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Hi Jim,

Nothing to avoid, in particular, but lots of good ones to try out. Start with a Mazda6 Tourer, or a Ford Mondeo Estate, or a Skoda Superb Combi. If you want to save a bit of money (but not compromise on space) go for a Skoda Octavia Combi, if you want something with a bit of class go for an Audi A6 Avant (pricey but the 2.0-litre TDI keeps running costs down).

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Hi Marc,

Dealing with insurance companies is like trying to teach a Labrador the entire works of Shakespeare – you can do it, but it’s frustrating and rarely results in the outcome you were hoping for. I think in the first instance, get a letter from your Audi dealer (and make sure it’s the garage YOU want to deal with, not one your insurer is suggesting) and get a letter from them that you can show to your insurer saying that a replacement is the best option. Then prepare to spend a LOT of time on the phone and on email reiterating this to various claim adjusters and customer service bods for probably weeks on end. Eventually, you may get somewhere, but to be honest, the path of least resistance looks pretty tempting here…

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Hi Patrick,

Well, the Passat is definitely better value - and it's only a little less spacious than the Audi. But you are trying to compare two quite different cars - one a regular family car, one a premium executive model. It depends on what you want more; value for money or something more prestigious and luxurious. Both are excellent cars though - reliable and nice to drive. 

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Hi Samantha,

All I can suggest is that you have a ring around any Audi dealers with premises near you and ask if they will buy the car outright. Dealers generally don't like buying cars from punters as a straight deal, so you may struggle. It should be worth around €40,000 in normal circumstances but you will probably be offered a lot less than that because of the unusualness of the deal. 

It may be possible to do a cash-and-swap deal - whereby you get an older car from a dealer and they pay you the difference for your car, but again this is an unusual deal and you may not find anyone willing to do it.

A better idea is probably to sell the car yourself through a classifieds site such as Carzone.ie.

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Hi Darren,

There aren't any major reported issues, but check to make sure that all the electrics are working properly and don't buy without a full service history.

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Hi Tom,

Somewhere in the region of €5,500 I'd say.

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Hi Neil,

Well, your Audi is with circa €7,000 as a trade in, while a 2010 Accord should run you about €12-14k. So you'll have to finance about €6-7,000 to make up the gap, depending on the dealer and the history and condition of your car.

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Hi Pat,

The dealers are, in fairness, being evasive because they don't have the full picture yet. None of us do, to be honest. However, there's no really good reason for not buying an A6. It's an excellent car, very frugal and lovely to drive, and beautifully built too. If it does turn out to be one of the cars on which the CO₂ emissions and fuel consumption has been under-estimated, then you will be compensated for any gap - Volkswagen Group has promised that customers will not be out of pocket as a result of all this. So I'd say go ahead - cracking car.

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Hi Mary,

I'd tread carefully where the Multitronic box is concerned. While the serious issues that plagued it pre-2006 have been mostly sorted, it's still not trouble free. Oil changes are needed at regular intervals if it's to be kept in good order. 

I do reckon, if funds allow, you'd better off going for the S-Tronic gearbox, which seems to have a much stronger reliability record.

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Hi Mike,

The A6 is a cracking choice - reliable, frugal, stylish and hugely comfy, but it's not as sweet to drive as the 5 Series. That said, it is more spacious and if you can track down an Avant estate you'll have one of the best looking cars around. 

If you're concerned about driving on snow and ice there are two avenues you should explore, no matter which car you go for. One is to look into fitting either winter tyres (which you'll need to swap back over to normal tyres in the spring) or all-season tyres, such as the new 'CrossClimate' one from Michelin. Better again, go on a winter driving techniques course. BMW runs one at Rally School Ireland in Monaghan and the skills you'll learn there would get you through even the worst blizzard, no matter which set of your car's wheels are driven.

Further reading:

Audi A6 review

BMW 5 Series review