SMALL CARS DOMINATE USED CAR SALES

SMALL, FUEL-EFFICIENT cars continue to be the most appealing to used car buyers, research shows.

The figures from Experian, the global information service, demonstrated that 285,962 used Ford Fiestas were sold last year making it Britain’s best selling used car in 2010.

Even though overall sales for the Fiesta were lower than in 2009 there was more of a pronounced drop in sales of Vauxhall's Corsa, which came in second place to the Fiesta.

According to the information 278,169 used Vauxhall Corsas found new owners in 2010.

Smaller b and c-segment cars had the best results and after the Fiesta and Corsa, the Vauxhall Astra, Ford Focus and Volkswagen Golf faired well.

Experian's data also showed that in 2010 the Toyota Prius was the best selling hybrid holding over 55 per cent of sales in that sector and the Mazda MX-5 outsold the Audi TT.

The top 10 used cars of 2010 according to the figures are:

1. Ford Fiesta (285,962)

2. Vauxhall Corsa (278,169)

3. Vauxhall Astra (271,412)

4. Ford Focus (259,355)

5. VW Golf (199,919)

6. BMW 3 Series (176,116)

7. Renault Clio (166,559)

8. Ford Mondeo (164,904)

9. Vauxhall Vectra (133,511)

10. Peugeot 206 (127,256)

By By Press Association Reporters