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Hi Nick,

Theoretically yes, it is possible to convert an estate into a van. Obviously you’d have to remove the back seats and weld a plate in place over the floor. There are also some minimum dimensions that must be adhered to for the vehicle to qualify as an N1 commercial. Sadly (and oddly) the requisite page on the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI) website is returning a 404 'not found' right now. The good news is that your local motor tax office (MTO) will have all the relevant details that you’ll need to be sure that the car you’re thinking of converting qualifies. The conversion work will have to be carried out by someone with the appropriate qualifications and standards (again, the MTO can help there) and you’ll have to bring it for a CVRT test every year, not the usual NCT.

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Hi David,

Well, basically you take that VRT cost of €819 and add it to the money you’ve actually paid for the Galaxy, converted into Euro. On top of that, there’s the NCTS fee for having the vehicle inspected (€55), the cost of a year’s motor tax (that will depend on the engine that’s in the car) and the cost of getting new number plates made up and fitted (shouldn’t be more than €30 or thereabouts). 

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Hi Kris,

The problem is that Irish insurers are a bit blunt-force when it comes to deciding their rates, and generally speaking (and completely erroneously) they simply tend to go by engine size. So even though there are plenty of older 1.9-2.0-litre diesel engines with similar power outputs to a more modern 1.6, they’ll probably quote you more just because it’s a bigger engine. Stupid, but then that pretty much sums up the insurance industry in Ireland. All I can suggest is either biting the bullet and getting a 1.6 that maybe you’re not as keen on, or finding a really good local broker who can help you track down quotes that us mere mortals can’t find. 

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Hi John,

I'm afraid that cars need to be over 30 years old to avail of classic tax. See our Motor Road Tax Prices in Ireland Explained feature for more details.

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Hi Ed,

That is an answer that will vary massively depending on which model of car you’re talking about. There are some Hyundai i30s and Kia Ceeds from around that era that came with a 1.4 diesel engine that would be hugely economical. You might be able to track down some Peugeot or Citroen models (a 2008 would be a good choice) with a 1.4 HDi diesel engine that’s good on juice, too. There’s also the Toyota Corolla or Auris D-4D, or if you don’t fancy diesel, the same cars with the 1.33-litre VVTi petrol engine, which was not too thirsty.

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Hi Raymond,

Sadly, it’ll be €994. For some arcane reason (which no-one has been able to explain to us in a way that actually makes any sense), if you register a commercial vehicle as a private car, you have to go back onto the old by-engine-capacity tax system.

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Hi Brendan,

We do love a bit of car-related man-maths around the CompleteCar.ie office. Yes, in theory, you could save that €425 per week travelling cost with a Tesla Model 3, once we make a couple of assumptions, and bearing in mind that a Model 3 is not free — a basic Standard Range Plus model is quoted at €625 per month in repayments on Tesla’s Irish website. With a claimed one-charge range of 409km, your theoretical Model 3 should be able to get from Dublin to Monaghan and back in one charge, with a little left over for safety (assuming it’s around 135km door-to-door). If you can charge at home and charge in Monaghan, then each full charge will cost you around €8-10, depending on your electricity tariff and how low the battery gets before you plug it in. That should put a significant dent in your travelling costs. It would also be helpful if you could charge up at work, but that’s more for ensuring you have a full charge in case you need it — the shorter intra-Dublin commute wouldn’t put much strain on your battery.

So, that’s all good. Buying in the UK, though? Not worth it. We ran the maths on this a while back and working off the base model prices — £38,500 in the UK and €48,900 here, a quick conversion at today’s rates shows that the equivalent Euro price of a new Tesla Model 3 would be €45,069. A saving? No — although the VRT would cost you nothing at the point of import (thanks to the €5,000 rebate), you would have to pay VAT on entry, as it’s a new car, and so the price would go up by €10,350. You’re better off buying local in this instance.

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Hi Joe,

We sent this one on to Honda Ireland and here was the response:

"Yes a swivel passenger seat can fit in a Honda CR-V. However we would ask the customer to speak to their mobility solutions provider too, as it depends on the design and the size of the seat."

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Hi Sean,

According to the documentation, the Tumeric Yellow example in our video is €65,865 before options (it has over €20k of options on it!). It doesn't appear to be listed on the Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles Ireland website, though, which has the four-seat Ocean model starting at €67,300.

Best bet is to contact your nearest dealer to get an up to date price. 

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Hi Roisin,

You’ll be exempt from VAT as the car has done more than 4,000km, but not VRT I’m afraid as you’ve owned it for less than six months.