Pinch, punch, it’s the 5th of the month and the SMMT registration numbers are out – all figures that come direct from carmakers via dealerships, importers and the DVLA plus wherever else you buy a car these days. 

The setup that the SMMT uses is called MVRIS (the motor vehicle registration information system), and it’s the best way to get a snapshot of the health of the UK new car market. Or is it?

Tesla doesn’t like it – not least because the latest SMMT figures show that the US carmaker’s registrations are down 41% in the first two months of the year compared with the same period in 2025. 

And Tesla doesn’t just not like the numbers, this month it took the extraordinary step of getting in touch with UK media outlets to tell them not to report its sales as being down (sorry – strongly caution) so as not to be embarrassed in March, when it says its registrations will bounce back. 

The company says that quarterly sales are the better way to assess the health of its business, because of the way that it distributes its cars from its factories. It also says that it has taken lots more orders than in January and February last year. 

But let’s take a step back – what is the difference between a sale and a registration? Well, when a company sells you a car that’s an exchange of money and a contract to supply you with whatever it is that you’ve ordered. 

A car doesn’t count for the SMMT figures until it’s registered – the manufacturer/dealer creates a VIN (the long number on your V5 and printed inside the engine bay somewhere), registers the car with the DVLA (and has to pay a registration fee and tax) and can then make some number plates for the car. 

Tesla’s issue is that its boats only arrive infrequently, so while it apparently has a load of Model 3s and Model Ys that have recently arrived in the country, they’re all sat in a port somewhere waiting to be inspected and registered before they’re sent to their happy new homes. 

But then all carmakers are in the same boat (no pun intended), are they not? Somebody asks them for a car, they make it and then eventually it arrives in the UK and is registered in the buyer’s name. We did ask the SMMT if the whole monthly numbers process is fair on Tesla, but surprisingly we haven't had an answer. 

We don’t normally get a running commentary on the process of selling cars, but Tesla has always prided itself on being disruptive – we look forward to March’s renaissance.