Volvo Car UK is celebrating its best sales performance in 20 years with a recorded 26% year-on-year sales increase in 2014.

The Volvo V40/V40 Cross Country came top with 18,086 sold followed by the XC60 with 9,959 and V60 with 4,188.

2014 saw the introduction of the new V60 Polestar, as well as the launch of Volvo’s own in-house designed and built Drive-E powertrains.

The new V60 Cross Country and all-new XC90, the first car to use Volvo’s brand new SPA chassis, will come this year.

Volvo Car Corporation sales increased 8.9% in 2014, setting a new record of 465,866 cars.

Managing director of Volvo Car UK Nick Connor said: “I am extremely pleased with our 2014 performance, and the strong contribution the UK has made to what was a record-breaking year for Volvo globally.

“In a very competitive market, we have outperformed many of our rivals and the heavy investment that we have put into our cars and engines is already bearing fruit. Our new Drive-E engines have had an extremely positive impact on our volume and with an exciting array of new models and engines arriving in 2015, we are set for yet another year to remember.”

Sales director for Volvo Car UK Jon Wakefield said: “2014 has been a fantastic year for Volvo and our dealers. Our performance shows we have the right cars, with the right engines and with the right offer.

“With our dealers, we’ve worked hard in the last 18 months to capitalise on the attractiveness of our new products and technologies, leading to a spectacular year-end result and a strong starting position for 2015. Our sales success in 2014 is not only a result of the efforts at Volvo Cars, but also the tremendous work that has been put in by our dealer network to reach this great milestone.”