Irish Motor Industry Off to a Strong Start in 2025 with Record EV Sales

Published on 4 February, 2025

A positive start to 2025

Overview

The Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) has released the official 251 new vehicle registration statistics for January, highlighting a strong and promising start to 2025 for the Irish motor industry.

New car registrations soared by 7% in January, with 33,521 vehicles registered compared to 31,407 in January 2024. This growth signals renewed consumer confidence and a buoyant start to the year for dealerships nationwide.

The used car market also saw positive momentum, with imported used car registrations rising by 5% to 5,604, up from 5,325 in the same period last year.

One of the standout successes for January was in the Electric Vehicle (EV) sector, which experienced a record-breaking month. EV sales reached an all-time high of 4,925 registrations, marking a 20% increase compared to January 2024 (4,093). This milestone reflects Ireland’s growing appetite for sustainable mobility and the increasing availability of EV models.

In terms of market share by engine type, petrol cars continue to lead with 28.24%, followed closely by hybrids at 24.89%, while diesel accounts for 16.31%. EVs now represent 14.69% of the market, with plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) close behind at 14.17%—underscoring the strong demand for low-emission vehicles.

The shift towards modern driving preferences is also evident in transmission choices, with automatic vehicles dominating at 71.71% of new registrations, as manuals continue to decline, now representing just 28.28%.

Brian Cooke, SIMI Director General, commented:
“The new car market has started positively, with 33,521 new cars registered in January, an increase of 7% on the same month last year. For the commercial sector, registrations were mixed, with Light commercial vehicles (LCV) experiencing a decline of 16%, while Heavy Goods registrations (HGVs) saw an increase of 8% on last year.
Most notably, battery technology cars (BEV, PHEV, HEV) all saw significant growth, with their combined market share exceeding over half (55%) of the market. In particular, Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) sales surged in January, with 4,925 registrations, up 20% on the same period last year, the highest monthly total number of EVs sold, although their overall market share of 15% has yet to reach 2023 levels (19%). The underlying EV market continues to be dependent heavily on private sales which benefit from SEAI grant support, highlighting the importance of ongoing Government incentives to help stimulate the market. However, while there is cautious optimism over the trajectory of EV sales, one good month of sales does not necessarily define the whole year, and we still have a long way to go in the transition to electrification. The supply of EVs is there, with more newer EV models coming on stream across a range of price-points, so the focus must be clearly on supporting demand in what is still a relatively new market.”

Sinead McCann

Sinéad is our resident car tester who has the unenviable (-ok, slightly enviable) task of reviewing all the latest new cars to hit the market. You can follow her on Twitter @smcani and on Instagram @whatshedrives