Car statistics

Riley car statistics

How many Riley cars are on the road in Great Britain, every Riley model, its share of new cars over time and which fuels they use. Built from DVLA licensing records.

Last updated
Records analysed
37,339,879 car records (licensed and SORN)
Methodology
View methodology
  • Licensed in Great Britain 4,165 −1.3% on a year earlier
  • Rank among makes No. 64 0.01% of licensed cars
  • Declared SORN 1,340 24.3% of those still registered
  • Most common fuel Petrol 99.9% of those licensed
  • Models with a page 4 listed below

How many Riley cars are on the road?

There were 4,165 Riley cars licensed in Great Britain at the end of March 2026, and a further 1,340 declared off the road (SORN). That is 0.01% of all licensed cars, making Riley the No. 64 make on the road. That is 21.6% fewer than the peak of 5,313 in 1996. Petrol makes up 99.9% of licensed Riley cars, against 54.6% of all cars.

Riley cars licensed in Great Britain

The highest year-end count was 5,313 in 1996.

Riley cars licensed in Great Britain at the end of each year
Year Licensed
1994 4,489
1995 4,254
1996 5,313
1997 5,099
1998 5,015
1999 4,975
2000 4,812
2001 4,677
2002 4,569
2003 4,442
2004 4,424
2005 4,340
2006 4,229
2007 4,130
2008 4,129
2009 4,098
2010 4,060
2011 4,020
2012 4,035
2013 4,231
2014 4,263
2015 4,242
2016 4,208
2017 4,225
2018 4,314
2019 4,323
2020 4,290
2021 4,326
2022 4,324
2023 4,279
2024 4,227
2025 4,174
2026 4,165

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated

Fuel type

Riley cars

All cars in Great Britain

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated

Riley models

4 Riley models have a page of their own. The most common is the Riley 1.5, with 805 licensed: 19.3% of all Riley cars on the road. The totals above also count models too small for a page of their own.

Riley models with their own page, most licensed first
Model Licensed Change on a year SORN Main fuel
1.5 805 −0.1% 310 Petrol
Elf 408 −0.2% 322 Petrol
2.5 268 −1.1% 58 Petrol
Kestrel 119 +3.5% 42 Petrol

Makes of a similar size

Riley compared with makes of a similar size
Rank Make Licensed Change on a year Main fuel
61 Genesis 4,802 +27.7% Electric
62 Daimler 4,710 −2.0% Petrol
63 Tvr 4,371 −3.3% Petrol
64 Riley 4,165 −1.3% Petrol
65 Chevrolet Gmc 3,904 −0.4% Petrol
67 Dodge 3,701 −13.4% Petrol
68 Alpine 3,677 +162.6% Electric

Data sources and methodology

Datasets used on this page
Figures Source Period Records Updated
Licensed and SORN counts Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of March 2026 37,339,879 car records (licensed and SORN) 15 September 2026
Registered for the first time Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport 2001 to 2025 15 September 2026
  • Figures cover Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales). Northern Ireland is not included.
  • Make totals count every car DVLA records under the make, including models too small for a page of their own. The rank is among all 525 makes on the record.
  • Licensed counts are vehicles with a current tax or exemption at the end of each year (or the latest quarter). SORN counts are shown separately.
  • First registrations count cars registered in Great Britain for the first time, including used imports.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.