New car registrations in September, a critically important plate-change month, fell 0.8 per cent to 332,476 units.
The market was propped up by fleet sales with the sector continuing to replace ageing vehicles.
Year-to-date sales are adrift 5 per cent while Q3 is down 0.7 per cent, according to figures released by the SMMT.
Bu the retail market continues to suffer, down 9.3 per cent due to the weak economy.
The SMMT said it expected the full year market to end 5.3 per cent below 2010 levels at 1.92 million units.
“The all-important September market outperformed expectations and is less than 1 per cent below last year at 332,476 units,” said Paul Everitt, SMMT chief executive.
“We expected 2011 to be a challenging year and we are on track for a full year total of around 1.92 million new car registrations, 5 per cent below 2010.
SMMT has revised down its 2012 registrations forecast to 1.96 million units, a reflection of the continued weakness in UK domestic demand and the uncertainty across European economies.
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