Why we have never had it so good on choice of new car we can buy

The choice and variety of cars currently on the market is unprecedented, our analysis of the models on sale reveals today.

The number of variants and segment-busting new models this year puts the line-ups of just six years ago completely in the shade, our study shows.

Our estimates highlight an increase of almost 40pc in the total pool of new cars on offer compared with 2010.

A plethora of new shapes, sizes and niches has sprung up over the intervening years.

And now, with the economic recovery and wider availability of credit working hand in hand, distributors are stocking up on a massive selection of models.

Buyers are looking, and prepared to pay, for more 'individual' vehicles and distributors are responding with extensive menus to browse. Even within the traditional segments, the level of personalisation is unsurpassed.

And while diesel has been king of the road since the switch to emissions-based taxation for new cars in 2008, the number of new hi-tech petrol models, especially in superminis and small-family cars is growing apace - further widening choice and variety.

As well as that, the volume of hybrid, electric and plug-in hybrids on distributor lists shows a big leap on latter years.

All of which prompts us to suggest you've never had such choice.

And Henry Ford's dictum that you could "have any colour so long as it's black" can be fundamentally amended in 2016. It can now read: "You can have any car and any colour you want."

Only a few short years ago no one had heard much about small SUVs. These diminutive but trendy vehicles have soared in popularity thanks to the likes of the somewhat unconventionally styled Nissan Juke.

It took some time for competitors to follow Nissan's lead (the same happened when the Qashqai spawned the crossover segment in 2007) but now the supply has been healthily bulked out.

Ford's EcoSport sells in limited numbers but is an option nonetheless. Fiat's 500X is less than 12 months old but is already making inroads.

Mazda's CX-3 is pricier than others in this segment but it is a little bigger and is being praised for how well it drives. Then there is Peugeot's 2008; a firm favourite with many who want a tall seating position but without too much vehicle mass to lumber about. Add to the mix the big-selling Renault Captur and Ssangyong's competitively priced Tivoli and you have an entire segment in 2016 that was virtually non-existent in 2010.

But even this barely scratches the surface of change. Take Dacia as a special case. Though not an entirely new brand (it operated throughout Europe before landing on our shores), the Romanian car manufacturer, within the Renault stable, has no fewer than 25 individual models, with prices for a 1.2 petrol Sandero starting at under €10,000.

New entrants into well established segments are springing up quickly.

A small sample includes the Skoda Rapid and Citigo, Suzuki's SX-4 S Cross, Ford's BMax, BMW 2 Series and 2 Series Gran Tourer, Lexus NX300h, Mercedes CLA, GLA, GLC, GLE, Mitsubishi ASX, Volvo V40, Volkswagen up!, Seat Mii, Opel Karl, Adam and Adam Rocks.

Mercedes is a case in point in terms of the extent of the explosion in model line-up. Between fuel type, transmissions and body shapes, the German giant has more than 400 individual variants across its ranges.

Name any brand, and the likelihood is that they have something brand new in their entourage that wasn't heard of a few years back.

Some of these models replace outgoing versions of different names but the choice of specifications and engines within the ranges is heretofore unsurpassed.

Luxury brands are also cracking the whip on their designers.

The Range Rover Evoque might seem so familiar but did you know that it only arrived to the market in 2011?

That was the same year that Audi unveiled its highly favoured A7 4dr coupe.

Jaguar recently launched the XE sport saloon to rival BMW's 3-series and has more than 20 standard models before additional packs or personalisations are taken into account.

And whatever about new and never-seen-before models, manufacturers have created niche segments within existing sectors with real gusto.

The BMW 3 Series coupe is now called the 4-Series. However, you can get a 4-series with four doors too.

The Volvo V40 has a more rugged looking Cross Country version. So does the VW Polo (Cross Polo). And there are many other examples.

Adding to the myriad of different models is an even more comprehensive range of engines. In 2010, many manufacturers almost exclusively dealt in diesel.

Who could blame them? Irish buyers shunned petrol engines from 2008 and registration figures show a dramatic trading of fortunes between the two fossil fuel types. Before 2008 petrols typically represented 75pc of all new-car sales.

From 2008 on, this number fell to 25pc.

Petrol has not quite bounced back to its former numbers - and it may never do so again - but it now makes for a far more attractive proposition.

That is all thanks to smaller capacity engines with turbos and direct fuel injection.

It means that cars such as the new Opel Astra 1.0 litre turbo has just three cylinders and emits fewer than 100grams of CO2 per kilometre but still packs enough fizz with105bhp to make for a pleasant drive.

Ford's EcoBoost engines are celebrated with numerous awards, and in one shape or form appears in everything from the Fiesta to the latest model Mustang.

Hybrid vehicles and four-wheel drive models are no longer bit-part players.

BMW, Mercedes, Audi, Volkswagen and many more have an extensive range of conventional engine and battery power combinations - hybrids and plug-in hybrids - as well as models with AWD capabilities.

Volvo's XC90 T8 comes with a sizeable battery bank that could power a small village.

Watch out for more of these PHEVs (Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles. They are due to make a big impact on the semi-electric vehicle market over the coming years, further emphasising that there has never been such a choice of car on the market.

Irish Independant