The number of secondhand cars imported from Japan has increased more than ten-fold since 2018, due in part to Brexit, writes Brian Byrne. To date in 2024, 22,482 such vehicles have been imported to Ireland, compared to just 2,621 six years ago, many of them including high-end European models previously owned by Japanese people.
According to key importer Automatic Motor Car Centre, based in Lusk Co Dublin, Brexit is just part of a 'perfect storm' in the used imports industry, along with ever-increasing prices for new cars, and Irish car buyers' demands for more value for money.
The change means that Japan is now the top source country for second-hand imports here, bumping the UK off top rung of the ladder it held until 2019. Cóilín Garvey, Sales Manager of AMCC.ie says motorists here have realised that Japanese imports are very well specced cars, much better than the average equivalent in Ireland. "In general, Japanese motorists look after their cars better than Irish drivers do," Mr Garvey says. "What’s more, Japan has one of the most advanced road infrastructures in the world, which helps to improve the longevity of these cars."
Japanese imports also tend to be packed with the latest technologies and that helps to make the cars top performers in terms of safety and fuel efficiency.
While one in four of the AMCC imports are bought directly by private buyers, the majority are stocked by secondhand car dealerships across Ireland. The importer has an exclusive partnership with NextGear Capital, the largest provider of stock funding facilities for used vehicle dealers, to facilitate these customers.
Pictured are Cóilín Garvey, (AMCC Sales Manager); Áine Cantwell (AMCC Business Manager); Anthony O’Neill (Account Manager, NextGear Capital); and Peter Molloy, (Ireland Manager, NextGear Capital) at the announcement of the partnership between the two companies at the amcc.ie premises in Lusk, Co Dublin.
