Expert answer

Hi Alanna,

Anything pre-2008 with a petrol engine is pretty hard to shift on these days, sadly, so I'd reckon you're looking at a value of possibly as little as €5,500 for the Mazda3 at the moment. To get the best from it, I'd suggest staying within the Mazda family (a Mazda dealer will usually give you a better trade-in on a Mazda than will another dealer) and trade up to a Mazda6 Estate. Loads of space, brilliant to drive, reliable and, with the 2.2-litre 129hp diesel, very economical too. SUV? Do you live up a mountain or at the far end of a rutted dirt road? No? Then you don't need one - stick to the family car market and the Mazda6 size class (which also includes cars like the Toyota Avensis, Ford Mondeo, Volkswagen Passat and Opel Insignia) is  where you'll get the best bang for your buck.

Let us know how you get on

Expert answer

Hi Eamonn,

Well, have you seen the weather? That's one good reason...

There was always one major problem with the 207 CC and that was its roof. Better looking and more neatly integrated into the design than that of the preceding 206 CC it may have been, but it's heavy, complicated and was prone to failure on early models, often becoming stuck in the half open, half closed position. Apparently that early foible has been sorted since by various fixes, but it's still a worry for any 207 CC owner.

Apart from that, it's also not very practical (the rear seats are next to useless and the boot is very small when the roof is folded away) and it was never exactly affordable, so perhaps all of that explains its relative rarity in Ireland. On the upside, it's quite nice to drive, it's comfy and reasonably mechanically robust, and for the sake of a relatively small outlay, you do get the same type of folding steel roof that Mercedes-Benz and BMW buyers get to boast of.

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Hi Pat,

I'd say you're looking at a probable value of between €5,000 and €7,000 with that kind of mileage. Trading in probably the better route, unless it's a diesel you're selling. Private buyers just don't seem to want to know about petrol cars at the moment.

Let us know how you get on.

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Hi John,

There has been no official word of this, though we saw the car in the metal last year. We believe it could be here in time for the '141' plate in January 2014. Makes sense with all the offers on the outgoing version right now...

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Hi Siegfried,

Yes, it's a cracking family car. A shame it's not the seven-seater, which is even more versatile again, but even so the Doblo has a great combination of practicality and affordability.

That 1.3 MultiJet diesel engine is a cracker too. Economical and decently reliable.

Can't recommend it highly enough, to be honest.

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Hi Dermot,

That’s kind of an open-ended question because it depends hugely on whether you want to get into a PCP deal (which effectively makes you come back in three years’ time to trade in for a new car), an old fashioned hire-purchase agreement (which doesn’t, but is more expensive per month than the PCP), or whether you want to go with a bank or credit union loan. It also depends on your own circumstances and, substantially, on the car you’re looking at buying.

As an example, Volkswagen is currently offering 3.9 per cent APR interest on a  PCP deal on a new Polo hatchback, but just 0.9 per cent on the larger Tiguan, Golf and Passat. Or even 0 per cent on the Jetta. Alternatively, you can get a very sharp 0 per cent Hire Purchase deal on a new Kia cee’d, which is an excellent car for not a lot of money.

To be honest, almost every car maker is currently offering some pretty decent deals, so it comes down to what you want and what you can afford. Come back to us with more detail and we'd be happy to help.

Read our guide to Different Car Finance Options in Ireland

Expert answer

Hi Peter,

OK, there was no 1.3 diesel Hyundai i30, it was always a 1.6 diesel although there were lower and higher power versions. We found a couple of classified ads purporting to be 1.3 diesel i30s, but they must be typos. The Astra is definitely available with a 1.3 CDTi diesel though (a unit co-developed with Fiat a number of years ago) and while it's a fine engine and the Astra is a fine car, it's the Hyundai we'd go for - it's economical, cheap to tax and endlessly reliable. It's also far better to drive than you might expect (it even drew admiring comparisons to the class handling champ, the Ford Focus, at its time of launch) and is spacious and comfy to boot.

That said, if you're thinking of the Hyundai, you have to also consider the Kia cee'd. Launched in 2006, it's mechanically identical to the Hyundai, arguably a little sharper to drive and, depending on the mileage, a 2008 model should still have two years of Kia's seven-year warranty to run.

To be fair, you won't go wrong with either.

Expert answer

Hi Martin,

Ford is due to update the Mondeo next year, in line with the facelift given to the (all-but identical) Ford Fusion model in the US last year. It won’t be a massive change, but there will be things such as tweaked lights, some new colours and options, the latest SYNC3 infotainment system and some interior upgrades to try and boost the cabin quality.

The 1.0-litre EcoBoost petrol engine will be upgraded to 140hp, while the 1.5-litre EcoBoost (possibly the best engine option for the Mondeo, overall) will see a boost to 180hp. It’s just possible that Ford may introduce an ST version too, using the 2.7-litre turbocharged V6 engine from the US Fusion.

As for an all new model, that’s probably at least four years away at the moment.

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Hi Carl,

To the end of May this year it's the Volkswagen Golf, ahead of the Nissan Qashqai and Ford Focus. It was the same top three for 2012, though the Focus was first and the Golf third.

Hope that's of interest

Expert answer

Hi Michael,

Sounds like piston rings or valve seals or maybe even both!

Needs a major amount of work whichever it is.

Sorry!