There are now electric vehicle (EV) choices from almost every car and van brand on the Irish market, so options have widened, while the price comparison between petrol and electric has narrowed significantly.

This year, for the first time, sales of new electric cars have outpaced those of diesel cars. For the first 10 months of 2025 new electric car sales at 23,053 units, were ahead of diesel sales and accounted for 18.64% of the market. That EV sales figure is still marginally lower than the 2022 figure, while in market terms it is significant that diesel car sales are lower than EVs.

Opel showed its new Frontera SUV at the Nevo Show with entry prices starting at €24,606 for the electric version, after SEAI grants, which is over €3,000 cheaper than the petrol hybrid version and has a range of up to 300km on a full charge.

Expect the EV market to account for close to 25% of new car sales by the end of 2026.

When we look at the used car import figures, we see that diesel car sales are also dropping while used EV sales are on the rise.

They doubled in percentage terms between 2024 and 2025 to 5.09% of all used car imports.

BYD, imported by Motor Distributors, had this new BYD hybrid petrol pick-up on show. It will not be available in Ireland until 2027.

Battery health figures after 10 years are now showing good results, with degradation figures as low as 1.5% per year. Those kinds of figures will give confidence to the used EV market, either local or imports.

Add the numbers up and this means that by the end of 2025, Irish car buyers will be driving over 100,000 EVs by the end of the year.

While many car companies and the Government will welcome this news, the reality is that diesel car choices have narrowed significantly, while EV choices have widened.

Hyundai showed its Inster commercial – a van conversion of the small Inster car – powered by a 42kWh battery and with a keen entry price of €20,495 including VAT and a range of 360km.

That means that the choices are now more weighted toward EVs, whether the new car buyer likes it or not.

Improvements

To be fair, the range and charging speeds associated with EVs have significantly improved. In a country the size of Ireland, that means that some of the newer models with a range of more than 500km won’t have to deal with the issue of range anxiety.

Fiat showed the EV version of the Grande Panda at the Nevo Show. It is powered by a 44kWh battery, comes with 320km range and entry prices start at €22,995 after SEAI grants.

This will certainly improve in the coming years as will the availability of fast-charging points across the country.

There are still too many gaps in the charging infrastructure for longer cross-country driving as our motorway network remains noticeably short of charging points.

General Motors' luxury Cadillac brand was on view for the first time in preparation for a 2026 launch on the Irish market. This big Vistiq model has three rows of seats, is powered by a 102kWh battery pack and has a rated range of 480km on a full charge. Prices will be announced soon.

The changes to EV performance, improved battery life data and extended range experiences along with an improving charging network (however slow that may be) all combined to bring a big attendance to the Nevo Electric Vehicle Show.

The newest van entry to the Irish market is the Chinese Farizon SV imported by the Frank Keane Group. The entry L1 versions are powered by a 67kWh battery and prices start at €47,000 including VAT. Range levels start from 397km and they have a 2-tonne towing rating.

And they were not disappointed with what they saw. Here we show some of the new EV car and van models that are ready for 2026 in what is becoming a hotly contested market.

Nissan’s new Micra has a familiar look to it, as its based on the previously introduced Renault 5. The styling is very Nissan, and the entry price starts at €25,995 with a 408km range and eight years' warranty on the car and its battery.