The Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) has released the official new vehicle registration figures for January 2018. New car registrations are down 4.8% to 37,125 compared to January 2017 when 39,003 new cars were registered.
Light Commercial registrations are currently up 6.3% to 6,728 compared to January last year (6,329), while HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) registrations are down 11.84% to 402 compared to January 2017 (456).
Alan Nolan Director General SIMI commented: “2017 finished down 10.4% as anticipated and also recorded a shift in the market-share of Diesel cars from 70% to 65%. The same trends have been apparent in January’s new car sales, which have delivered a steady start to the 181 registration period but Brexit has continued to impact with new car sales down 4.8%, while used car import registrations are up 20% compared to January last year. Diesel continues to be the choice of engine for over half of Irish new car buyers however the noticeable trend towards petrol and hybrid vehicles which started last year has continued in 2018. We expect this pattern of sales mix to continue for the rest of the year. While the number of Electric cars registered in January (104) shows a decline on January 2017 (168), this is a timing issue with supply and later new model delivery dates. The Sector remains confident that EV registrations will increase significantly in 2018.”
The top five selling car brands in the month of January were:
1.Toyota
2.Hyundai
3.Ford
4.Volkswagen
5.Nissan
The top five selling model in January were:
1.Hyundai Tucson
2.Nissan Qashqai
3.Ford Focus
4.Volkswagen Golf
5.Ford Fiesta
Ireland’s bestselling premium brand was Mercedes-Benz, while the bestselling premium car was the Mercedes-Benz E-Class.