A new survey by AA Ireland has provided compelling evidence of something that most garages have instinctively known since the latest cost of living crisis hit. Irish drivers are keeping their cars for longer and as a result Ireland’s car population is aging.   

The AA survey found that nearly three-quarters of survey respondents (73%) own a car that is more than five years old. Meanwhile, 14% of respondents said they expect to drive their cars into the ground and will only replace it once it simply stops working or becomes too expensive to repair. 

With regard to vehicle ownership, 66% of respondents own their cars outright and around 60% of respondents bought their car for less than €20,000. The majority of purchases fall in the €10,000-€15,000 bracket. Only 10% of car buyers paid more than €40,000 for their car. 

Interestingly, half of those surveyed did less than 10,000km a year in their vehicle, while 42% of drivers said they spend €250-€500 annually on vehicle maintenance. 

The impact of electric was also assessed, with 4% of drivers saying they drive fully electric vehicles, 2% plug-in hybrids and 9% normal hybrids. Only 10% of drivers said they are considering an EV as their next vehicle purchase. This is perhaps partly due to the fact that 53% of respondents believe the life of an EV battery is only 100,000km. 

From an aftermarket perspective, the survey clearly indicates that with cars staying on the road for longer, demand for independent garage services is going to remain very high for many years to come. Interestingly, the survey also reflects the slowdown in electric vehicle demand. With only 4% of drivers driving a full EV at present and only 10% considering one as their next vehicle, it shows that Ireland will only hit a small fraction of its electric vehicle targets by 2030.