LONDON - Britain's car industry called for the country's next prime minister to secure a Brexit deal which keeps frictionless EU trade, warning that a no-deal exit risks billions of pounds of tariffs and border disruption which could cripple the sector.

"We are already seeing the consequences of uncertainty, the fear of no deal," said Mike Hawes, the Chief Executive of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.

"The next PM’s first job in office must be to secure a deal that maintains frictionless trade because, for our industry, ‘no deal’ is not an option, we don’t have the luxury of time," he said.

(Reporting by Costas Pitas; editing by Michael Holden) ((michael.holden@thomsonreuters.com; +44 207 542 3213; Reuters Messaging: michael.holden.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))