The percentage of automatic cars being sold in Ireland has increased almost five-fold in ten years, writes Brian Byrne.
Of the 100,491 cars registered to the end of September this year, 48,670 have automatic transmissions, or 48.73pc. This compares to 10.27pc of the 87,150 cars registered in 2011.
The strong uptake is probably due in part to automatics having become much more fuel-efficient, but also to the arrival of dual-clutch automated technology. The growing number of hybrid cars over the decade is also responsible for an increasing automatic percentage.
Battery electric vehicles are also classed as automatics because they don't have a gearbox.
