The Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) have released their official 231 new vehicle registrations statistics for May.
New car registrations for the month of May were up 42.7% (7,557) when compared to May 2022 (5,295). Registrations year to date are up 18.2% (74,542) on the same period last year (63,057).
Light Commercial vehicles (LCV) are up 76.2% (2,528) compared to May last year (1,435) and year to date are up 31.1% (16,255). HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) registrations are also showing an increase of 11.9% (217) in comparison to May 2022 (194). Year to date HGV’s are up 35.6% (1,424).
Imported Used Cars seen a 14.9% (4,486) increase in May 2023, when compared to May 2022 (3,905). Year to date imports are up 5.2% (20,797) on 2022 (19,766).
For the month of May 1,725 new electric vehicles were registered compared to 743 in May 2022 (+132.2). So far this year 12,875 new electric cars have been registered in comparison to +55.9% (8,258) on the same period 2022.
Electric Vehicles, Plug-in Hybrids and Hybrids continue to increase their market share, with a combined market share (year to date) now of 42.74%. Petrol remains dominant at 32.36%, with Diesel accounting for 22.17%, Hybrid 17.51%, Electric 17.27% and Plug-in Electric Hybrid 7.96%.
Brian Cooke, SIMI Director General commented: “New car sales increased again in May when compared to the same month last year, and now new cars sales are edging closer to pre-Covid levels. Some easing of supply difficulties has resulted in improvement in delivery times, and this has led to a significant growth particularly in Electric Vehicle (EV) registrations.
“Year to date EV sales are now 56% ahead of last year, representing over 17% of the new car market. During the month of May nearly one-in-four new cars sold were electric, outperforming diesel sales for the month. Further analysis of the registrations highlights that when we combine Electric Vehicles, Plug-in Hybrid Vehicles (PHEVs) and Hybrids, which use battery technology for driving, they account for over 50% of the new car market for May. Commercial vehicle registrations both the heavy and light sectors, also demonstrated strong growth during the month.”
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