Expert answer

Hi Justina,

Start-stop issues are common with a lot of cars and we get many queries about it. If your car is not being used much right now, then the battery may not be in great condition and that's a leading reason for stop-start problems. It could be something else of course. Your car should still be under warranty if you want to talk to your Hyundai dealer about it.

In the meantime, read Why won't my car's stop-start system work? on the subject.

Expert answer

Hi Joe,

There aren’t any specific battery issues to look for, and the good thing about a plug-in hybrid is that you can’t fast-charge them, so there’s less likelihood of wear and tear on the battery cells from repeated rapid charges. Obviously, batteries do degrade a little over time, but you shouldn’t see more than a few percentage points wiped off the performance. Make sure you go for a fully-charged test drive first though, and if the range seems abruptly short (allowing for weather, traffic etc) then the battery might have been physically damaged at some point.

Other plug-in hybrids worth considering would be a BMW 530e, although that probably won’t squeeze into your budget, or a Volkswagen Passat GTE, which provides performance almost as good as that of the 330e, but for a much lower cost overall and it's more spacious. Don’t forget that the battery eats considerably into the 330e’s boot space, and it was never a big car inside to begin with. The updated Passat GTE (2020) was available as an estate, too...

BMW 330e review

Volkswagen Passat GTE review

Volkswagen Passat GTE Estate review

BMW 530e review

Expert answer

Hi Seamus,

This is obviously a tricky decision, and we wish your wife all the best in coping with this. When it comes to ride quality, the most important factors are the stiffness, overall, of the suspension, the size of the wheels, and the sidewall depth of the tyres. Basically, smaller wheels and normal suspension is the rule of thumb if you’re trying to get a car with a soft ride quality.

SUVs are actually generally quite bad for ride quality. That sounds counter-intuitive, because of course they’re taller and have longer-travel suspension, but the problem is that the springs and dampers have to be stiffened up to prevent the higher centre of gravity from inducing too much body roll. I would therefore suggest that keeping away from SUVs would be a good bet.

That said, the Subaru Forester you’ve mentioned below does indeed have a soft ride quality, again as long as you avoid the larger alloy wheel options. Ditto the smaller Subaru XV, which is helpfully lower to the ground and can get away with slightly softer suspension rates. Citroen, of course, is famed for having pillowy-soft ride quality, and the current C5 Aircross is pretty soft and springy, and has great seats into the bargain. You should definitely look at a Toyota Camry as well (very soft, and again with great seats) and the Skoda Superb.

Avoid anything that has a sporty designation (S line, R-Line, M Sport etc) as that will almost automatically have stiffer springs and bigger wheels.

Hope that helps. Below are links to our reviews of the cars mentioned above:

Subaru Forester reviews

Citroen C5 Aircross reviews

Subaru XV reviews

Toyota Camry reviews

Skoda Superb reviews

Expert answer

Hi Stephen,

As a private car, you’ll have to tax that according to the engine capacity, so that means a €1,494 annual bill I’m afraid.

Read Buying a commercial vehicle for private use for more

Expert answer

Hi Paul,

The C3 Aircross PureTech Feel 110 has CO₂ emissions of 141g/km and so will cost you €400 per year to tax.

Read Motor Road Tax Prices in Ireland Explained for more.

Expert answer

Hi Russell,

If you like your current car then it’s definitely a good idea to bring it with you. Importing a vehicle as part of a change of address means that you won’t have to pay Vehicle Registration Tax, which is a significant saving. All you need is proof of the change of address, and proof of at least six months’ tax and insurance at your previous address.

Read our Guide to Importing Cars from the UK feature for more.

Expert answer

Hi Donal,

They’re not VRT exempt; it’s that Revenue applies a rebate of VRT, up to a maximum of €5,000, on an imported electric car, as long as it’s a regular production model, up to a maximum OMSP of €50,000 (that’s the current Irish market value as defined by Revenue). So, as a rough example, if the car you’re importing has an OMSP of €35,000, you’ll technically pay VRT of seven per cent, at €2,450, but that is obviously covered by the VRT rebate, so you effectively pay nothing. However, the car has an OMSP of €60,000, you’ll pay €4,200 in VRT and won’t get any rebate.

If you’re bringing a car in from the England, Scotland or Wales, even if it’s an EV, you’ll be liable for 21 per cent VAT (charged on the OMSP value) and ten per cent import duty (charged on what you paid for the car plus the costs of getting it here). If you're bringing it in from Northern Ireland, as long as it’s either previously been registered to a person or company resident in the North, or you’ve bought it from a dealer, then you won’t pay the import duty, and you’ll only be charged VAT if the car is younger than six months, or has fewer than 6,000km on the clock.

Expert answer

Hi Gerard,

No, it doesn't sound to me that you can. However, you can change the status of the vehicle from commercial to private. Just call your local motor tax office to do that. You'll pay tax based on the engine size, though, which can be expensive. And, perhaps more troublesome, it's not always easy for a private individual to insure what was previously registered as a commercial vehicle. Do some ringing around before you commit to it.

Read Buying a commercial vehicle for private use for more

Expert answer

Hi Paul,

It goes by the engine size when you're taxing a commercial vehicle privately, so it works out as €710 per annum for that Ranger. Read these for more info:

Motor Road Tax Prices in Ireland Explained

Buying a commercial vehicle for private use

Expert answer

Hi Martin, 

That's 100 per cent correct. It would make the Hilux €1,034 per annum to tax. More reading for you, though it sounds like you already know your stuff:

Motor Road Tax Prices in Ireland Explained

Buying a commercial vehicle for private use