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Best-selling cars 1965

The Austin/Morris 1100 was the best-selling car of 1965 with almost 160,000 registrations

Austin/Morris 1100 - 1985

Queen Elizabeth II courted controversy in 1965 by appointing all four Beatles to the Order of the British Empire – an honour traditionally reserved for military veterans.

This was also the first year that official car registrations figures were unveiled, and they showed just over one million new cars found homes that year. The sixties were the most successful decade for the 1959 Mini, but surprisingly, it never topped the annual sales charts at home, ranking third in 1965.

Ford Cortina - 1965

Instead, the Austin/Morris 1100 was the favourite, with a 14.3 per cent market share – a ratio that would be almost impossible to reach today. The Ford Cortina trumped its Mini rival in 1965 to rank in second place in the overall chart for the year.

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Below it was the Ford Anglia, production of which would end two years later. Vauxhall was also present in the table, but with a name that went on to be discontinued in 1976: the Victor.

Unlike today, there were no foreign models in the top 10, as imports accounted for only five per cent of sales.

Best-selling cars 1965

Pos.ModelSales
1Austin/Morris 1100157,679
2Ford Cortina116,637
3Austin/Morris Mini104,477
4Ford Anglia84,589
5Vauxhall Victor69,854
6Vauxhall Viva58,884
7BMC 1.6 Farina52,503
8Ford Corsair44,943
9Morris Minor44,905
10Ford Mark IV43,204

Click below for the best-selling cars of that year...

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