New figures from the Society of the Irish Motor Industry show that new car registrations for February were up 7.4% to 15,033 from 13,994 the same month last year.
Registrations so far this year are up 4.3% to 49,557 from 47,493 the same time last year.
Today's SIMI figures show that 2,871 new electric cars (battery electric cars) were registered, an increase of 14.4% from the 2,510 registrations in February last year.
So far this year, 10,172 new electric cars have been registered, marking a 36.9% increase compared to the same time in 2025, when 7,433 electric cars were registered.
Hybrid (petrol electric) leads at 27.26% as the most popular engine type, followed by petrol 21.84%, electric 20.53%, plug-in hybrid 14.51% and diesel 13.27%.
SIMI also said that imported used cars rose by 36.5% to 7,639 in February from 5,596 the same time last year. Year to date imports are up 40% to 15,679 from 11,200 in 2025.
Meanwhile, Light Commercial Vehicles increased by 15% to 3,635 from 3,160, while Heavy Goods Vehicle (HGV) registrations are down 4.8% to 277 compared to 291 in February 2025.
SIMI said the five top selling new car brands in February were Toyota, Hyundai, Volkswagen, Skoda and Kia.
The five top new car models were the Hyundai Tucson, the Toyota Yaris Cross, the Kia Sportage, the Toyota Corolla Cross and the Hyundai Kona.
The five top selling new Electric Vehicles brands were Hyundai, Volkswagen, Kia, BYD and Renault.
Today's figures also show that the five top selling new EV models were the Volkswagen ID.4, the Hyundai Inster, the Kia EV3, the Hyundai Kona and the Toyota BZ4X.
Meanwhile the top selling new car in February was the Hyundai Tucson, while the top selling new EV was the Volkswagen ID.4.
Brian Cooke, SIMI's Director General, said the positive start to the new car market this year continued into February with 15,033 cars registered, a 7% increase compared to February last year.
He said the move towards electric and hybrid cars is also reflected in the figures as Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) reached 2,871 units in February, a 14% increase on the same month last year, while year-to-date 10,172 new BEVs have been registered.
"Private consumers account for 75% of BEV sales and remain the main driver of sales, a trend seen across all counties. New Hybrid electric (HEV) and Plug-in hybrid electric (PHEV) registrations have also seen continued growth for February. Battery technology cars (BEV, PHEV, HEV) combined market share now accounts for over 62% of registrations," he noted.
But the commercial sector continues to experience mixed results, he said.
"Light commercial vehicles (LCVs) saw an increase in February of 15%, while Heavy Goods Vehicle (HGV) registrations saw a decrease of 5% on February last year," he added.
