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Hi Aisling,

You won't go far wrong with the Octavia. Get the 1.6 TDI and you've got a potential 55mpg car with lots of space and terrific build quality and reliability. If you're looking for alternatives, then there's always the Volkswagen Golf (mechanically the same as the Skoda but less spacious inside) or the Ford Focus 1.6 TDCi (terrific to drive and good value but poor standard equipment and they're tight in the back).

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Hi Declan,

Don't worry about the handling - MINIs are terrific to drive. Great fun. The C30 is perhaps a bit less so and Volvo parts and servicing have always been on the pricey side, but it's a much more practical car than the MINI, which is seriously short on space. Both are fine cars though, reliable too so it's a question of what you value more - space and comfort (Volvo) or driving fun (MINI).

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Hi Brian,

There's a serious, serious issue at the moment in the chasm between what the car makers claim you will get in economy terms from a car and what you actually get in real-world driving. There are changes to the official testing regime coming down the pipe, but the car makers are resisting that with all their lobbying might as it means that their CO₂ ratings will go up too.

In the meantime, and this is based purely on personal experience, a Golf BlueMotion should get close to 60mpg in daily driving, and you may even crack the 65mpg mark, though 70mpg is probably not going to happen, being realistic.

Further reading:

Volkswagen Golf BlueMotion review

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Hi Mary,

You can get a full run down on what we thought of the Pajero here. But the short version is: it's a bit old fashioned but we really rather like it. It's big, comfy and should be endlessly reliable. The Pajero's reputation is that you can't kill it with a stick...

On the tax side, things are a little more complex. The good news is that because the Pajero Executive's boot space qualifies it for commercial rate Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT) you can get it, fully loaded with leather, automatic and a kick-ass sound system, for a lot less than many more prestigious rivals. 

You can also claim back the VAT if you're buying it for business purposes, although your accountant is the person you should be asking about that, not me. 

The trickier thing is road tax. Theoretically you can just pay the commercial vehicle road tax on one of these but it's complicated. You have to be able to prove, if challenged, that you bought the car for strictly business purposes. That's fine if you're, say, a developer or an architect or a builder or a farmer - someone who needs to carry big loads and visit muddy construction sites a lot. But if you're, say, a software engineer then that's just not going to fly and you're going to get a massive fine for your troubles. Better to pay the full passenger car rate (€1,200 in this case) and be on the safe side.

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Hi Margaret,

Yup, plenty strong enough. So much so that the first time I drove it I thought that I was driving the diesel. In fairness, it was late and I was tired but it's still a cracking engine, potentially Volkswagen's current best.

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Hi Zara,

You'll have to bring the car to a mechanic I'm afraid. It could be a problem with the sender unit, which is usually mounted in the gearbox, the cable between that and the speedometer or with the receiver on the speedo itself. Impossible to know remotely.

Let us know how you get on

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Hi Finian,

Possibly, but it depends entirely on the car and how you're driving it. If you're talking about a small diesel-engined hatchback, then yes, there's quite possibly a problem if you're only getting 19mpg on average. Even driven for only short hops around town, most would manage at least 35mpg on average. Certainly worth a visit to the dealer to at least have it looked at.

That said, the single biggest influence on fuel consumption is driving style. Have you changed the way you drive, or your regular route lately? Are you spending a lot of time idling at traffic lights where you previously weren't? It all adds up...

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Hi Rob,

I'm afraid there's nothing for it but to start ringing around and working your way through the websites of Irish insurers. There are no specific restrictions on drivers using international driving licences, but I think you can expect that your insurance costs will be significantly higher than if you had a full Irish licence.

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Hi Kieran,

Not massive. There's a tiny 1mpg gap between them in terms of fuel economy (the Toyota gets 59mpg, the Ford 60mpg), but in everyday driving , they'll probably work out pretty much the same.

Overall, the Toyota will probably be slightly more reliable, and the Ford slightly cheaper to service and repair if anything does go wrong. The Toyota will probably be a little cheaper to insure too, and its road tax will be slightly lower.

On balance then, the Toyota is likely to be fractionally cheaper to run, but there's precious little in it.

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Hi Simon,

OK, easy answer first: no you won't be the first owner, the car will originally have been registered as a company car, owned by the importer/distributor. 

As for buying an ex-press car, well how much do you trust us? The good news is that 90 per cent of our driving is just normal road mileage like anyone else. I'd like to think we're all quite good when it comes to things like mechanical sympathy and taking good care of a car that's in our charge, but the fact is that there are a few ham-fisted cloggers among us. No names, please...

If it's a high performance model then it's quite possible that it may have seen some time on the track, but then again it will also have been pampered while doing so, with an army of minders to look after it. 

To be honest, it's no worse than buying any other used car - you're always taking a risk as to the care given by previous drivers, but in the case of a press car, it will have been minded and serviced by the original maker so there's that. 

Why not let us know which car it is? We can probably tell you how hard it's been thrashed...