Figures released by the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) show another rise in new car sales in November.

In November there were 1,131 new cars registered compared to 913 in November 2020. That’s an increase of 23.9% and when compared to 2019 the registration were  and 761 giving a positive of 48.6%. 

Overall 104,563 new cars have been registered year to date compared to 87,724 for the same period in 2020 (+19.2%) and 116,885 in 2019 (-10.5%).

Light Commercials Vehicles (LCV) seen a decrease of 767 registrations compared to November last year 829 and an increase on 857 registrations for the same month in 2019. Year to date 28,424 new LCVs were registered, an increase on last year’s 21,431 (+32.6%) and on 25,161 in 2019 (+13.0%).

Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGV) have seen an increase of 177 registrations in November when compared to 81 in November 2020 and 118 November 2019. Year to date HGV's registrations total 2,649 compared with 2,037 in 2020 (+30.04%) and 2,610 in 2019 (+1.5%).

There were 4,445 used cars imported in November 2021, compared with 8,645 imports in November 2020, and a decrease on the 10,008 imports in November 2019. Year to date used imports are down 10.7% (59,982) on 2020 (67,149) and down 42.3% on 2019 (103,900).

Sales of 195 new electric vehicles registered in November compares positively to 61 in November 2020. So far this year 8,533 new electric cars have been registered in comparison to 3,928 on the same period 2020. Electric Vehicle, Plug-in Hybrids and Hybrids continue to increase their market share, with their combined market share now over 31.62%. Diesel now accounts for 33.50%, Petrol 32.20%, Hybrid 16.19%, Electric 8.16% and Plug-in Electric Hybrid 7.27%.

Commenting Brian Cooke, SIMI Director General: “New car registrations for November were ahead of last year for both the month and year to date, although new car sales continue to remain behind pre-COVID levels. The most positive aspect of the new car market is the ongoing growth in the electric car segment, with a further increase in EV sales anticipated next year. Notwithstanding this, we are still in the early stages of de-carbonising the national fleet and we have a very long way to go to get close to the targets in the Climate Action Plan. In this context, we need to continue year on year growth in EV sales, which in turn will kick start an active used EV market. In order to achieve this, we must both extend the EV supports until there is a critical mass of these cars to create a viable used car market, and implement a tax strategy that supports a much stronger new car market. The potential benefits of this approach include the acceleration of EV growth, a material reduction in emissions, removal of the worst polluters from Irish roads and increased tax revenues. In a recent address to the Oireachtas Committee on the Environment and Climate Action, the Society highlighted the importance of the extension of EV supports, the rolling out of a national charging infrastructure, and an increased focus on supporting the business EV market. It is simply too soon to start eroding the current EV supports, but the recent and sudden removal of the PHEV Grant sends a bad signal to motorists and the Industry. It is not too late to reverse this, and we would again urge the Government to re-instate this support for those vehicles that the Industry and consumers have already committed to.” 

Top Selling Car Brands November 2021

1. Toyota

2. Volkswagen

3. Hyundai

4. Skoda

5. Ford

Top car model’s:

1. Hyundai Tucson

2. Toyota Corolla

3. Toyota Yaris

4. Volkswagen Tiguan

5. Toyota C-HR

Market share by engine type 2021:

Diesel 33.50%,

Petrol 32.20%,

Hybrid 16.19%,

Electric 8.16%

Plug-in Electric Hybrid 7.27%