Petrol or diesel for an older Ford C-Max?
Hi, I am looking into getting a 2004 - 2007 Focus C-Max. I have always bought diesels in my past few cars due to great economy. I currently have a Citroen Picasso 2.0 HDi, but want to drop to a 1.6 to save on tax. My driving habits would be mainly urban, with the odd long run. No more than 15k miles a year, I would guess.
I am aware that there could be costly repairs down the road with an older but relatively modern deisel engine. I'm looking at 1.6 in either diesel or petrol. Reliability would be very important to me. What would you advise I go for?
Seems to be better choice with petrol options.
Thanks Kevin
Kevin Mcgowan (Cork)Sep 2013 Filed under: diesel
Expert answer
Hi Kevin,
I'd say your choice is a pretty good one. The first generation Focus C-Max wasn't the most exciting car around, but it was pretty well put together, comfy and good to drive. You can get them up to 2007 with the 1.6 TDCi 90hp diesel, which should suit your driving pattern pretty well. At 15k a year, even mostly urban mileage, I'd say you definitely need a diesel just to keep the running costs down.
Is the 2008 Toyota Corolla 1.4 petrol a good car?
Hi is the 2008 Toyota Corolla 1.4 petrol a good car? It's a Terra model with 103,000km on the clock and is selling for €8,950. Does this price sound ok? It has alloys (Borbet) added. I test drove the car and while it wasnt the most exciting drive it felt better than some other 1.2-litre cars I drove. Is it fuel efficient compared to say a Ford Fiesta?
Thanks
Pat English (Waterford)Sep 2013 Filed under: choosing used car
Expert answer
Hi Pat,
Hmmm. That generation of Corolla doesn't seem to be keeping Toyota's usual reliability standard up. There have been reported issued with brakes (squealing, not failing), troubles with the automatic gearbox, clutch failures, slipping handbrakes and noisy gearboxes. If your potential purchase isn't displaying any of those symptoms, then it might be just fine, but be prepared to raise merry hell with your nearest Toyota dealer if it starts to develop problems. After all, if you're selling your cars on the basis of their reliability, then you'd better be prepared to back that up...
In terms of efficiency, well, it's a quite a small engine in quite a large car, so no, I wouldn't reckon it would be more economical than a 1.2 Fiesta - quite the reverse in fact, unless most of your mileage is on the motorway, in which case the Toyota's extra torque and power should make it more frugal than an over-stretched 1.2.
That price sounds pretty good - maybe even a touch low. Have you done a thorough history check on the car with Cartell.ie?
I'm 21 and looking for my first car...
I am 21 and looking for my first car, but I'm a bit lost. A 1.4 would be ideal with insurance and I have about €4,700 to spend. Any advice as to what cars I should be looking for? Rather something that will last me a few years.
Jeff Casey (Limerick)Sep 2013 Filed under: insurance
Expert answer
Hi Jeff,
If insurance is your main concern, then think smaller. Get as close to 1.0 litres as you possibly can. It’s a bit of a cliche, but the best cars in that arena are those good old reliables the Nissan Micra and Toyota Yaris. Lots around in your price range.
What long-lasting car will I buy for €10,000?
I'm looking for best value car new or second hand as additional car for college students. This is a 10-year plan and budget is €10,000.
Emer O Reilly (Dublin)Sep 2013 Filed under: choosing new car
Expert answer
Hi Emer,
If you're spending around €10k and want the car to last for a decade, I'd say your best bet is to buy nearly-new and go for one of the Volkswagen small car triplets - the Volkswagen up!, Skoda Citigo or SEAT Mii. All three are genuinely brilliant cars, mechanically quite simple (which means reliable), safe, fun to drive without being fast and really quite cool. Should keep your student drivers happy.
Which French MPV should I go for?
Which is the better car, a Renault Grand Scenic 3 or a Citroen Grand Picasso? I have a 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe petrol and looking for one of these cars. I have €10,000 cash to add!
James Brady (Clonsilla)Sep 2013 Filed under: choosing used car
Expert answer
Hi James,
Both are good, although French brands are never the most reliable, but of the two we'd go for the Picasso, simply because it's more stylish and strong second hand demand should keep your residual values shored up.
Do I need to service my Opel this often?
Hi, I drive a 2012 Opel Astra 1.7 CDTi diesel and just wondering how often it has to be serviced. My local Opel dealer says every 10,000km and just wondering is this correct or is it just to get more money! It was serviced last February and now 10,000km later do I need to get it serviced again?
Ian Abbott (Longford)Sep 2013 Filed under: servicing
Expert answer
Hi Ian,
If nothing else, you need to adhere to manufacturer servicing schedules to ensure you don't invalidate your warranty. If you don't trust your local dealer then contact Opel directly, though these figures should be in your owner manual as well.
