Cyber attacks and factory closures constrain UK vehicle production

UK vehicle production fell by -15.5 per cent in 2025, with a cyber attack halting production at Britain’s biggest automotive employer in Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), seen as a key driver of decline.

According to the latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), UK factories turned out a total of 764,715 units last year (717,371 cars and 47,344 commercial vehicles), with output falling by eight per cent and 62.3 per cent respectively.

Volumes were also constrained by new tariffs on trade across the Atlantic, as well as the closure of the Vauxhall van factory in Luton last spring.

SMMT chief executive, Mike Hawes said 2025 was “the toughest year in a generation for UK vehicle manufacturing”.

“Structural changes, new trade barriers, and a cyber attack that stopped production at one of the UK’s most important manufacturers combined to constrain output, but the outlook for 2026 is one of recovery,” he said. “The launch of a raft of new, increasingly electric, models and an improving economic outlook in key markets augur well.”

Hawes also said that 2026 “must be a year of delivery” for the UK market. “The key to long term growth, however, is the creation of the right competitive conditions for investment; reduced energy costs; the avoidance of new trade barriers; and a healthy, sustainable domestic market.”

December saw van, truck, bus and coach volumes decline for a ninth consecutive month, falling -67.7 per cent to 2,281 units, but car production showed signs of recovery, rising 17.7 per cent to 53,003 units and ending four months of decline.

Over the year, car production for the UK market fell by -8.2 per cent to 161,545 units while exports declined -7.9 per cent to 555,826 units, accounting for 77.5 per cent of output.

Europe received the majority (56.7 per cent) of vehicles exported, followed by the US (15 per cent) and China (6.3 per cent). Exports to each were down, by -3.3 per cent, -18.3 per cent.and -12.5 per cent respectively – with shipments to the US impacted by tariff uncertainty earlier in 2025.

Turkey and Japan rounded off the UK’s top five global export markets, followed by Canada, Australia, South Korea, Switzerland and UAE.

Production of battery electric (BEV), plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and hybrid (HEV) cars rose by 8.3 per cent to a combined 298,813 units – a record 41.7 per cent share of output.

With the start of the new Nissan Leaf production in Sunderland, and the planned launch of seven new EV models across the UK, output is expected to grow in 2026.