EV Sales Surge, China Tops UK Sales: What Happened in September 2026?

The Jaecoo 7 topped September sales, almost 100,000 EVs were registered and Chery’s brands approached a combined 10% market share. Yet EV uptake still trails the government mandate

Something extraordinary has happened in the British car market. The country’s best-selling new car in September was Chinese, almost 100,000 fully electric cars were registered in a single month, plug-in hybrids surged by more than 55% and Tesla placed two models in the overall UK top five.

At the same time, Ford’s September registrations fell by more than 27%, traditional brand loyalty continued to weaken and, despite record electric-car demand, the market remained well short of the government’s headline EV target.

September is particularly revealing because the registration-plate change makes it one of the biggest months of the year, typically accounting for around one in seven annual registrations. This year, 350,536 new cars were registered, an increase of 12% over September 2025 and the strongest result for the month since 2017. It was also the market’s tenth consecutive month of growth.

The headline looks encouraging, but the detail reveals a market being reshaped at remarkable speed.

Cars with a plug generated all the growth

Battery-electric vehicles recorded their best month ever, with 99,201 registrations. That represented an increase of 36.3% and gave fully electric cars 28.3% of the September market.

Plug-in hybrids grew even faster, rising by 55.5% to 59,571 registrations and taking a record 17% share. Conventional hybrids fell by 4.3%, petrol declined by 6.7% and diesel unexpectedly increased by 11.5%, although diesel still accounted for only 4% of registrations.

Combining fully electric, plug-in hybrid and conventional hybrid models produces an impressive-sounding “electrified” share of 58.4%. That description requires context because it includes regular hybrids which obtain all their energy from petrol. Cars equipped with a charging plug represented 45.3% of September registrations, while pure EVs accounted for 28.3%.

The most revealing calculation is that battery-electric cars and plug-in hybrids together added almost 47,700 registrations compared with September last year. The entire new-car market grew by approximately 37,600. Cars with a plug therefore generated all the market’s net growth and compensated for falling petrol and conventional-hybrid volumes.

Are fuel prices pushing motorists towards EVs?

Fuel costs are likely to be part of the explanation. During September, petrol moved beyond 169p per litre and diesel passed 191p. The increases continued into October, with average petrol reaching 174.71p and diesel moving beyond £2 per litre. Filling a 55-litre diesel family car now costs around £110.

Those numbers inevitably make an electric car more attractive, particularly for motorists who can charge cheaply at home. The calculation changes for drivers who rely heavily on expensive public rapid charging, while purchase price, finance, insurance and depreciation must also be considered before changing cars purely to reduce running costs.

Registration data cannot tell us how many people switched because of the fuel-price shock, especially when many September cars would have been ordered weeks or months earlier. However, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders has acknowledged that high fuel prices are giving more consumers a reason to consider going electric.

Choice and incentives are also playing a substantial role. The UK now offers 178 fully electric models, more than double the number available in 2023, supported by government grants, manufacturer discounts and increasingly aggressive finance offers.

Record EV sales still miss the mandate

Across the first nine months of 2026, battery-electric vehicles accounted for 26.2% of new-car registrations, up from 22.1% at the same stage last year. That remains below the government’s 33% headline Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate target for 2026.

Using the industry’s latest full-year market forecast, achieving a straightforward 33% share would require approximately 265,000 additional electric cars to be registered during the final quarter. That would mean EVs taking roughly 60% of the remaining market.

The mandate is applied to individual manufacturers and includes credits, trading arrangements and other flexibilities, so an overall market share below 33% does not automatically mean every carmaker receives a fine. It nevertheless illustrates the gap between the mandated trajectory and current consumer demand, even during a record year supported by substantial incentives.

The government’s own mandate review estimated that manufacturers spent an additional average of around £2,800 per electric car on discounts during 2025. That support makes EVs more accessible, but the financial pressure must ultimately be absorbed somewhere within the industry, pricing structure or public purse.

Jaecoo 7 takes the UK number-one spot

The biggest disruption can be found at the top of the model chart. The Jaecoo 7 was Britain’s best-selling new car in September, recording 10,814 registrations and beating the Tesla Model 3, Ford Puma, Kia Sportage and Tesla Model Y.

Its success extends well beyond one month. With 39,474 registrations during the first nine months, the Jaecoo 7 is the UK’s second-best-selling car of 2026 and sits only 3,452 units behind the Ford Puma. It could realistically finish the year as Britain’s most registered new car.

The formula is easy to understand. The Jaecoo 7 delivers the SUV shape and visual presence buyers want, generous equipment, petrol and plug-in hybrid options, a seven-year warranty and pricing which undercuts many established rivals. British consumers appear increasingly willing to try an unfamiliar badge when the product and monthly payment make sense.

