% in 2009 - equivalent to 136,796 fewer cars sold to UK customers.
Volvo Car UK also hit its goal of over 10,000 sales in the fourth quarter of the year - the first time this figure has been achieved in the final quarter in nineteen years. This achievement underlines the appeal of the Volvo brand, particularly the new, environmentally-conscious DRIVe range, in these challenging economic times.
Volvo's DRIVe range is now available across the majority of Volvo models and accounted for approximately 52 percent of all C30 SportsCoupe sales, 50 percent of XC60 crossover sales, 52 percent of S40 saloon and 67 percent of V50 Sportswagon sales. DRIVe offers lower CO2 emissions and more miles per gallon without compromising on style and comfort.
Looking ahead to 2010
Volvo Car UK is hoping to build on 2009's achievements with the launch of the all-new Volvo S60 due in dealer showrooms later this year and the recently introduced XC60 R-DESIGN along with the continued success of the economical DRIVe range of vehicles, which now includes the V70 premium estate and S80 luxury saloon.
Peter Rask, managing director for Volvo Car UK commented "I'm very pleased that Volvo has emerged from 2009 in such a strong position and this shows how customers are recognising Volvo's unique blend of premium, quality products at exceptionally competitive prices. Our environmentally conscious DRIVe range has also hit the mark particularly with the C30 DRIVe delivering better fuel consumption than any hybrid car on the road today.
"2010 looks set to be another challenging year, but I feel that Volvo Car UK is in the best possible position to continue to weather the storm as we welcome a number of exciting new models to the range, including the new C30, new C70, XC60 R-DESIGN and the forthcoming all-new S60."
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