Land Rover enjoyed a strong sales month in April with higher sales spearheaded by the launch of the new Freelander 2.
The Solihull 4x4 maker out-paced the recovering new car market last month while stablemate Jaguar continued to struggle.
In a monthly market which rose by 4.26 per cent to 170,163 vehicles, Land Rover increased its sales by 6.02 per cent to 2,927.
For the year to date, sales are marginally ahead (0.35 per cent) at 16,756.
Mark Foster, spokesman for Land Rover, said the increase reflected the growing popularity of the Freelander 2 as well as pent up demand for the TDV8 versions of the Range Rover and Range Rover Sport.
He said: "The impact of Freelander 2, which is our volume vehicle, is now starting to be felt, but other models have also improved as well.
"There has been a fantastic take up of the TDV8 diesel engined versions of the Range Rover and Range Rover Sport.
"Solihull and Halewood are now working almost to capacity to meet the demand."
Meanwhile Jaguar saw a near 21 per cent decline in sales to 1,205 vehicles as it chased a strategy of selling lower volumes but higher margin vehicles.
When the carmaker saw a similar downturn in its US sales last week, the firm said it was not panicking.
It said the downturn was due to the people expecting the run out of the Castle Bromwich-built S-Type saloon.
But it said new product would help its recovery, with the X-F saloon due to enter production in the autumn ahead of a launch next spring, while a refreshened version of the XJ is due to be launched this summer.
In the year to date, Jaguar's were 13.7 per cent down at 7,405.
Meanwhile Mini has continued to put on sales, which rose by 1.7 per cent in the month to 3,729, according to the figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
In the year to date, sales have risen by 20.2 per cent to 15,297, reflecting the increased production capacity at Plant Oxford.
Elsewhere Toyota, which makes the Avensis and Auris at Burnaston near Derby, saw a 2.2 per cent rise to 81,29 vehicles for April, and a 13.31 per cent rise to 45,458 for the year.
The growth in April follows a better than expected first quarter performance, with volumes rising in three of the past four months.
Both private and fleet buying increased, despite fears over possible interest rate rises, while new models and offers enticed more motorists into showrooms.
Within each of the segments, super mini registrations rose by 11.3 per cent, while diesel cars were becoming increasingly popular.
Diesel registrations have risen by 25,107 over the first four months of the year, with diesel penetration of the market expected to rise from 37 to 40 per cent this year.
Christopher MacGowan, chief executive of the SMMT said: "April has provided us with yet another boost to new car registrations, continuing the better than expected trend during the first quarter of 2007."
