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It was announced over the weekend that Nissan's next version of its X-Trail SUV won't be built in the UK after all.
The company is blaming changing emissions regulations over diesel cars and uncertainty caused by Brexit for its decision; the vehicle sold in the UK will be built in Japan instead. Around 17,000 X-Trails found UK homes in 2018, but where are the country's other big sellers in 2018 actually made?
British factories build many high-end models, including vehicles from Aston Martin, McLaren, Jaguar and Land Rover. Statistics reveal a majority of the cars that sell in high numbers come from overseas, however. We've ranked the 20 best-selling cars in the UK in 2018 in ascending order and looked at where each one is built:
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Fiat 500 – Tychy, Poland – 24,666 units sold in 2018
Fiat’s retro-fabulous 500 is hardly the newest kid on the block; it made its debut in 2007. Its age hasn’t curbed its popularity. Fiat sold about 194,000 examples of the 500 in Europe in 2018, a record for the model. 24,666 of those found a home in the UK. Fiat’s factory in Mexico builds the US-spec 500 but every UK-registered example of this 'very Italian' car starts life in Tychy, Poland.
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Hyundai Tucson – Nosovice, Czech Republic – 27,634 units sold in 2018
Hyundai boasts that 90% of the cars it sells in Europe were designed, developed and built locally. The Tucson is no exception; it’s made in Nosovice, Czech Republic, alongside the ix20 plus the hatchback and estate variants of the i30. The facility has an annual capacity of 350,000 cars.
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BMW 3 Series – Regensburg, Germany; Munich; Germany – 28,074 units sold in 2018
11 factories scattered across the globe made the last-generation BMW 3 Series. BMW’s plant in Regensburg, Germany, manufactured the M3 while its main factory in the heart of Munich made the 3 Series for the UK market. The 4 Series Cabriolet continues to roll off the Regensburg assembly line.
The seventh-generation 3 Series (pictured) introduced in late 2018 comes from Munich.
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BMW 1 Series – Regensburg, Germany; Leipzig, Germany – 28,125 units sold in 2018
Every BMW 1 Series wears a “made in Germany” tag. BMW’s Regensburg factory builds the three- and five-door variants of the 1 and its plant in Leipzig manufactures additional examples of the five-door. Leipzig is also where the i3, i8 and 2 Series come to life.
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Toyota Yaris – Valenciennes, France – 29,191 units sold in 2018
The Toyota Yaris stands out as the only French car on the list of the UK’s 20 best-sellers in 2018. Toyota began manufacturing the Yaris in Valenciennes, France, in 2001 and continues to ship French-built examples across the English Channel in 2019. The Valenciennes factory makes the Hybrid and GRMN variants of the Yaris in addition to the standard five-door hatchback.
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Audi A3 – Ingolstadt, Germany; Gyor, Hungary – 29,207 examples sold in 2018
The Audi A3 has dual citizenship. The Cabriolet and Saloon variants are built alongside the TT and the second-generation Q3 in Gyor, Hungary. Opened in 1993, the facility stands out as the largest engine plant in the world, according to Audi. The factory in Ingolstadt – the biggest in Audi’s production network – makes the A3 Sportback in addition to the A4, the A5, the Q2 and many derivative models like the RS 5.
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Volkswagen Tiguan – Osnabruck and Wolfsburg, Germany – 29,538 units sold in 2018
The Volkswagen factory in Wolfsburg, Germany, builds the second-generation Tiguan for the European market. It’s a historic facility that towers above the city of Wolfsburg; its four chimneys are visible from miles around. The smaller factory Volkswagen operates in Osnabruck (about 150 miles west of Wolfsburg) also builds the Tiguan.
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Vauxhall Astra – Ellesmere Port, England; Gliwice, Poland – 31,567 units sold in 2018
The Vauxhall Astra comes from one of two factories. It’s manufactured in Ellesmere Port, England, a plant that has made all seven generations of the Astra since 1981. The Sports Tourer estate notably comes exclusively from Ellesmere Port. Some examples of the hatchback model come from Gliwice, Poland. The Polish plant also built the 51 units of the Cascada sold in the UK in 2018.
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Vauxhall Mokka X – Bupyeong, South Korea; Zaragoza, Spain – 32,266 units sold in 2018
Motorists who purchase a Vauxhall Mokka X receive one from either Bupyeong, South Korea, or Zaragoza, Spain. The selection process isn’t random; the firm told Autocar that each new Mokka X’s country of origin comes from varies on a number of factors including demand for the model.