Besides all of that, we'd thoroughly recommend servicing modern diesel cars regularly, as the car makers often push the service intervals out to appeal to fleet buyers. Regular oil changes in particular are a very good idea.
Hope that helps
I am a disabled driver and would like a change.
I am a disabled driver and I bought a 1.6 Nissan Juke auto and I am due to change next June; my question is what would you recommend? It must have ample boot space for mobility scooter or wheelchair and the seating position must be high up. Hand controls on steering column must be possible. I had a Citroen Picasso five-seater, which was ideal and fitted all criteria, but I would like to change to something different.
Stephen Folan (Galway)Sep 2013 Filed under: choosing new car
Expert answer
Hi Stephen,
Would you consider a Skoda Yeti? It's a similar size to the Juke but much more spacious, with a more sophisticated cabin and brilliant rear seats that can tip, fold and be removed altogether if you need extra load space. The boot on the front-drive diesel models should be plenty big enough to take a scooter or wheelchair too, and the DSG automatic gearbox is available. I presume you're already familiar with the work the Irish Wheelchair Association does with modifying cars for hand control, so that should be a simple enough process for you. A cracking car, the Yeti - brilliant to drive and very practical, and with a new model coming later this year, you should be able to argue yourself a decent deal on a new one.
Volkswagen Passat or Ford Mondeo?
Volkswagen Passat or Ford Mondeo? I am trying to decide whether to buy a 2011 Volkswagen Passat TDI 1.6 CL or a 2010 Ford Mondeo Titanium 2.0 TDCi. Both have similar mileage in the region of 35,000. I am looking for a familiy car with reliability, fuel efficency and good resale.
Martina Phelan (Kilkenny)Sep 2013 Filed under: choosing used car
Expert answer
Hi Martina,
Both cars you've chosen there are pretty much neck and neck in every area, bar one. The Passat is arguably a little more 'premium' in its feel, the Mondeo is better to drive and we'd say a touch better looking (though obviously that's subjective!).
Both are impressively well built and have excellent reliability credentials. The area that separates them is quite simply fuel consumption. The Mondoe's 2.0 TDCi engine will be a bit more usefully grunty than that Passat's 105hp 1.6 TDI unit, but the Volkswagen's engine will prove to be a lot more economical. You should be able to average close to 60mpg in the Passat, which should be around 5-10mpg better than the Mondeo will manage. To illustrate it, we once managed to drive from Galway to Glasgow, back to Galway and up to Dublin on one tank in a Passat 1.6 TDI.
Does the BMW 2.0-litre diesel engine have a problem?
I read recently on a site that specialised in information on car engines, that the current 2.0-litre BMW diesel engine had a weakness in the timing chain area, and that getting this fixed was pricey. The site also said that BMW refuses to recognise that the problem exists. As I am considering purchasing a second hand 520d in the future, this piece of news is disquieting, as the engine seems to be good - powerful, frugal, and great when matched to the eight-speed auto. Have you heard of any problems with the timing chains of this engine?
Tony Mulhare (Dublin)Sep 2013 Filed under: diesel
Expert answer
Hi Tony,
OK, there are a couple of issues here. One is that a trawl of the Internet forums, especially in the UK, seems to indicate that there is a common problem on the N47 2.0-litre diesel engine whereby the timing chain can either fail or jump its sprockets. Either way, you're looking at an engine failure and a need for replacement. Not a trivial matter.
However, BMW has not issued a recall or any specific advice in this area, which may indicate that there has not been a significant level of these incidents. It's easy to accuse a car company of ignoring a major problem but actually that's rarer than you'd think and it's all to easy to get into a froth of indignation from just reading complaints on the internet.
That being the case, we'd simply advise caution. There are some very good independent BMW specialists out there (such as http://www.bloomfieldgarage.ie/) and it might be worth getting in touch with them for more detailed advice.
Also, insist on full service history with these cars, paying particular attention to oil change intervals.
Are there any known faults with the 2008 Mercedes-Benz C-Class?
Are there any known faults with the 2008 Mercedes-Benz C-Class C 180 AMG?
Brigid Aylward (Waterford)Sep 2013 Filed under: fault
Expert answer
Hi Brigid,
That generation of C-Class was, sadly, not the most robust car that Mercedes has ever built, although thankfully it seems to have avoided the disastrous quality problems that afflicted the contemporary E-Class.
There are a few problems in the engine bay, where dodgy crankshaft sensors can cause the engine to fall into limp-home mode or even shutdown altogether. Models fitted with Merc's Active Body Control sometimes had faulty acceleration sensors too, which set up a vibration that affects the car's high speed stability.
Noisy power steering could indicate a fluid leak, while some cars actually had the incorrect spec of brake disc fitted. Finally, a lot of C-Classes had faulty remote lock keys, but it's rare for both keys to fail so if the car you're looking at has a spare, you should be OK.