About this website
How Many Left is a database and search engine of statistics about car, motorcycle and commercial vehicle models registered with the Driver Vehicle and Licensing Agency (DVLA) in the United Kingdom.
My aim with this website is to make public data more accessible to the average motoring enthusiast. If you have any feedback, or if you spot any errors - please feel free to contact me. My details are at the bottom of every page. I read every email that I receive, but I only work on this site in my spare time, so please don't be offended if I don't have time to reply to your email.
Which cars are in the database?
The database covers all vehicles that are taxed or have a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN). It doesn't cover cars that were off the road prior to the introduction of SORN, or cars that have never been registered on the road since manufacture.
If you can't find your car, it doesn't mean that the DVLA thinks it doesn't exist!
Most vehicles are listed under the make and model recorded on their V5 documents. In some cases though, the make and model name isn't properly recorded and the the vehicle will be counted under one of the following alternative categories:
- Another similar model from the same manufacturer. eg. The author's old Subaru Legacy GT-B was counted as a Subaru Legacy, because the GT-B is a Japanese model that was never sold in the UK.
- The 'Missing' model from the same manufacturer. eg. A Bugatti Veyron is counted as a 'Bugatti - Missing', because the Veyron model hasn't been registered on the DVLA database.
- An 'Other' make and model. eg. A Pagani Zonda is counted as an 'Other Italian - Missing', because the Pagani make hasn't been registered on the DVLA database.
What does 'Missing' mean?
This is an extract from the guidance provided with the original data. You can read the full document on the gov.uk website: Vehicle licensing statistics: notes and definitions.
The limitations of these make and model statistics are not errors in the DVLA database, but issues with the statistical process used.
If a vehicle keeper believes that there is a specific error on the V5 document for their own vehicle, they should contact the DVLA directly to have this corrected.
Vehicle manufacturers submit vehicle information at point of first registration and DVLA do not change it unless prompted. This means that most mistakes in the final data are usually because of administrative errors made by the manufacturer. Other mistakes can occur when vehicles are registered manually using a paper form as there is opportunity for typographic errors.
Other issues include
- vehicles registered before 1963 are less likely to have a specific model name or any model name at all. Model names would only have existed if the manufacturer created one at the time
- model names are not designed to fully describe the vehicle, so different "marks" or trims might be included as one model name, despite being different vehicles (for example Volkswagen Golf)
- imported vehicles (that have not been on general sale in the UK) would not have a code available. DVLA attempts to find a near match but usually end up setting them to 'model missing"
- some smaller vehicle manufacturers are not part of the encoding scheme, so their vehicles are registered with the correct make code, but do not have any model codes
- multistage build vehicles (for example motorhomes) are likely to have a mix of makes and models from the base and final manufacturers
Any vehicle of a given model name which cannot be found in the data will most likely be included in the missing categories.
How accurate is the data?
As with all large government databases, there are errors in this dataset (especially since quite a lot of the data for older vehicles is based on paper records that were originally maintained by local authorities).
The most common error that crops up is vehicles that don't have exactly the correct model variant recorded on their V5 registration document. For example, a special edition Peugeot 205 Gentry might only have Peugeot 205 recorded on its V5. This can lead to some model variants appearing to be rarer than they actually are.
The key to understanding whether or not the data is accurate for your particular model is to check the model name on its V5 registration document. If it's not what you expect it to be, then it's likely that the DVLA statistics for that model aren't very accurate!
This happens more often with older vehicles, especially for those that would have originally been registered in the 1970s and earlier.
What does 'date for first registration' mean?
Date of first registration is the date that a vehicle first became known to the DVLA. This is usually the same as the year the car was built.
Imports will be counted under the year they were brought into the UK, and some restored classic vehicles will be counted under the year they were brought back on the road.
Where does the data come from?
The data is based on the "Vehicle licensing statistics" data published by the Department for Transport, which in turn is extracted from the DVLA's vehicle database.
The following tables of statistics are used:
- VEH0120 Vehicles at the end of the quarter by licence status, body type, make, generic model and model
- VEH0124 Vehicles at the end of the quarter by licence status, body type, make, generic model, model, year of first use and year of manufacture
- VEH0160 Vehicles registered for the first time by body type, make, generic model and model
- VEH0220 Vehicles at the end of the quarter by licence status, body type, make, generic model, model, fuel type and engine size