Expert answer

Hi Shona,

Before we take a look for potential cars for you, I would say that you should avoid diesels, as they're not suited to mostly city driving and will end up costing more in maintenance. Stick with petrol, or hybrid if something comes up within budget.

A small estate such as the Skoda Fabia Combi could work well for you. There are plenty within budget, they're reliable and they have huge boots. The only reservation I have is that the rear seating isn't huge, which might be a problem if you have two rear-facing child seats in there. Worth going to take a look at one and making that decision for yourself. The SEAT Ibiza ST (Sports Tourer) is pretty much the same car underneath, incidentally, if you prefer the look of that.

There are VW Golf and Passat estates on the market within budget and with petrol engines as well, and they come with much more rear legroom than the Fabia, but you'd likely have to make do with an older model for under €10,000.

On a completely different tack are cars such as the Nissan Note and Kia Venga, which are more upright than most hatchbacks that take up the same amount of space on the road, to the benefit of interior space. They beat the Fabia for rear legroom, for example, but their boots aren't huge. I wouldn't want to be carrying a travel-system-style buggy as well as anything else. Nonetheless those ones I've mentioned are reliable and within budget.

The Honda Jazz is similar and it's an excellent choice.

Let me know if we're on the right track with this and if you need further help narrowing your search. 

Expert answer

Hi Grainne,

In general that Focus is indeed a sensible, solid used buy. 

However, it's getting on now, so you can't expect a new car. And parts of the engine - specifically the EGR valve and DPF in the exhaust - are known to clog up if the car is used for only short drives.

Our advice is to test drive a few examples of the same car so you get a feel for a good one, then insist on a full service history and walk away from any car that doesn't drive smoothly. 

Expert answer

Hi William,

There are plenty of good new EVs on the market within budget to consider, though most are crossover or SUV-style vehicles. That's a good thing in terms of ease of access, as their door openings are usually large and the roofs are not too low. It also usually means a relatively high-set seating position, to the benefit of comfort and visibility.

We prefer to drive regular car-shaped vehicles, but there just aren't enough all-electric options, unfortunately. While there's some negativity towards SUVs in general, we reckon a compact electric SUV ticks a lot of boxes for a lot of buyers, while not being completely inefficient.

Before giving you a few potential EVs to book test drives for, I'd urge you not to focus on the range too much. Assuming you can get a home charger installed, then going by your usage as described, you'll do the vast majority of your charging at home.

Prioritising a longer-range car means getting one with a bigger - i.e. heavier - battery, which will cost more up front and result in worse efficiency day to day. Relying on the public network a few times a year is no reason to compromise your car for the rest of the time.

The first car to come to mind is the excellent Renault Scenic E-Tech electric. It's probably bigger than you need, but the long wheelbase helps with comfort, and it sits somewhere between a hatchback and an SUV in terms of design and shape. With your budget, you could probably get the larger (87kWh) battery pack or choose the smaller one and a higher specification.

Sticking with Renault for a moment, another cool option is the new Renault 4 E-Tech, launching in Ireland imminently, though it doesn't have as long a range as the Scenic.

If you can wait a little, then it's also worth considering the new Nissan Leaf. This is a really excellent car that will certainly be in budget. It's quiet and comfortable to drive and efficient, too. The Nissan Ariya is already available, but I suspect it's larger than what you were looking for. It is comfortable, though, so no harm test-driving it for yourself.

The Hyundai Ioniq 5 is another great option, with a fantastically comfortable interior, good efficiency and a decent range for the money.

I could go on and on, so let us know what you think of these by submitting another question and we'll try to narrow things down for you.

Expert answer

Hi Martin,

As I'm sure you know, the 330e was updated late in 2024, so if you can find one of those within budget, you'll appreciate the upgrades. Read our review of the revised BMW 330e here.

