As car buyers plan on a new vehicle for the second registration period of the year, many companies are extending their offers. Some are slow to release their deals, while others have shown their hands with attractive offers, but expect even more as they compete for the expected surge in 152 registrations.

Be cautious, though, as many of them are contingent on the car buyer taking out a personal contract plan (PCP) finance offer. Take time to look through the details. These deals will allow you to drive a new car at what looks like a competitive price, but there are end of term costs and you need to keep a close eye on use levels, as many rates are quoted on the basis of limited mileage.

Nissan’s scrappage offer extended

Nissan has extended its scrappage offer until 31 July, the last day of the new registration period, giving new car buyers a guaranteed minimum trade-in value of €4,000 against any older car towards a new Micra, Note, Juke or Pulsar.

The deal is also available on the Qashqai, the 2015 Continental Irish Car of the Year, and the X-Trail, as well as the Leaf electric car. There is no age limit on the trade-in vehicle, once it has a valid NCT/DOE and road tax disc.

Nissan has a similar offering for its commercial range, with €4,000 trade-in value guaranteed on selected vehicles including the Navara, Primastar NV400 and Qashqai van range, Irish SUV Commercial of the Year for 2015.

Toyota offers upgrade packs

Toyota is offering a series of upgrade packs on its new cars from the Yaris to the Avensis. It values the upgrades from €1,000 upwards and while they are valid until the end of this month, you can expect to see the offer extended.

The upgrade offer for the Auris Aura includes climate control, 16in alloy wheels, front fog lights and Nappa leather steering wheel.

Ford to extend swappage offers

The Ford swappage deal allows you to trade in a vehicle up to 10 years old against a brand new Fiesta, Focus, B-Max, C-Max or Kuga and get an extra €1,000 allowance towards changing your vehicle, on top of your current vehicle’s trade-in value. The current deal applies to cars registered by 30 June, and you can expect that it will be extended to 152 registrations too.

The Ford options offer is based on a PCP offer on the Ka, Fiesta, B-Max, C-Max, Focus, EcoSport, Kuga, Mondeo and S-Max. You can choose your deposit between 10% and 30%, agree a monthly repayment at 5.9% APR and get Guaranteed Future Value (GFV). At the end of your agreement, you can return, retain or renew your car with a similar model.

Ford is also offering upgrade packs on Ka, Fiesta, B-Max, EcoSport, Focus and Mondeo models. All Ford cars now come with a five-year warranty.

Volkswagen offers spec deals

Volkswagen is offering upgrade packs on every new model along with a gift of goodies when you order your 152 model. Volkswagen Bank, the finance wing of the company, is offering finance at 1.9% APR. As you step up in specification from the Trendline to Comfortline, to Highline models, APR comes down.

Peugeot extends trade-in deal

Gowan Distributors Limited, Peugeot importers in Ireland, will be extending its Peugeot Trade-In-Ability promotion, offering up to a €4,500 scrappage allowance on models across the passenger car range, excluding the new 108 and RCZ. The deal applies only to cars registered in or before 2007.

Under the Trade-In-Ability scheme, a new 208 is on offer with a scrappage allowance of €3,000, while €3,500 is available against the 2008, 308 hatchback or SW, 508 family saloon or SW. Peugeot is offering a €4,000 trade-in allowance on the 3008 crossover, while the 5008 has a €4,500 trade-in offer.

The company also offers finance deals through 3.9% Peugeot Passport PCP or 4.9% APR on HP finance. There is now a five-year extended warranty offer across its car range.

Skoda and Seat offers

Skoda has lots of deals for pre- and post- 152 registrations. There is a 0% PCP finance deal on a 152 Octavia, along with €700-worth of extras. Similar deals are available on the Skoda Rapid.

Skoda will continue to offer its special IFA membership deal until the end of this month. This deal gives IFA members €1,000 towards a finance deposit on any new Skoda car bought with their Finance Plan that includes PCP finance.

Seat is also offering 0% PCP finance on the new Ibiza and Leon models. All other cars in its range can be financed at 2.9% APR PCP and there is a three-year service plan on all models for €399.

Opel scrappage offers

Opel will continue to offer its scrappage deal with a €4,500 allowance supported by a 0% APR finance deal. This applies to new Corsa (€3,000), Astra (€3,500), Insignia (€4,500) and Mokka (€3,000) passenger cars ordered before 31 May 2015.

Trade-in vehicles must be registered in the name of the buyer for a minimum of six months and have a valid NCT.

Hyundai joins scrappage movement

Hyundai has a scrappage bonus offer available on all 152 models booked at local dealers by 30 June and registered by 31 July. It offers a €3,500 scrappage bonus on the i10 and i20 models, rising to €4,000 for the Ix20, i30 and ix35 models.

This deal is based on the car buyer taking out a PCP deal through the dealer provided by Bank of Ireland, with a minimum deposit of 7% of the new car’s retail price and offered over a maximum term of 39 months. The deal is based on a 15,000km per year usage level and includes a five-year free servicing bonus, based on 100,000km.

Kia extends 0% finance

Kia will be carrying over its finance offers for 152 registrations, with 0% finance on the Cee’d, Rio and Soul, 4.9% on Carens, Venga and Picanto models, and 5.9% APR finance offered on the Sportage and new Sorento.

The PCP offer is 4.9% on Cee’d, Rio and Soul, Carens, Venga, Picanto and 5.9% on the Sportage and Sorento. All Kia cars have a seven-year warranty.

Deals at Audi and Mercedes-Benz

Audi has an Inspiration offer which will extend to the 152 registrations. With the deal, the company is offering PCP finance rates ranging from 3.9% for the Audi A1 to 4.9% for the A3 Sportback and 2.9% for the A4. These deals are available up until 31 July. All of these offers include specification upgrades.

Mercedes-Benz Ireland will continue to offer Star Finance PCP packages for 152 registrations that include a three-year service plan.

Mazda upgrades

Mazda Ireland is running an offer on the Mazda 3 for all registrations before the end of July, in the form of a specification upgrade, worth up to €1,650, depending on model.

On the Mazda 6 and Mazda CX-5, reduced PCP finance with an APR of 5.9% is available with Mazda Choices for a limited time only.

The new Mazda 2 and CX-3 go on sale in July. There are no additional offers on these models, with the Mazda 2 starting at €15,995 and CX-3 starting at €20,695.

Citroën’s 0% finance

Citroën is meeting the 152 registrations with its Happy Days Campaign offer available from 21 May to 14 June. Customers can avail of the 0% PCP Elect 3 Finance with three years free servicing (60,000km) on all 152 vehicles ordered during the three-week period.

Participating dealerships will also be hosting events in their showrooms during the campaign, with activities for all the family.