Comparing the number to 2023, there is a faint 1% decline.

Last year, there were 17,459 new electric car registrations, a 24% drop from the year before. For 2024, gasoline was still the most widely used engine type, but over 45% of the market was made up of electric, hybrid, and plug-in hybrid vehicles.

The market share of manual transmissions has decreased to 33.80%, while automatic transmissions now hold 66% of the market, according to SIMI's official statistics. In 2024, the hatchback will still be the most popular car body style in Ireland.

However, for the eighth consecutive year, grey has maintained its position as the best-selling shade. "With new car registrations ending at 121,195 units, slightly behind 2023, the new car market in 2024 was in line with the previous year," SIMI Director General Brian Cooke stated.

"Commercial vehicles sales, underlining the growth in employment and activity across the Irish economy, were more positive with LCV registrations finishing 7% ahead of last year and HGVs up 8% on 2023."

According to Mr. Cooke, the main aspect of the 2024 new car market was the 24% drop in sales of electric vehicles. "The industry is expecting a rise in EV sales in 2025, but there have been some hesitant indications of a slowdown in EV sales towards the end of 2024.

"This week marks the beginning of the new registration period, 251, which is encouraging for the Irish auto industry. It's a fantastic time for buyers to shop for a new or used car because of the many incentives and offers from manufacturers and merchants.