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Hi Anshul,

Ok, let’s take those one by one. As far as a fair price is concerned, you haven’t given us a year for the car, but I’m going to assume it’s a 2016 model. That would put a fair price, in Ireland, if about €15,000 give or take. There’s no issue buying a UK car that has already been registered in Ireland.

Fuel economy should be fine — you can expect to get around 45-50mpg from a 1.7 Optima. 

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Hi Colin,

Yup, Mercedes will be bringing the CLA 220 and CLA 250 diesel models, with their 2.0-litre engines, to the market in due course, but the CLA is launching initially in Ireland with the lower-power petrol and diesel versions. The rest will follow over the next few months.

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Hi Rebecca,

Well, we can’t guarantee that there will be no parts issues, as despite being broadly the same car, there are bound to be a few market-specific differences between the two cars. Also, you’re not going to be able to get parts in your local Opel dealer, so if they’re going to go ahead with it, then I think joining a good owners’ club would be a good idea — always a great source of information, parts and help. As for legality, it should be fine, but you will need to check that the engine used in the South African market will meet 1990-era European emissions standards. 

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Hi PJ,

It has officially gone on sale here already, though there can't be many examples in the country yet. See our news story on the A-Class Saloon in Ireland here.

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Hi Rob,

Yes, if you have registered the car to your London address, and can show proof of continuous tax and insurance for six months prior to your move, then you’ll be able to avoid VRT when you import it here. On the Discovery Commercial, you’ll be looking at rather more than €200 VRT to import it, I’m afraid. N1 and Cat B commercial vehicles don’t pay a flat rate any more, they pay 13.3 per cent of the Open Market Selling Price, or the Irish market price as defined by Revenue. The same will go for a crew-cab, and 13.3 per cent is the lowest possible rate of VRT. 

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Hi Jackie,

There is no simple answer to that one I'm afraid. I assume this query comes off the back of this news story. That Ferrari cost close to €200,000 to convert, but every car is different - and the owner has a lot of input into the conversion, which can alter the price. 

Needless to say it is an expensive project to undertake by any measure.

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Hi Richie,

Yes, thanks to an odd quirk in our tax system, if you’re taxing a commercial vehicle for personal use (and a 110 Utility counts as one), then you revert to the old tax system, based on engine capacity, so with a 2.2-litre engine you’re looking at €951 a year. Pretty steep all the same, but a bit better than €2,350…

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Hi Zura,

OK, the good news is that you’ve got a clean record and a decent budget. The bad news, I’m afraid, is that an Irish insurer just won’t care about any of that. As far as they’re concerned, you’re starting with a blank slate. Sorry to have to tell you that, but the sad fact is that Irish insurers are incredibly hard to deal with and incredibly expensive on top.

I would think that €1,200 should be enough to cover a Focus 1.6 (especially given that you’re in your mid-thirties, which is considered a safe age), but it could be a safer bet to go for the Yaris, as insurers prefer a 1.0-litre engine (it’s an outdated view, but there you go). It would definitely be worth getting in touch with a good local insurance broker, though. They can often find better deals than are available through the usual websites etc. so definitely worth having a chat with.

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Hi Dagmar,

Thankfully, you’re absolutely right. As long as you can provide proof of transfer of residence to Revenue (such as a letter confirming your employment, proof of address etc), then you can import the car with no VRT cost whatsoever. 

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Hi Andreas,

Unfortunately there’s not a lot you can do here, mostly because all 911s prior to the introduction of the 3.0-litre turbo flat-six engine were above the 225g/km cutoff for the top VRT band of 36 per cent, which means you’re probably going to be looking at a significant VRT charge no matter which model you bring in.

You’re right to say that there’s a big disparity between 2008 and 2009 prices, but given that there are so few 911s available for second-hand sale in Ireland, it’s a tricky model to accurately value, and a huge amount is going to depend on condition, mileage and specification.