The Irish car industry might be in for a better run-up to Christmas than expected, with a 9.7 per cent rise in registrations in October compared to the same month last year.
Sales down marginally for the year to date
This means that while overall sales for 2024 have shrunk compared to 2023, they’re down by only 1.2 per cent - 119,668 sales compared to 121,134 at the same time last year.
There is a worrying statistic in October’s figures though — sales of vans, generally considered to be an indicator of underlying economic performance — fell by a chunky 14.2 per cent compared to last October. However, they are up by 8.0 per cent for the year to date. It remains to be seen if October’s figures are a harbinger, or a blip.
Imports of used cars — which are increasingly coming from Japan, thanks to a weak Yen — rose by a substantial 38.5 per cent in October, compared to the same month last year, and have risen by 25.9 per cent for the year so far to 42,641 second hand cars.
Electric car sales continue to slump
October saw yet another slump in electric car sales. A mere 529 were registered in October 2024, compared to 603 in the same month in 2023, a 12.3 per cent decrease. That decrease was at least less than that for the overall year, which stands at 25.4 per cent so far — 16,656 new EVs have been registered in 2024, compared to 22,329 at this stage last year.
Brian Cooke, the Society of the Irish Motor Industry’s Director General said: “October new car registrations increased by ten per cent when compared to the same month last year, with 2,423 new cars registered. However, year to date new car registrations are still marginally down on last year. The data also shows the continuing decline in sales of Electric Vehicles (EVs), with EV sales for the month 12 per cent lower than October last year. This marks the ninth consecutive month of decline in electric vehicle registrations which is clearly a worrying trend. Year to date EV registrations are now 25 per cent lower than 2023. The decline in EV sales emphasises the need for continued Government supports and initiatives to boost sales in this market segment.”
Toyota and Hyundai still on top
So far this year, petrol cars continue to lead the new car market at 30.79 per cent followed by diesel at 22.94 per cent, then hybrids at 20.99 per cent, electric at 13.92 per cent, and plug-in hybrid electric at 9.81 per cent.
Toyota remains on top of the brand sales charts, followed by Volkswagen, Skoda, Hyundai, and Kia. The Hyundai Tucson — unsurprisingly — remains top of the individual model charts, followed by the Skoda Octavia, the Kia Sportage, the Toyota RAV4, and the Toyota Yaris Cross.
In the depressed electric car market, the Volkswagen ID.4 is still the best seller, followed by the Tesla Model 3, the Tesla Model Y, the Kia EV6, and the Hyundai Kona. Volkswagen remains on top of the electric selling brand charts, followed by Tesla, Kia, Hyundai, and BYD.
The best-selling car in October was the Yaris Cross, while the best-selling electric vehicle for the month was the Nissan Leaf.