The Government closed a scrappage scheme designed to boost demand for electric vehicles (EVs) just hours after it opened, amid massive interest in the programme.
“The ICE2EV Pilot Scheme is now closed for applications, after exceptionally strong interest in the new grant from car dealerships and their customers,” the Department of Transport said in a statement. “The high level of interest reflects growing consumer engagement with the transition to EVs among both rural and urban motorists,” it added.
Under the programme, car buyers could receive an additional €5,000 grant on top of the existing €3,500 grant from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) to replace internal combustion engine vehicles at least 13 years old with an EV.
The scheme will see 2,000 such vehicles replaced by EVs, the Department said. It was already oversubscribed with applicants before today’s official start date.
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Under the terms of the programme, 65 per cent of its budget is reserved for applicants living outside large cities such as Dublin, Cork, Galway and Limerick.
Ireland’s new EV scrappage scheme opens tomorrow. Can you still get the €5,000 grant?
Hybrids and all-electric models now account for two-thirds of all new car sales in Ireland.
New car registration figures for the first six months of 2026 show regular hybrids had a 27.7 per cent share of the market, EVs had 23.7 per cent, while plug-in hybrids had 14.7 per cent.
New petrol cars accounted for 21 per cent of all sales while diesel cars made up just 12.9 per cent.
According to figures from the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (Simi), total new car sales are up 4.2 per cent so far this year, with 85,203 new cars registered in the first six months of the year.
Simi director general, Brian Cooke said he expects the share of EV sales to grow further during the new 262 registration plate period starting on Wednesday on the back of interest in the Government’s pilot scrappage scheme.
[ New EV scrappage scheme for used cars ‘already oversubscribed’Opens in new window ]
Toyota is the bestselling new car brand in the first half of the year with 11,912 registrations, followed by Volkswagen with 9,544, and Skoda with 8,368. The two Korean brands, Hyundai and Kia, held fourth and fifth place respectively, while premium brand Audi is sixth, ahead of BMW.
BYD is the bestselling Chinese brand, with 2,732 registrations so far this year.
The bestselling new car model is Toyota’s Yaris Cross with 2,778 registrations. The bestselling EV brand is Volkswagen, with its ID4 being the bestselling all-electric model on the car market. It’s followed by Tesla’s Model 3 and Model Y, both of which have benefited from significant price reductions in the last year.
The market for used imports is also performing strongly, up 39 per cent so far this year at 47,109. Japan is now the main source of these cars for the Irish market, accounting for 25,647, compared to 6,898 from the UK.
Volkswagen, Toyota and BMW models are the most popular import brands, while the leading model imported is the VW Golf, followed by the VW Polo, the Audi A3 and BMW’s 3 Series.
Petrol models account for 38.4 per cent of used imports, ahead of diesel with 19.2 per cent, hybrids at 17 per cent, plug-in hybrids at 15 per cent and EVs at 10 per cent.
The majority of used imports are six years of age or older, with 61 per cent in this category, while 19.3 per cent are between one and three years old.
In the commercial market, van sales are up 14.4 per cent with 21,492 new light commercial vehicles registered up to the end of June, with Ford the bestselling brand on 4,175 new registrations, ahead of Volkswagen with 3,408. The bestselling model is the Renault Trafic with 1,565 sales.
In contrast, the truck market is down 6 per cent, with 1,553 new heavy commercial vehicles registered this year.
