Expert answer

Hi Karen,

I'm afraid we are no better-placed to make that decision for you as we know nothing about the car or the dealership. If the dealership says it replaced the belt then it's not likely to be lying about that, and you could pay an independent mechanic to take off the timing belt's top cover to inspect the belt. 

I'd be as worried about oil and filter changes, which are crucial for the long life of an engine.

If you have any doubts, walk away from the deal, as there will be other cars.

Expert answer

Hi Patrick,

The exact figure will be on the car's log book, and we assume you mean the 1.5 TSI 150 as the 1.5-litre engine only came in that guise in the Karoq.

We found data for three different UK trim lines (I'm assuming you're looking at importing from the UK) and all came back with a NOx rating of 29mg/km. However, the highest CO₂ rating for these cars was 127g/km, not 133g/km, so it's possible that the actual NOx figure of the car you're looking at might be a little higher than 29mg/km.

It won't be much higher anyway so that's a good estimate for you to calculate the NOx levy from.

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Hi Richard,

Is it an import from Japan or elsewhere? Or is it a special edition? It's not unusual for imported cars and special editions to get different bonnet badges.

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Hi Rory,

The answer is thankfully pretty straightforward. No, there’s no upper limit on the number of cars you can bring in, but you have to make sure that they all qualify for VRT relief under the regulations.

Full response from Revenue below:

"When transferring residence into the State, a person can apply for relief from Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT) for their personal vehicles.  Whilst there is no limit on the number of personal vehicles in respect of which an individual can avail of Transfer of Residence relief, each vehicle must individually fulfil all qualifying criteria. One of these qualifying criteria requires that the vehicle must be in use by the applicant for a period of 185 days prior to their relocation."

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Hi Catherine,

Stop-start systems can be tempermental. We get so many queries about them that we decided to write a feature explaining the potential issues - Why won't my car's stop-start system work?

Nonetheless, issues with it are regularly caused by weak batteries. Saying that, I wouldn't expect your car to start properly in the morning if there was a big battery problem, so I don't think the boot opening problem is linked to the battery. The Fiat 500 has a known issue where the wiring near the tailgate hinge can become damaged or broken - I suspect that's where your problem lies.

A decent mechanic should be able to quickly fix that for you.

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Hi Philip,

The Prius is due to land in Ireland in June so I'd expect cars available to test in dealers by early July. Have you seen our first drive review of the car?

And yes, you're right about the Mitsubishi - the brand is no longer being sold here.

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Hi David,

It's a tricky time for choosing a new car in your situation for sure, especially given your high mileage. I feel that a diesel would still be a little more economical for you than the latest hybrids unless you keep your speeds down. If you spend most of that at 120km/h then a good diesel is hard to beat from an economy point of view. Saying that, the Corolla and new Civic are both very efficient cars and, if you adapt your driving style to their powertrains, then it is possible to return some trully outstanding fuel economy figures. And it must be said, with one eye on future values, a hybrid might be a more shrewd choice.

In your situation as described, I'd shy away from purely-electric cars for now as well. I'd be worried about relying on the public charging network to support such high mileage.

Expert answer

Hi Martin,

It's true, selling a car privately can be hassle. Selling it to someone you know, or a friend of a friend would be ideal and actually probably quite possible today as there is such high demand for good used cars. For the same reason, you're likely to get loads of genuine enquiries to a classifieds advert. We'd recommend using Carzone.ie. It has a useful How to Sell a Used Car Safely guide, too.

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Hi Martin,

The issue is availability from the factory, I'm afraid. So as not to raise expectations, Skoda Ireland took the decision to remove the cars from the website. We got this response when asking about the situation:

"Semiconductors are still a challenge.  As the iV models are semiconductor heavy we are finding it challenging securing production at present in particular for these versions. As a result, orders may get delayed and lead times uncertain. "

Expert answer

Hi Tony,

You should be fine, as if a vehicle is eligible for VRT exemption because of a transfer of residence, then it should also qualify for exemption for VAT and customs duty. 

According to Revenue: “If you are transferring your normal residence from outside the European Union (EU) to Ireland, you may be able to claim relief from Customs Duty and Value-Added Tax (VAT). This relief applies to imports of the following: certain personal property and household effects, including those of members of your household bicycles and motor cycles, private cars, trailers, caravans, pleasure craft and private aeroplanes.”

Just get all your paperwork in order and it should be fine.