New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that the number of new private cars licensed for the first time in April fell by 9.6% compared to the same month last year.
The CSO said 13,427 cars were licensed last month, down from the 14,847 the same time last year.
Meanwhile, a total of 7,272 used or imported cars were licensed last month, up 29.3% on the same time last year, as buyers continued to cross the border to take advantage of the weakness in sterling.
There was also a 29.5% fall in the number of new goods vehicles licensed in April of this year compared to last year.
The CSO said that a total of 74,180 new private cars were licensed in the first four months of April - down 10.9% on the same time last year.
The number of used cars jumped 52% in the first four months of the year compared to the first four months of last year.
Today's figures show that Volkswagen was the most popular make of new car licensed last month, followed by Nissan, Opel, Ford and Renault.
66% of new private cares licensed so far this year were diesel.
The CSO said that licensing differs from registration in that a car is licensed when a valid motor tax disc is issued for the first time. Registration occurs when a car gets its licence plate for the first time.
