The Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) recently issued the official 171 car sales figures for January, along with presenting their final SIMI Quarterly Motor Industry Review of 2016.

Car sales figures for the month of January show that 171 registrations are down 1.7% (39,019) compared to January 2016 (39,722). Light commercials are currently down 2.4% (6,394) compared to January last year (6,555), while HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) registrations are down 6.3% (456) for January in comparison to the same time last year (487).

The SIMI Report highlights the strong economic performance of the motor industry last year, with growth in registration figures seen across all counties. The upbeat nature of businesses was reflected in their investment in commercial vehicles, despite a softening of the market towards the latter half of 2016.

Jim Power, economist and author of the Review said: “Looking ahead to 2017, while the outlook for car sales is a bit more difficult to predict than last year, the projected growth in personal disposable incomes and the availability of credit provide solid support for car sales.

“However, the impact of Brexit and the increased volume of imported used cars are other issues that may impact on new car sales this year.

“Overall, numbers should be fairly close to last year with perhaps a slight decline of around 3% in new car sales in 2017, which would imply new car sales of around 142,000.”

Last year the motor industry continued to generate strong returns for the Exchequer, with a total VRT and VAT take of €1.5 billion (26.8% ahead of 2015) from new and used car sales alone.

Alan Greene SIMI President commented: “The motor industry continues to be a strong contributor to employment with 40,800 people employed throughout Ireland.

“Last year our Industry contributed €1.5bn to the Exchequer in car sales alone, 2017 was always going to be a more cautious year for businesses, right across the economy, but we have seen a steady start in January and hopefully we are on track for another good year and continuation of a stable market during the rest of the year.”

SIMI review of motoring costs for 2016

  • Increase in fuel prices: petrol prices are up 1.9% and diesel prices up 3.2% (Dec 2016 vs Dec 2015)
  • Average price of a new car: has declined by 5.5% (Dec 2016 vs Dec 2015).
  • Motor insurance: costs since 2013 have increased by 61.5%, although there was a slight decrease of 5.5% in the last quarter of 2016. Costs in December still remained at 8.9% higher than a year earlier.

    • Used cars The number of used cars imported from the UK has continued to grow, with over 7,500 units being imported in January 2017. That’s an increase of over 67% on last year.

    This affects new car sales as many consumers will opt for a bigger used car or one with a higher spec rather than buying new. However, consumers need to be aware of the increase in clocked and written off cars being imported to Ireland in recent times.

  • Hyundai Tucson is Ireland’s leading seller – ahead of the Ford Focus and Fiesta.
  • Diesel cars accounted for 65% of sales in January 2017.
  • Hatchback cars are the most popular body type, followed by SUVs and then saloon cars.