More new cars but warning issued amid fear of car finance bubble

New car registrations for March rose by 14% (21,597) when compared with the same month last year, according to official statistics from the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI).

At 82,882, total new car registrations for the year to date are 28% ahead of the same period last year (64,519). The top-selling make this year is Toyota, followed by Hyundai, Volkswagen, Ford, and Nissan.

Sales of light commercial vehicles were up 21% (3,435) compared to March 2015, with registrations up 34% (13,461) for the first three months of the year.