UK car factories produced more electric and hybrid models in July even as overall vehicle manufacturing fell sharply, offering a rare positive signal for Britain’s automotive transition amid weaker exports and mounting pressure on the industry.
New figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) show total UK vehicle production fell 11.6% year on year to 63,655 units in July. Car production was down 10.6% to 61,767 units, while commercial vehicle output dropped 34.4% to 1,888.
Against that backdrop, production of fully electric and hybrid cars increased 6.8% to 25,678 units. It was the first monthly rise in electrified vehicle output this year, with those models accounting for more than four in every 10 cars built in Britain during July.
Electrified production bucks the wider decline
The contrast is significant. UK factories built fewer vehicles overall, but the mix of cars coming off production lines continued moving towards electrified powertrains.
According to the SMMT, electrified cars represented around three in 10 cars produced in July 2025. A year later that proportion has moved beyond four in 10.
That does not mean the wider manufacturing picture has turned a corner. UK automotive production remains under pressure, and the July improvement in electrified output needs to be viewed alongside substantial falls in exports and year-to-date production.
Exports remain a major weakness
Vehicle exports fell 15.9% in July to 47,377 units, while production for the domestic UK market actually increased 3.8%.
For cars specifically, UK-bound production rose 9.3%, but that was not enough to offset a 15.8% fall in exports. Shipments declined across every major export market identified by the SMMT, including the EU, US, Turkey, China and Japan.
The SMMT said weaker overseas demand was one factor behind the decline, alongside the earlier scheduling of routine summer maintenance shutdowns at some factories and ongoing model changeovers.
The bigger UK EV manufacturing question
For Britain’s EV transition, July’s figures show why manufacturing policy cannot be judged simply by looking at the number of electric cars sold.
Tech Torque Media recently reported that the government is reviewing the UK’s 2030 EV sales trajectory and Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate. Manufacturers have argued that the pace of regulation needs to be matched by measures that make Britain competitive as a place to build vehicles.
Investment is another part of that equation. Plans to expand battery manufacturing in Sunderland have faced uncertainty after AESC paused its planned expansion, underlining how the transition depends on securing both vehicle assembly and the battery supply chain around it.
Drivers also need the infrastructure to support the cars being produced and sold. Our analysis of the UK’s EV charging rollout found that headline charger numbers alone do not tell the whole story about how quickly the network is developing.
UK factories have produced almost 450,000 vehicles this year
Across the first seven months of 2026, UK factories produced 449,634 cars and commercial vehicles, down 8.1% from the same period last year.
Car output has held up better than commercial vehicles, falling 4.7% year to date to 433,523 units. Commercial vehicle production is down 53% at 16,111 units.
The SMMT argues that the UK still has the potential to rebuild production towards one million vehicles around the end of the decade, but says that will depend on fresh model investment and improvements to the country’s competitiveness, including energy costs and trade conditions.
Tech Torque Verdict
July’s electrified production increase is encouraging precisely because it arrived during a difficult month for UK manufacturing. Electric and hybrid cars taking more than 40% of car output shows that electrification is becoming increasingly embedded in what British factories build.
But one positive month does not erase the bigger warning signs. Falling exports, lower overall production and uncertainty around major battery investment all matter if the UK wants to retain a meaningful automotive manufacturing base through the EV transition.
The opportunity is there. The challenge now is turning a growing share of electrified production into sustained investment, higher overall output and a competitive UK supply chain.