We're big fans of the 330e as well. It's difficult to beat its blend of performance, driving dynamics, style and efficiency. Here are a few alternatives to consider, nonetheless:

Mercedes-Benz C 300 e: I love the look of these, and it feels like a proper luxury car inside, more so than the BMW. Its chassis is more comfort-focused though, so you need to choose which you prefer. There's not much to choose between this and the updated 330e when it comes to performance, electric range and space, but the Mercedes is very expensive.

Volkswagen Passat GTE: I suspect this is not what you're looking for in terms of badge appeal, but the GTE is a very decent car. It's much bigger inside than your BMW and exceedingly comfortable, with perky performance when you need it (ok, not as perky as the 330e's). Its electric range isn't great, but fine for short commutes. And this car is more affordable than most on this list.

Skoda Superb iV: Much the same can be said about the Superb as for the Passat above, though the Superb is larger again and it doesn't always come with a sporting badge, which some will like. It's not massively common in the classifieds though.

Volvo V60: Now this is a hidden gem and would be my choice of the lot here, even as a serious fan of rear-drive cars such as the 330e. And yes, it is an estate body style, which you might not have been looking for, but it is such a fantastic, polished car that is great to drive, looks sensational and packs a bigger punch than many will expect.

Give our review of the V60 T6 Recharge a read and go test drive one for yourself to make up your own mind. Same advice really for all of the above cars, but this one stands out.

Expert answer

Hi Birenda,

Prices for the parts and the labour will vary wildly depending on where you bring the car, so our best advice is to shop around before you decide.

It's unlikley that you'd change just the clutch plate if the gearbox is off in any case, so factor in replacing the pressure plate, thrust bearing and maybe even the dual-mass flywheel.

Likewise, with the timing belt, you'd likely also replace the water pump at a minimum, possibly a tensioner too depending on the car's age.

In total, we'd suggest somewhere in the region of €1,200 for all this work.

Expert answer

Hi Frank,

It's the timing belt itself that you've heard about most likely as, on some versions of the 1.0-litre Ford EcoBoost engine, it is what's called a “wet belt”. That means the timing belt actually runs in oil, where most timing belts do not.

Ford isn't alone in having problems with them. The rubber in the belts can degrade due to many issues including use of the wrong engine oil and impurities in the oil as it gets older.

The good news for you is that, while earlier examples of the 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine did use this setup (though not all), and Ford dropped it from 2022 on, the MHEV engines always used timing chains instead and they should therefore be more robust.

However, even those later engines use a rubber belt to drive the oil pump and that still runs in oil so potentially has all the same issues. It is too new for those problems to have come to light and Ford believes it is designed for the life of the engine because it is under far less stress than the timing belt was.

All we can advise is that you carry out oil changes a little sooner than recommended and that you always use the correct specification of oil.

Expert answer

Hi David,

Unless the timing belt broke, leading to you getting this work done, then I see no reason why the garage would have removed the cylinder head while replacing it. That is not routine.

It also is not possible to skim a head gasket, so presumably the mechanic said he skimmed the cylinder head itself. If they removed the cylinder head to do that as well as replace all the parts associated with the timing belt then the price doesn't sound unreasonable, but I'd question why the cylinder head was removed if this was supposed to be a regular timing belt change.

Expert answer

Hi David,

Every garage has its own labour rate and fees for work such as changing a timing belt, so you should shop around and get a price before handing the car over.

For your information, the work itself should take about three hours, though the parts are not inexpensive as it's not just the timing belt that requires replacement, but also the auxiliary belts, the timing belt tensioner and the idler pulley, along with the water pump.

Expert answer

Hi Padraig,

Though there's likely to be very little difference between the two cars in terms of reliability and safety (assuming other things like age, mileage, condition and service history are equal), you're most likely correct in terms of more expensive servicing and parts for the Audi. 

And make sure you get an insurance quote before you commit to any car.

Expert answer

Hi Aubril,

The Focus estate in general is pretty decent, but the 1.8-litre diesel engine was not Ford's finest hour and unless it has verified low mileage and/or a detailed service history showing regular oil changes, it's best to look for an alternative. The 1.6-litre diesel is a far superior engine from Ford, for example.