Business and private buyer interest kept market alive in February and most went for ICE choices.

BUSINESS demand continued to dominate the new vehicle market last month, with majority interest show in internal combustion powertrains, with Ford Ranger reinstating as the top seller.

That data comes from the Motor Industry Association, the voice of most new vehicle distributors, with comment that a slight rise in registrations is a positive.

Some 10,193 new vehicles were registered in February, a 405 unit/ 4.1 percent growth on the same month last year. Using the same metric, year-to-date registrations of 21,970 units stands as a 6.5 percent improvement.

The information share continues to show that, out of electrified vehicle types, hybrids with petrol-first motivation are doing much better than plug-in and fully electric cars.

Battery electric vehicles accounted for 675 units plated transactions, for a 6.6 percent share, while plug-in hybrids did only marginally better, with 707 units, for a 6.9 percent stake. Those are the technologies most vital to addressing fleet average CO2 reduction, which is required of new car brands.

Hybrids, in which an electric interaction occurs but not as primary impetus, took a 23.6 percent share, with 2405 sold, while fully internal combustion engined cars claimed a t 62.8 percent stake, with 6406 registered.

After eight weeks of 2026, EVs are claims a 6.5 percent market shared, PHEVs have 6.6 percent and petrol, diesel and LPG vehicles account for 60.9 percent.

Business buyers accounted for 55.1 percent of registrations in February, followed by private buyers at 35.9 percent. Rental registrations claimed 6.6 percent; Government fleet purchases represented 2.4 percent. Light passenger vehicles continuing to account for around 70 percent of registrations.

Regardless it was a period of moderate growth, the MIA is encouraged by the February performance.

“The industry continues to respond to stable but competitive trading conditions,” chief executive Aimee Wiley said.

Light passenger vehicles, including SUVs, claimed 7138 registrations in February, against 6998 units last February last year. Year to date, light passenger registrations total 16,152 units, up from 15,048.

Light commercial registrations rose 9.2 percent year-on-year to 2612 units in February, accounting for 25.6 percent of the market. Year-to-date light commercial volumes reached 4966 units, ahead of 4724 at the same point last year.

MIA sentiment is that broader economic forecasts point to gradual improvement in 2026 following a subdued period last year.

“Interest rates and business confidence indicators have shown signs of stabilisation, supporting purchasing activity across both household and business segments.”

However, conditions remain measured, and vehicle demand continues to reflect underlying replacement cycles and business investment decisions rather than accelerated expansion.

Ford Ranger was the top selling individual model last month, with 761 sold, then Hyundai Tucson on 418. A former high-flier, the Toyota RAV4, sat in fourth behind the Nissan Navara, presumably both being mop-up results from runouts to clear the way for impending new versions. The respective counts were 369 and 411 units.