Tesla hits 15,000 vehicle milestone in Ireland and 'working with authorities' on self-driving approval 

Tesla's Kieran Campbell presents the keys to Martin O'Connor, Tesla's 15,000th customer in Ireland, at the Sandyford showroom.

Tesla says its new car registrations are up 21% year on year in 2026 and the EV maker has now hit a milestone of 15,000 vehicle deliveries in Ireland since entering the market.

Elon Musk's carmaker entered the Irish market in late 2016, with its first deliveries to Irish buyers in early 2017. The brand passed 10,000 deliveries a year ago and has now passed 15,000 vehicle deliveries.

Tesla had seen its new registrations fall in 2025, with 2,769 cars registered in the whole year, as the company faced increasing challenges from its rivals like Chinese EV maker BYD.

Electric vehicles registrations have seen a resurgence in Ireland in 2026, with a 55% increase in electric cars registered compared to 2025. So far in 2026, Tesla has registered over 2,729 vehicles, the company said on Wednesday. "This follows on from 2025, a year where the most popular vehicle, the Model Y slowed in production and restarted with a newer and updated variant," a Tesla statement said. 

The Model Y saw 1,179 units registered from January to August, making it the second most popular EV model sold this year.  Tesla had 2,188 cars registered in the first seven months of the year, compared to 2,166 from BYD. 

A new Tesla Centre will open in North Dublin before the end of the year to support the brand's expansion plans in Ireland. 

Meanwhile Tesla said it is "working with authorities" in Ireland to enable regulatory approval for self-driving vehicles. A statement from Tesla said: "At the start of this week, Full Self-Driving (Supervised) has received regulatory approval in the Czech Republic. This is now the seventh market in Europe to recognise the transformative potential of Full Self-Driving (Supervised). Ireland is anticipating the arrival of this transformative technology on Irish roads in due course."