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Mercedes-Benz C-Class – Bremen, Germany – 32,600 units sold in 2018
Mercedes-Benz builds the saloon, estate, coupe and cabriolet variants of the C-Class under the same roof. The four body styles call Bremen, Germany, home. The site also builds the coupe and cabriolet versions of the E-Class, the GLC, the SLC and the SL and it’s preparing to manufacture the electric EQC in 2019. With 11 models on its roster, Bremen is Daimler’s largest factory.
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Kia Sportage – Zilina, Slovakia – 35,567 units sold in 2018
Kia proudly calls the Zilina, Slovakia, factory it opened in 2004 the base camp for its expansion in Europe. The facility – which is 238 times the size of a football field – builds the Sportage for the European market in addition to the Ceed and the Venga.
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Ford Kuga – Valencia, Spain – 40,398 units sold in 2018
The UK-spec Ford Kuga comes from Valencia, Spain. Opened in 1976 to build the original Fiesta, the factory makes a number of other models including the Mondeo and the Galaxy. Ford also makes the Kuga in the United States, where it’s known as the Escape, in Russia and in China.
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Mercedes-Benz A-Class – Rastatt, Germany; Kecskemet, Hungary; Uusikaupunki, Finland – 43,527 units sold in 2018
Mercedes-Benz sources the A-Class from one of three factories. It makes the model in Rastatt, Germany, and in Kecskemet, Hungary. Contract manufacturer Valmet helps Mercedes keep up with high demand by also manufacturing the A-Class in Uusikaupunki, Finland.
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Mini Hatch – Oxford, England; Born, Holland – 44,905 units sold in 2018
The BMW-owned factory in Oxford, England, builds the Mini Hatch using engines sourced from Hams Hall and body panels provided by Swindon. Dozens of cars have called Oxford home including the original Mini, the Austin Maxi, the Morris Marina and the Rover 75. Contract manufacturer VDL Nedcar also makes the Mini in Born, Holland.
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Volkswagen Polo – Pamplona, Spain – 45,149 units sold in 2018
Volkswagen’s Pamplona, Spain, factory is the home of the Polo. In 2018, the sixth-generation car’s first year on the market, the Pamplona facility made precisely 272,272 cars. The Polo accounted for 272,041 units while the T-Cross – which was added to Pamplona’s roster during 2018 – represented 231 cars. That number will increase significantly as production ramps up in 2019.
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Ford Focus – Saarlouis, Germany – 50,492 units sold in 2018
Ford's factory in Saarlouis, Germany, has made the Focus and its predecessor, the Escort, since it began building cars in 1970. Every UK-spec Focus comes from the facility. Ford also makes the fourth-generation Focus in Chongqing, China, through a joint-venture it operates with Changan. US production of the Focus ended in 2018 to make space for the Ranger pickup and the Bronco SUV and the firm cancelled its plans to export the model to America from China.
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Nissan Qashqai – Sunderland, England – 50,546 units sold in 2018
The Qashqai is one of four models Nissan makes in Sunderland, England. The factory also builds the Juke, which disappeared from the top 20 list in 2018, the electric Leaf and the X-Trail. Infiniti’s Mercedes-based Q30 and QX30 models also come to life in Sunderland.
As already mentioned, the next X-Trail - due to arrive around 2021 - will not be built in the UK.
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Vauxhall Corsa – Eisenach, Germany; Zaragoza, Spain – 52,915 units sold in 2018
The Vauxhall Corsa’s country of origin depends on the number of doors it’s ordered with. Opel's factory in Eisenach, Germany, builds the three-door variant of the car. The five-door hatchback comes from Zaragoza, Spain, a plant that has made the Corsa since the model’s release as the Nova in 1982.
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Volkswagen Golf – Wolfsburg, Zwickau and Dresden Germany – 64,829 examples sold in 2018
Volkswagen builds the Golf in Wolfsburg and Zwickau, two German cities located within about 200 miles of each other. Buyers who want to see how a Golf comes to life can tour the Wolfsburg factory and ceremoniously pick up their car from a pair of glass towers located a stone’s throw from the facility.
The Transparent Factory famously built for the flagship Phaeton manufactures the battery-powered e-Golf.
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Ford Fiesta – Cologne, Germany – 95,892 examples sold in 2018
The Ford Fiesta remained the UK’s uncontested best-seller in 2018, with 262 examples selling every single day on average in 2018. Ford invested £250 million into its Cologne, Germany, factory to build the eighth-generation Fiesta starting in 2017; at the time, it announced a Fiesta would roll off the assembly line every 68 seconds.
The Fiesta was last built in the UK in 2002, at Dagenham in Essex, a plant that today only builds engines.
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