Top 10: Irish car sales 2013

The new car market in Ireland contracted by 6.6% during 2013. That was despite the switch to a biannual number plate system, introduced as an attempt to redistribute some of the usual first quarter sales peak and to avoid a ‘13’ age identifier appearing.

In total 74,303 registrations were recorded in 2013 compared to 2012’s figure of 79,574, according to data just published by the Society of the Irish Motor Industry.

In terms of manufacturer performances Volkswagen, Toyota and Ford continued to occupy the top three slots in that order. Indeed, combined they accounted for one third of all retails, even though Toyota saw its volumes slashed by almost a quarter.

Volkswagen Golf GTD (2013) Front Side
Volkswagen is still Ireland's top car brand.

Another notably poor performance came from Renault. The French marque dropped out of the top ten altogether after achieving just 3,318 registrations, a drop of almost 2,000 units versus 2012.

Top 10: Irish Car Registrations 2013 - By Manufacturer
Position Manufacturer 2013 2012 +/- % +/-
1 Volkswagen 9,508 10,150 -642 -6.3%
2 Toyota 7,665 9,998 -2,333 -23.3%
3 Ford 7,621 8,592 -971 -11.3%
4 Hyundai 5,830 5,242 588 11.2%
5 Nissan 5,317 6,074 -757 -12.5%
6 Opel 4,914 5,103 -189 -3.7%
7 Škoda 4,903 5,084 -181 -3.6%
8 Audi 3,700 3,685 15 0.4%
9 BMW 3,539 3,393 146 4.3%
10 Kia 3,350 3,133 217 6.9%
Figures provided by SIMI Statistical Service

The Golf underscored Volkswagen’s status as the leading car brand in Ireland. It ended 2013 as most popular individual model, a result that was helped by a mediocre year for the Ford Focus.

Top 10: Irish Car Registrations 2013 - By Model
Position Model 2013 2012 +/- % +/-
1 Volkswagen Golf 3,604 3,349 255 7.6%
2 Nissan Qashqai 2,944 3,298 -354 -10.7%
3 Ford Focus 2,871 3,748 -877 -23.4%
4 Ford Fiesta 2,416 2,152 264 12.3%
5 Toyota Auris 2,142 1,914 228 11.9%
6 Škoda Octavia 2,002 2,396 -394 -16.4%
7 Volkswagen Passat 1,866 2,372 -506 -21.3%
8 Opel Astra 1,735 1,568 167 10.7%
9 Toyota Yaris 1,679 2,438 -759 -31.1%
10 BMW 5 Series 1,594 1,658 -64 -3.9%
Figures provided by SIMI Statistical Service

Related posts:
Top 10: Irish car sales 2012
Top 10: Irish car sales 2011

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