Jaecoo is part of a far larger story. Combining September registrations for Jaecoo, Omoda, Chery and the newly introduced Lepas produces a total of 32,830 cars, equivalent to 9.37% of the market. Across 2026 so far, the four Chery-owned brands have registered more than 124,000 vehicles and secured just over 7% of the market. At the same point last year, their combined share was only slightly above 2%.

Chery’s own UK marque registered 9,793 cars in September. It has already established around 100 retailers, opened an R&D centre at Millbrook and introduced four SUV lines. Chery reports that more than 83% of its September registrations featured its Super Hybrid technology, although that umbrella description should not automatically be interpreted as an 83% plug-in hybrid share.

Chinese manufacturers have understood that many British buyers want well-equipped SUVs at attainable prices. Crucially, they are offering petrol, hybrid and plug-in hybrid models to customers who may be interested in electrification but remain unwilling or unable to adopt a pure EV.

Established brands lose ground

Ford’s registrations fell by 27.3% in September and by 9.3% across the year to date. Its market share has dropped from 5.8% to 4.77%. The Puma remains Britain’s best-selling car across 2026, but one successful model is carrying considerable weight for the brand.

Vauxhall registrations are up by 6.1% during the year, but the overall market has grown faster, reducing its share from 4.21% to 4.05%. Volkswagen remains the UK’s largest individual marque; however, its registrations are down by 2.1% and its share has fallen from 8.92% to 7.92%.

Comparing four Chery-owned brands with individual marques is not entirely like-for-like. Even with that qualification, their combined September volume exceeded that of any single marque, demonstrating how quickly the established order is being challenged.

Tesla returns to the top five

Earlier in 2026, Tesla appeared vulnerable to an ageing product range, stronger competition and consumer opposition to Elon Musk’s political interventions. September delivered a striking reversal: the Model 3 was Britain’s second-best-selling car with 9,929 registrations, while the Model Y took fifth place with 5,946.

Together, the two Teslas accounted for 16% of all battery-electric cars registered during the month. Tesla’s September volume almost doubled year on year, while its total for 2026 is up by more than 32%.

The figures cannot tell us whether attitudes towards Musk have changed. The commercial explanation is more tangible. Tesla offered 0% finance on the rear-wheel-drive Model 3, supported by a £2,500 deposit contribution and advertised monthly payments from £249, subject to a sizeable customer deposit and final payment.

September also marked the end of Tesla’s third quarter, when the company traditionally concentrates deliveries. The brand was already growing before the plate-change month, and its recovery has appeared across several European markets, but competitive finance, higher fuel prices and a quarter-end delivery push magnified the result.

Plug-in hybrids only work properly when plugged in

Plug-in hybrids are becoming the compromise of choice, with registrations up by 55.5% in September and 41.8% across the year.

For the right user, a PHEV can combine electric running for local journeys with a petrol engine for longer trips. Its efficiency and emissions benefits depend on regular charging. Official figures assume that a substantial proportion of driving is completed on electricity, while government research indicates that many drivers charge much less frequently.

The Department for Transport’s ZEV Mandate Review estimated that real-world PHEV carbon-dioxide emissions can be three to seven times higher than their official figures. It also found that PHEVs registered in 2025 remained approximately 40% cleaner in real-world CO2 terms than the average combustion-engine or conventional hybrid car.

The technology therefore has genuine potential when it suits the owner’s routine and is used as intended. Drivers without convenient charging, or those unlikely to plug in regularly, may find a conventional hybrid simpler and more efficient for their circumstances. Conventional hybrid registrations fell in September but remain 7.9% higher across the year.

BrownCarGuy Says

Britain’s car market is being pulled in several directions at once. High fuel prices are improving the appeal of electric driving; government rules are encouraging manufacturers to push EVs; cheap finance and discounts are drawing customers into new cars; PHEVs are becoming the transitional choice; and Chinese manufacturers are offering the SUVs, technology and pricing consumers want.

For established brands, familiarity is losing some of its power. Buyers increasingly focus on equipment, monthly cost, warranty coverage and energy consumption, with the badge moving further down the priority list.

September gives government both encouragement and warning. Registering 99,201 electric cars in one month proves that demand can grow rapidly when choice and the financial proposition improve. A year-to-date share of 26.2% also demonstrates the difficulty of forcing demand towards 33% and beyond on the existing timetable, even under unusually favourable conditions.

The transition is happening, but motorists are deciding its pace and shape. They may also decide that the manufacturers leading it are very different from those which dominated the British market only a few years ago.

The Jaecoo 7 could finish 2026 as Britain’s best-selling car. Chery’s brands have progressed from outsiders to almost one in ten September registrations, Tesla has returned near the top and cars fitted with a charging plug are generating all the market’s growth. That is a remarkable amount of change in a remarkably short time.

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