New car registrations in 2011 increased marginally over those for the previous year.
The latest figures released by the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) reveal that in total 89,900 new cars were registered in 2011, up 1.64 per cent from the 88,446 cars registered in 2010.
On the face of it this would appear to be positive news for the motor industry but the figures do not tell the whole story. While sales increased in the first six months of the year, with January and July alone seeing average increases of thirty per cent, the second half of the year shows a marked decline with sales in October and November down by an average of fifty per cent.
This drop can be attributed to the end of the scrappage scheme that offered a €1,250 tax relief on vehicle registration tax (VRT) on the sale of a new model when a car 10 years or older was scrapped.
The move towards lower emission, more fuel efficient cars continues unabated with Band A and B vehicles accounting for over ninety per cent of all sales in 2011, up from less than eighty per cent the year before. Electric or EV cars saw a 'huge' jump from 18 cars in 2010 to 46 in 2011 but still only account for a miniscule number of sales, especially in comparison to diesel powered models, which make up 71.2 per cent of all new car sales in 2012.
As expected the Ford Focus was the biggest selling car of the year, its eleventh year in a row, although the car's success could not prevent Ford slipping to third in the manufacturers' list - behind Toyota and Volkswagen. Buoyed by its success under the scrappage scheme the Renault Fluence enjoyed record sales, claiming fourth place in the list behind the Volkswagen Golf and Toyota Avensis.