New private car sales show big drop - CSO

The Republic's fascination with 01 car registration plates appears to be on the wane, according to Central Statistics Office figures issued yesterday.

The data show 3,120 fewer new private cars were licensed in April than in the previous month. When April's figures are compared with the same month in 2000, a decrease of 29.9 per cent, from 27,147 to 19,027, is highlighted.

In the first four months of this year, almost 80,000 new private cars were licensed, a decrease of 25.1 per cent on the same period in 2000 when the so-called Y2K effect fuelled record demand.

The most popular make of new private car to be registered in April was Ford at 2,264 vehicles, closely followed by Toyota at 2,133. Other strong performers were Opel and Nissan, with European favourites Renault and Fiat also putting in a good show. In Dublin, the most popular new private car reflected the national trend, with 943 Ford cars licensed. The next most popular make was Fiat, at 853.

Perceived "luxury" cars had a respectable showing in the capital, with BMW and Mercedes-Benz both selling more than 200 new cars in Dublin city and county during April. The next biggest sale for the two models came in Kildare for BMW and Meath for Mercedes.

Dubliners also sought more speed in their new cars than drivers in the rest of the State. The capital's citizens registered 220 new private cars with an engine capacity of 2401cc or more, in contrast to Co Waterford, for example, where not one such vehicle was licensed.