Second hand car sales on the increase
THE latest car registration stats provided this month provided by car data website Motorcheck.ie show that new car registrations have dropped by 30% since 2016 – meaning that the second hand market is growing.
In 2016, there were 29,792 new vehicles registered in July, which drops to 20,775 in 2017. This is the lowest number of newly registered cars since the recession era.
This is a surprise turn, as car registrations were on the up in 2015, and saw an increase again in 2016 but the trend bucked in 2017.
It’s not good news for the new car trade but the used car industry has benefited greatly.
Used cars imported from the UK, and further afield, have increased by almost 40%, with over 53,000 used imported cars being registered since January 1, 2017.
This is a more consistently reliable trend than new car registrations, as there is no seasonal pattern with imported purchases.
Used car imports do not fluctuate month on month as new registrations do, with peak new car registrations being in January and July, whereas used imports appear to remain steady through the year.
This could well indicate that Brexit is fully affecting the new vehicle trade as Irish buyers are becoming more and more inclined to go to the, arguably better, mainland for a deal.
It may also spell the end of ‘ Paddy Spec’; a cost cutting tactic car manufacturers have of shipping lower spec cars to Ireland, where the end user was once more willing to purchase without optional extras, such as air conditioning, leather seats and sun roofs.
While buying a car in the UK may be scary for many Irish drivers, local motor dealers also import used cars. This means better value for Cork motorists and often a higher spec car, for less out of pocket expenses.