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Hi John,

The Skoda. Both the Volvo and the Volkswagen are decent, solidly built and generally reliable cars, but Skoda always seems to beat Volkswagen in major reliability surveys, so go for the Octavia if reliability is paramount.

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Hi Michael,

I think your best bet is to sell the car in Germany first, but possibly not to this other person you’re speaking about. If you’re concerned about what a future owner may do with a car, then the best thing is to find someone else to sell it to. Bringing the car into Ireland to sell will involve a large amount of paperwork and a hefty price tag in Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT), so I think you’re going to be better off by far selling the car in Germany.

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Hi Sean,

It probably won’t. Opel confirmed at the Paris Motor Show last year that there won’t be right-hand drive production of the Ampera-e and that position has not yet changed. If there’s a sudden jump in demand from the UK and Ireland for electric cars, then Opel may well reconsider, but for now, we won’t be getting it. 

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Hi Anthony,

According to the EuroNCAP crash test experts, the three best-performing cars tested in 2016 were the Toyota Prius, Hyundai Ioniq and Volkswagen Tiguan. That said, the NCAP crash test is a laboratory test, and its parameters can be designed in to a car's structure. Only two car makers still have teams that investigate real-world accidents involving their cars and they are Volvo and Mercedes-Benz. Generally speaking, if I'm thinking of safety above all else, those are the two brands I'd look at. 

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Hi F D,

Yes, they will, though probably not at the new car level. Although some car importers in Ireland are connected to their UK equivalents (BMW and Opel for instance) unless it's market driven, they probably won't do the same here. However, those lower UK prices will lead to lower second hand values, which will make imports cheaper, which will have an effect on second hand values here. How much? We'll have to wait and see...

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Hi Brendan,

No, Volkswagen didn't stop making the 1.4 Tiguan in 2008, but it was dropped from the Irish price list then as we all went diesel-crazy after the tax change. The car was always available to order, and it's possible that the car you're looking at is a UK import. 

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Hi Andreas,

If the car is three years old, and thanks to Cyprus being in the EU, you won't have to pay VAT when you import the car, as that's only payable on cars up to six months old. You will need to pay Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT) though, and you'll have just a week from the car's arrival here to inform the Revenue Commissioners of it being here and a month to organise an inspection and pay the charge. If you're trying to reclaim VAT originally paid on the car, then you'll need to get yourself a good accountant as it's a complex process and will depend on whether or not the car is registered as a commercial vehicle. 

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Hi Hugh,

Assuming you mean the Volkswagen diesel software update, no, it shouldn't. Volkswagen has had to clear all the updates with the German federal transport agency to comply with a ruling that any changes won't affect the CO₂ emissions or fuel economy of the cars. 

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Hi Patrick,

If you mean the current model, then I’m afraid it’s a little too early for us to tell, as it hasn’t been around long enough yet for any major reliability issues to shake out and all cars would still be under warranty. We’d be surprised if it has suffered anything major, though – it seems very well built.

The older model is also very well built, but you need to check for sticking exterior door handles, trouble with the diesel particulate filter (DPF), faulty electronic handbrakes, dodgy stability control modules, leaky sunroofs and excessive front brake wear. If it has the DSG automatic gearbox, you also need to check and make sure that it has been properly serviced, and on time, because it’s a complex piece of equipment that needs careful looking after.

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Hi Tom,

Both are good cars, but we’d say the Fiesta has a slight edge in terms of quality and of driving experience.

Read our Ford Fiesta review

Read our Peugeot 208 review