Expert answer

Hi Brendan,

In your case, it'll likely depend on your driving style. The driving you described really suits a diesel engine if you tend to accelerate up to speed and maintain the speed limit for most of your journey. If, however, you tend to amble along a little slower than that with a more relaxed outlook, then a hybrid will be just as efficient, while also being a little more 'futureproofed'. 

Depending on the model, we'd expect lower overall maintenance bills for a petrol-fuelled hybrid than a diesel.

And while you didn't specify it, a plug-in hybrid might suit you if you can plug the car in at home and also at work, as very few of them can do 100k on a charge.

Finally, it would be remiss of me not to mention that almost any electric car - used or new - would cope with your commute with ease so long as you could charge it up at home. 

Come back to us if you want to discuss your choice in more depth. 

Expert answer

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 Bob,

If his vehicle has satnav then it’s not necessary, as it will know where it is and change to suit driving on the right side of the road.

Expert answer

Hi David,

We're big fans of both the BMW xDrive45e and the new iX (though not everyone loves the looks of the latter!).

First up, whether you go for a plug-in hybrid such as that X5, or an electric car, you really do need to have the option to add a home charger. It makes life way easier and keeps your fuel costs down.

Assuming you will install a charger, then either of those cars could work well for you. The X5 could easily cover those short journeys on electric power and you'd never have to worry about delays with the public charging network on your longer journeys. The iX, especially the xDrive50 version (read our review of that here), has a really good range, but very long motorway journeys will still require a little more planning.

However, the iX's cabin and technology are next-generation, making the X5's look out of date already...

I'd suggest going to test drive both cars if at all possible. Failing that, at least try to sit into both so you get a feel for the differences.

Also final word of advice, with all the supply chain issues facing the car world right now, I'd urge you to get your order in as soon as possible, even if you don't plan to take delivery for up to a year.

Best of luck with us - feel free to come back and ask us more.

Expert answer

Hi Teresa,

We used to get so many queries on this subject that we published a feature called Why won't my car's stop-start system work?

If you read that you'll discover that the systems are highly sensitive to battery charge and load, even when working perfectly. Could it be that you often have high-load items switched on? Things like heated seats, air conditioning, rear window demister, that sort of thing.

Now, in a DSG-equipped automatic car, you shouldn't need to put the car into neutral to get the stop-start system to work - that's only on manual cars. You can leave it in D (drive). What does affect it, however, is how firmly you are holding your foot on the brake pedal when at a standstill. Sometimes it's necessary to give the brake pedal a firm push before the engine will cut out.

Other things to watch out for: if you move the steering wheel, it is likely to cause the engine to restart. And if you're in the Sport driving mode or you've selected the Sport gearbox setting, then stop-start might not work either.

If none of the above changes your experience, I suggest getting a mechanic to come out in the car with you to check it over and observe how you drive, and then let them do the same.

Best of luck with it - come back to us and let us know how you get on.

Expert answer

Hi Philip,

Well-spotted!

Yes, they essentially share the same powertrain, but otherwise they're quite different. The Lexus justifies its higher price with a more luxurious interior and driving experience. It's quieter, too. 

Expert answer

Hi Nelson,

OK, as ever our answers here include a certain amount of ‘it depends…’ as much does indeed depend on your driving style, the ambient temperature, the cost of your electricity at home and how much public charging you need to do. But, roughly, this is how it should all break down.

Let’s start with the Kona — and by the way, these are both excellent choices as the Kona and the Ioniq 5 are amongst the most impressive EVs on sale right now. Hyundai officially claims that the Kona Electric has consumption on the WLTP test of 14.9kWh/100km, but we’re going to be a little more pessimistic, or realistic perhaps, and assume that you’ll achieve more like 18kWh/100km.

At that rate of consumption, you’ll — obviously — burn through 18kWh of electricity for each 100km you cover. On its undercounted rate for electricity, Electric Ireland will charge you 21.9c per kWh, which means that you’ll pay €3.93 in electricity costs for each 100km journey, assuming you do all of your charging at home.

What if you’re not charging at home? Well… If you’re using one of the new very rapid ESB chargers, which cost 37c per kWh, that cost obviously jumps a bit. In fact it goes up to €6.63 per 100km. If you’re using an IONITY 350kW charger, without a discount or membership, you’ll pay 73c per kWh and that pushes the price up to more than €10 per 100km.

