Study: U.K. Vehicles Getting Cleaner, More Fuel-Efficient

U.K. motorists’ changing relationships with vehicles are marked by a trend toward smaller engines, the growth of low-carbon diesel power, the rise of the smallest class of cars and increasing market share for multipurpose vehicles.

These findings are included in the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders’ largest-ever analysis of vehicle ownership in the region, tracking buying trends, ownership changes and transport preferences.

The study records details of each of the 35,760,901 cars, vans, trucks, buses and coaches now on U.K. roads.

The SMMT says the host of intriguing statistics revealed in the survey redraws the map of motoring preferences.

Worcester emerges as the U.K.'s most patriotic city, with more than a quarter of cars on its streets built locally. The top domestic model in the town is the record-breaking Nissan Qashqai, produced in Sunderland where the auto maker made more than 500,000 units in 2012.

There are 15 global auto makers building cars in the U.K., producing more than 20 different mainstream vehicles and another 20-plus specialist and luxury models from the likes of Bentley, McLaren, Morgan and Rolls Royce.

Fuel efficiency in the U.K. is highest in Slough, where the average car tops 50 mpg (4.7 L/100 km), thanks to more than 60% of its vehicles being diesel-powered.

The City of London lies at both ends of the efficiency spectrum, boasting the highest proportion of ultra-efficient alternative-fuel vehicles, but also having the U.K.'s biggest average engine size at 2.5L.

Last year, vehicles emitting less than 100 g/km of carbon dioxide more than doubled their share of the market to 8.2%. This trend toward reduced emissions and improved fuel efficiency was reflected by the number of cars producing less than 130 g/km of CO2.

This is the target average limit set by Europe for auto makers to achieve by 2015 and last year 55.4% of the U.K. market met the level or bettered it.

SMMT's analysis of all new-car emissions shows a continued trend in falling CO2 and improving fuel efficiency across the U.K. Emissions in 2012 improved 3.6% year-on-year to 133.1 g/km CO2 (equivalent to 53.4 mpg), down more than 26% since 2000.

The SMMT Motorparc data shows the Isles of Scilly topped the charts for vehicle age, with the average car there almost 11 years old, more than three years more than the U.K. average.

The Isles of Scilly, located off the southwestern tip of mainland England, has only about nine miles (14.5 km) of roads, and cars there likely reflect that, despite their age.