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There were 8,893 new private cars licensed in May 2010, compared with 4,840 in May 2009, an increase of 83.7%, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
The number of new goods vehicles licensed in May 2010 was 916 compared with 1,034 in the corresponding month last year - a decrease of 11.4%.
The licensing figures also show that: 1) In May 2010, the total number of all vehicles licensed was 16,173 compared with 14,799 in the corresponding month last year - an increase of 9.3%. 2) The total number of all new vehicles licensed during May 2010 was 10,614 compared with 6,864 during the same month in 2009 - an increase of 54.6%. 3) In May 2010, of the 8,893 new private cars licensed, 2,533 (28.5%) were petrol and 6,020 (67.7%) were diesel. 4) The highest number of new private cars licensed in May 2010, classified by make, was Ford (1,389) followed by Volkswagen (1,153), Renault (990) and Toyota (828).
A scrappage scheme for cars of ten years or older was introduced in the December 2009 Budget. The scheme means that a €1,500 reduction of Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT) on the purchase of a new low-emissions car is available when an applicable used car is traded-in against it.
An estimated 600,000 used cars could be eligible, according to the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI).
Along with most small city cars and superminis, several diesel versions of family cars like the Ford Mondeo, Renault Laguna and VW Passat fall into the scheme, along with variants of larger premium models such as some diesel versions of Audi’s A6, BMW’s 5 Series, Volvo’s S80 and Mercedes’ E-Class are eligible for the offset.
The licensing figures refer to vehicles taxed for road use only and classified by taxation class. Complementary figures for vehicle registrations are available separately (Vehicle Registrations).
Table 1: Number of vehicles licensed for the first time
classified by taxation class
Taxation Class
May
January-May
2008
2009
2010
2008
2009
2010
New Vehicles
New Private Cars
12,172
4,840
8,893
107,200
37,532
53,047
New Goods Vehicles
3,219
1,034
916
20,571
5,011
5,827
New Tractors
515
239
125
2,471
1,101
634
New Motor Cycles
365
248
144
1,605
1,094
655
New Exempt Vehicles
675
388
452
3,649
2,187
2,387
New Other
339
115
84
2,019
806
408
Total New Vehicles
17,285
6,864
10,614
137,515
47,731
62,958
Used (imported) Vehicles
Used Private Cars
5,122
4,977
3,683
24,816
26,463
18,113
Used Goods Vehicles
1,218
1,497
785
5,673
6,496
4,017
Used Tractors
364
291
211
1,559
1,289
934
Used Motorcycles
550
507
398
1,779
1,879
1,396
Used Other Vehicles
729
663
482
2,828
2,768
2,063
Total Used vehicles
7,983
7,935
5,559
36,655
38,895
26,523
Total All Vehicles
25,268
14,799
16,173
174,170
86,626
89,481
Table 2: Number of new private cars licensed for the first time
by CO2 emission band and fuel type, May 2010
Band
Fuel Type
Total
Petrol
Diesel
Petrol & Electric
Petrol & Ethanol
Other
A
477
2,786
52
0
0
3,315
B
1,610
2,080
14
261
0
3,965
C
183
729
5
0
0
917
D
192
245
0
6
0
443
E
54
104
0
1
0
159
F
10
29
0
1
0
40
6
26
0
0
0
32
Not available1
1
21
0
0
0
22
Total
2,533
6,020
71
269
0
8,893
Table 3: Number of new and used (imported) private cars licensed
for the first time by make, May 2010
