New car registrations in Westmeath down
New car registrations for November were down 12.3% (982) compared to November 2021 (1,120), according to the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI).
Registrations year to date are marginally up 0.47% (105,039) on the same period last year (104,545) and are 10.13% behind (116,885) that of pre-Covid levels.
The 2022 sales figure for Westmeath is 1524, which is down 2.43% on the 2021 figure of 1562. Those figures give the county a 1.45% share of national sales (last year, the share was 1.49%).
The SIMI also reported that light commercial vehicle sales (LCV) are up 14.6% (880) compared to November last year (768) and year to date are down 18.0% (23,320).
HGV (heavy goods vehicle)* registrations are down 31.2% (130) in comparison to November 2021 (189). Year to date HGVs are down 8.7% (2,431).
Used car imports for November (3,295) decreased 25.9% on November 2021 (4,445). Year to date imports are down 26.6% (44,047) on 2021 (59,984).
For November, 343 new electric vehicles were registered compared to 190 in November 2021. So far this year 15,591 new electric cars have been registered, in comparison to 8,528 on the same period 2021, an increase of 82.8%.
Electric vehicle, plug-in hybrids and hybrids continue to increase their market share, and it is now at a combined 41%.
Petrol remains dominant with 30.18%; diesel accounts for 26.78%, hybrid 19.30, electric 14.84% and plug-in electric hybrid 6.77%.
Tom Cullen, deputy director general SIMI, said: “With the forthcoming announcement of the revised Climate Action Plan, it is fundamental that policymakers support their climate ambitions and invest in the electrification project.
“The strong performance of the electric vehicle market is down to the support of the SEAI grant scheme and incentives encouraging consumers to make the switch to EVs.
“Any early removal or reduction in supports will only lead to less demand, increased cost to change, restrained consumer confidence, and place Ireland further down the manufactures list in terms of EV supply availability.
“The new car market is already experiencing challenges with supply and the rising energy costs, and any further constraints could hamper growth.
“We need the new car market to grow significantly over the next few years if we are to optimise transport emission reductions and help to create a used EV market reaching a wider constituency of motorists.
“The national charging infrastructure is fundamental to instilling confidence in the Electric Vehicle transition and its development also needs to remain ahead of demand.”