Irish new car registrations jumped by 30 per cent or 23,307 this month compared to the same period last year, according to a survey published this morning by the European Automobile Manufacturers Association.
A total of 77,171 new cars were registered in the three months from January to March, a 10.1 per cent increase on the same time last year.
The pan-European survey, which included both EFTA countries and the accession states, showed Ireland's 30 per cent increase in March was outstripped only by Greece in the EU members category.
Volkswagon polled top as Europe's most popular brand of car in March with 287,628 of its cars sold. PSA (Peugeot and Citroen) cars were the next most popular, followed by Ford.