ONE POTENTIAL side effect of the changes to the Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT) system in July is that choosing an automatic car could become an increasingly expensive option.
The problem is that most automatics are less fuel-efficient than their manual equivalents, and as such have higher carbon emissions.
Whatever about the difference this makes at the pumps, there will now be significant implications for several models where the automatic version pushes the emissions into a higher tax band. In some instances this could mean an annual rise in car tax of €1,000 and a jump in VRT on the new car price by up to 4 per cent.
So are we likely to see a decrease in what is already a low uptake on this convenient choice? According to figures provided by the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI), of the 183,908 cars sold in 2007, just 12.2 per cent of these came with automatic transmission.
Despite the fact that most manufacturers offer this transmission within their range, the uptake of the option on more mainstream models would appear to be very low.
Choosing a car with automatic transmission has some advantages- they are very easy to use, are convenient in heavy traffic situations because there is no constant changing of gears. However, in almost all cases an automatic transmission car uses more fuel than its manual equivalent, and this now has special significance with the changes to the VRT system.
Eddie Murphy, chairman and managing director of Ford Ireland doesn't see this affecting more mainstream brands. "We expect there to be no major change within our range. Only about 4 per cent of our models sold are automatic, some Ford Mondeos and Focuses."
The same would be true of manufacturers such as Toyota, with only 4.6 per cent of its cars sold having automatic transmission. However, when you move up the sector and into executive cars, this changes dramatically.
BMW Ireland recently took the step of releasing its post-July price list - 47 per cent of its cars sold in 2007 came with an automatic transmission and, while in some cases there is no manual version available, as in the case of its X5 SUV and 7-Series luxury saloon, you can see that in the more mainstream models, choosing an automatic version will mean jumping up a VRT band.
The 320d saloon has a very fuel-efficient engine, meaning that the manual version falls into Band B, meaning just 16 per cent VRT and €150 per annum road tax. Choose the automatic version and this jumps a band to Band C, meaning there is 20 per cent VRT and €290 per annum road tax, making it a less attractive option.
In both instances, this car will be significantly cheaper after July 1st. Even with an automatic transmission, the 320d after July 1st will have a VRT rate of 20 per cent, whereas it currently has a VRT rate of 30 per cent.
As Audi sales manager John Hayes points out, in this executive segment there is often a significant customer demand for an automatic. "The demand for automatic transmission varies from model to model and unfortunately consumption does go up and this may mean an increase in VRT band. However, we would not want to move away from customer preference. We are analysing the implications, and we will endeavour to maintain competitiveness on these models."
However, it is not all doom and gloom for those searching for an automatic option. Volkswagen's DSG gearbox, which offers the benefits of a manual gearbox with the convenience of an automatic transmission performs so efficiently that is returns almost identical fuel consumption figures to the manual version, and therefore in most cases won't jump tax band, only costing the additional price of the technology.
Put simply, if the car you want is going to increase in price, the automatic will probably be more expensive, but if it decreases in price significantly then the automatic version may go up in price, but will still be priced less than it currently costs.
We await further price list releases from manufacturers to check whether this maxim turns out to be true.