Registrations of new cars in Ireland continued to fall in August, but at a much slower rate than earlier this year. In the context of the precipitous drop in registrations that took place with the initial Covid-19 lockdown, a 4.2 per cent drop, from 5,088 sales in August 2019 to 4,875 sales this past month looks relatively benign. That is against the backdrop of an overall 28.6 per cent reduction in sales for the year to date, but even that is less dreadful a drop than was seen back in 2009, the first year of the previous recession.
Vans down, HGVs up
Registrations of vans fell by 11 per cent compared to August last year, and are down by 23.8 per cent for the year to date. Heavy goods vehicle (HGV) registrations actually rose, by 20 per cent, in August, but overall are still down by 25 per cent for the year.
Interestingly, used car imports have actually perked up a little in August - they're still down, by 16.1 per cent to 8,143 vehicles, but that's a distinct flattening of the curve of used imports, which for the year to date are down by 45.1 per cent.
Reduce VRT to save jobs and slash emissions
Brian Cooke, SIMI Director General commenting on the market figures said: "August represents another disappointing month for new car sales, with sales again down on the same month last year, as they have been each month of 2020. This has led a year to date reduction of 29 per cent in new cars sales, and a 43 per cent reduction over the last 4 years. The Industry is operating at the same business levels as 10 years ago when the sector shed close to 15,000 jobs. The outlook for 2021 is not optimistic, with the negative impact of both COVID and Brexit, new car sales will continue at recession levels. The Motor Industry in Ireland supports employment in local communities throughout the country and to protect these jobs it needs a fair taxation environment in which to operate. With Budget 2021 only weeks away, now is the time for a significant reduction in Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT). This would enable the car market return to normal sustainable levels that would not only save jobs but increase overall tax take and help renew the Irish car fleet, reducing both the age of the fleet and emissions from transport."
EV registrations continuing to rise
Registrations of electric vehicles again provided a gleam of hope. They rose by 3.39 per cent in August, and are up by 175 per cent for the year to date.
Diesel is still the Irish car buyer's fuel of choice, though, with the market being divided up by diesel at 43.45 per cent; petrol at 37.58 per cent; hybrids on 12.06 per cent; electric at 3.75 per cent, and plug-in hybrids on 2.7 per cent.
The best-selling brands' list is currently topped by Volkswagen, followed by Toyota, Hyundai, Skoda, and Ford. The best-selling car is the Toyota Corolla, followed by the Hyundai Tucson, the Volkswagen Tiguan, the Ford Focus, and the Hyundai Kona. The Kona was also the best-selling model in August.