However, the likelihood is that you’ll be using a mix of all three, and maybe you’re lucky and can charge for free at work, so let’s stick a finger in the air and average it out at around €5 per 100km journey. That’s just for the electricity cost.

If you go for the Ioniq 5, then we reckon that you’re looking at more like 20kWh per 100km in day-to-day use, which gives you costs of €4.36 (home charging), €7,37 (ESB rapid charging), or €14.54 (IONITY). Again, all of these prices are to an extent moving targets, and can be reduced further with discounts on charging and home energy bills. Or with free or subsidised at-work charging.

Of course, there are not total life costs. You have to factor in the costs of buying the cars themselves — Hyundai currently has an offer for the Kona Electric of €254 per month on a PCP plan, or the Ioniq 5 at €380 per month.

Those are both for the basic models, but that’s actually OK — the base Ioniq 5, with the smaller battery, is actually quite a canny buy as it will still do a reliable 360km on one charge, and doesn’t look nor feel all that much different to the ritzier versions inside or out. Assuming a reasonable cost for insurance (never an entirely safe assumption to make…) I reckon we can get you in under the €450-per-month mark for either car, with the Kona obviously having a bit more headroom for costs.

The cost of the charging station at home is even more difficult to answer with surety. There is a wide variety of home chargers available now, at various price points, though of course you should be eligible for an SEAI rebate, too. The unknown is if any additional work needs to be done to your house's electrics. Take a read of our Charging your electric car at home feature for a little more detail on that.

Expert answer

Hi Brian,

A diesel car is quite well-suited to that journey still, as it's over 100 kilometres each way, but we can understand why you might be looking to 'electrify'.

First up, I think we can disregard plug-in hybrids for your needs. None of them have an all-electric range to do a full journey from Limerick to Killarney - or vice versa - even if you could plug it in before heading back the other way again. That would make it potentially quite inefficient overall for you.

A regular hybrid might work depending on your driving style. The N21, which I assume you use, is quite a busy road, so average speeds aren't very high, but some drivers do make the effort to overtake slower traffic and keep their average speed up. If you're the type to amble along with the flow of traffic, then a hybrid might get close to your diesel's economy. If you tend to rush and do lots of overtaking, it won't.

Depending on your budget and situation, I think an electric car would be a good option. There are loads of models with official ranges in excess of 400km now and even allowing for a deterioration of that due to higher speeds and cold temperatures, they'll all likely cover the return journey from Limerick to Killarney and back with little trouble. You could top up the battery if you need to in Killarney, but the vast majority of your charging could be done each night at home. That is of course assuming that you have off-street parking and somewhere to install an electric charger. That's key to EV ownership.

If you don't quite need the space of the 5 Series, but like the BMW brand, I'd highly recommend the BMW i4. 

Other than that, check out our list of every electric car currently on sale in Ireland for ideas - and feel free to come back to us to discuss this further. 

Either way, drop us a message to let us know what you decided to do

Expert answer

Hi Ray,

We got in touch with Aviva asking in general if there was an issue and we received this rather wishy-washy response:

"There are multiple factors that are taken into consideration by our motor insurance underwriters when providing quotes or determining cover for motor insurance.  Some of the factors that determine our acceptance criteria or the level of cover we provide include the driver’s details and experience, our own claims experience, the car (its make, model, engine size, age, brake horsepower, power to weight ratio etc.), to name a few.  
 
There are a small number of models from various manufacturers that we may not provide comprehensive cover on and this can be for a variety of reasons.  However, our risk appetite allows us to offer comprehensive cover for the vast majority of cars that are available to purchase in Ireland, which includes various Tesla models."

That doesn't really tell us much. I know that some people in other countries have been quoted high premiums as Teslas are supposedly expensive to repair, but this is the first time we've heard of someone with such a good driving history being refused comprehensive cover.

My advice would be to shop around for an alternative premium elsewhere. Insurers don't reward loyalty in any case so it's something to consider doing every year.

Best of luck with it.

Expert answer

Hi Brian,

You've not told us your budget at all, but a 2018 E-Class sounds like it would certainly fit the bill for your needs. There are several good diesel options, which I think would be best for your commute. That age of E-Class is really lovely.

A close competitor is, obviously, the BMW 5 Series. A 520d does it all, mixing great efficiency with comfort and a bit of sportiness when you want it. The 530d has more impressive performance, of course, but it isn't as economical.

I'd recommend you go test examples of those to see which you prefer.

Let us know how you get on.