Posh car sales soar as most motors hit skids
SALES of luxury cars are soaring - as super-rich sports stars and celebrities ignore the economic slump to treat themselves to flash sets of wheels.
New figures show Rolls-Royce has had a record year so far, with sales zooming up by 64 per cent.
And Bentleys and Aston Martins are also being snapped up at showrooms across the UK.
Formula 1 giant McLaren has reported 1,000 orders for its new road-going 200mph MP4-12C, which costs £168,500.
The supercar surge comes as sales of more down-to-earth models have plummeted by a fifth overall - with 1.3million motorists said to have been forced off the road by high fuel costs.
Renault sales are 30 per cent down while Mazda, Honda, Fiat, Toyota and Kia have seen falls of more than 20 per cent. Ford is down nine per cent.
Roll-Royce's Marco Jahn said: "Our customers are people who buy a Rolls-Royce as a reward.
"They are successful sports people, young entrepreneurs and people who have built up a business over decades." Bentley's Mike Hawes said its sales are up 20 per cent - spurred by the popularity of the new Continental GT coupe costing £135,760. The convertible model is £182,100.
Mr Hawes said: "The thing that our customers have in common is that they are very wealthy individuals.
"They include successful businessmen, people in showbusiness and sports stars. Footballers are very well paid and they do seem to like our cars."
Recent Rolls-Royce buyers include Manchester City winger Shaun Wright-Phillips, who bought a £200,500 Ghost model.
That was a bargain compared with the Phantom saloons, coupes and convertibles that cost up to £336,700. Tennis ace Andy Murray is among those to snap up a £125,000 Aston Martin DB9, helping to fuel a nine per cent sales surge.
Aston Martin's Matthew Clarke said the firm has weathered the recession that saw sales plunge from 7,281 in 2007 to just under 4,000 in 2009.
He said wealthy car fans have been able to afford supercars regardless of the credit crunch. But they fought shy of making ostentatious purchases during the worst of the economic downturn.
Mr Clarke added: "It is not good to be seen spending on luxuries during a recession."
The best example of the thriving luxury market was the sale last month of the last of 300 Bugatti Veyron supercars. The Veyron, the world's fastest road-legal car with a top speed of 268mph, went for £1.48million.
At the other end of the scale, car firms are simply hoping for better news in coming months.
Paul Everitt, of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, said: "Slow but steady growth in the second half of the year should see volumes increase."
£100m summer show
RICH Arab playboys are clogging up London's streets this summer with £100million worth of supercars.
They have flown the gas-guzzlers over from the Middle East to cruise the capital and show off to "petrol head" fans.
The Sun found TEN of the world's dearest motors within a square mile in posh Mayfair.
The cars include the £1.6m Pagani Zonda, £1m Koenigsegg Agera, £380,000 Maybach and £300,000 McLaren SLR.
