Any advice on family estate cars?
Any advice on family estate cars? Around a €12k budget, covering about 15,000km per year. Anything to particularity avoid?
Jim O'Neill (Carlow)Sep 2016 Filed under: choosing used car
Expert answer
Hi Jim,
Nothing to avoid, in particular, but lots of good ones to try out. Start with a Mazda6 Tourer, or a Ford Mondeo Estate, or a Skoda Superb Combi. If you want to save a bit of money (but not compromise on space) go for a Skoda Octavia Combi, if you want something with a bit of class go for an Audi A6 Avant (pricey but the 2.0-litre TDI keeps running costs down).
Hyundai i40 or Skoda Octavia?
Hi,
I have a 131 Hyundai i30 Estate 1.4 diesel that has been reliable, good for bringing family and luggage in etc. I do about 15-20,000km p.a. Fuel economy has been alright if not as good as I expected, as maybe slightly underpowered sometimes and I have to accelerate it more than I'd like. It's a good car, but has always been poor for road noise even with tyre changes.
I am looking to change now to something a bit bigger, either a 151 1.6 diesel Skoda Octavia hatchback or a 142 Hyundai i40 saloon 1.7 diesel, mid-spec levels. I haven't really looked at specific examples of either yet. I only intend to keep the newer car until maybe 2018/19 and both above choices give me a good level of warranty cover until then.
Which do you think would be the better buy? Safety, more quiet on the move and decent handling (as my main everyday route is quite a twisty hilly road) are important to me.
Thanks
Mick, Gorey
Mick Walsh (Gorey)Aug 2016 Filed under: choosing used car
Expert answer
Hi Mick,
Well, given the list of priorities you’ve given me, either the Octavia or the i40 would seem ideal, although it’s the Hyundai that will hold on to its warranty longer, as it has a five-year warranty compared to the Skoda’s three-year one. The Skoda is by a very slim margin the nicer of the two to drive though, so you’ll need to bear that in mind. That said, the i40 is more refined overall (not to mention being a bigger car, with more space in inside), so it’s really a matter of deciding which of your priorities gets top billing.
What's a good old Skoda Octavia worth?
What is the current value of a 2001 Skoda Octavia Ambiente with a full NCT and 110,000 miles on the clock?
Owen Lennon (Roscommon)Jul 2016 Filed under: used car values
Expert answer
Hi Owen,
A slightly tricky car to value actually, as much (in fact almost all at that age) will depend on its condition and history. Generally speaking I’d say it’s worth in the ballpark of €1,000, but with that relatively low mileage, if it’s in truly concours condition, you might get a little more for it.
What's a good value for my Skoda Octavia?
What would be a reasonable trade in value of a 2011 Skoda Octavia 1.6 diesel with about 100,000km? There are a few dents on the body so I've been told it might need a full re-spray.
Thanks
S O'D (Limerick)Jun 2016 Filed under: used car values
Expert answer
Hi there,
It should be worth somewhere around the €12,000 mark, but I’d advise getting the dents and paint sorted out if you want to make top dollar on it.
Should I go for a new Ford Fiesta EcoBoost?
Hi,
I am interested in buying the new Ford Fiesta EcoBoost 1.0-litre. I am an old age pensioner and badly need a reliable small car. Which car would you advise me to buy: the Fiesta Zetec or Fiesta Titanium? The road tax is cheap either way. I have a 2005 Skoda Octavia 1.4 petrol my local dealer said he would give me €4,400 trade in for. I don't know much about cars so any advice you give me would be appreciated. Or is there something else similar out there I should look at?
Thank you
Billy Mc Elligott (Tralee)Mar 2016 Filed under: choosing new car
Expert answer
Hi Billy,
The Fiesta EcoBoost is a really sweet little car, lots of fun to drive, roomy and very frugal. It's a little difficult to know how reliable it will ultimately be in the long-term as the engine itself is a relatively new design and hasn't been around long enough for us to be able to tell exactly how robust it is. That said, Ford's quality record has been good of late, so I'd say it's a reasonably safe bet.
As for which model, it just depends on what your priorities are. A Titanium will have more standard equipment, but it may well be that there's a lot of extras that you simply won't need nor use, so you're probably better off going for the better value of the Zetec.
Other cars that are worth considering would be a Toyota Yaris, Mazda2 and Skoda Fabia. Hope that helps.
Relevant reviews:
Would a small new estate suit us?
We have two small kids. We live in the city but like to go camping in the summer. Can you recommend a car suitable for city driving but still with enough room to carry camping equipment? We currently have a Mazda5 diesel, but the DPF gives us trouble due to us doing mainly short journeys. I was thinking of a petrol estate such as Fabia Combi or a petrol Corolla. Any suggestions please ?
Ray Mehigan (Limerick)Feb 2016 Filed under: choosing new car
Expert answer
Hi Ray,
The new Fabia Combi might well be worth looking at as the boot is absolutely enormous, but you may find the back seats a little tight as the kids get bigger. A Toyota Auris Touring Sports estate would certainly make a good buy - roomy and hugely reliable and Toyota's old 1.4-litre petrol engine has always been a good unit. Also worth looking at the Kia cee'd Sportwagon or Skoda Octavia Combi.
Relevant reviews:
I'm struggling with buying a petrol car...
Hi,
Trying to buy a replacement for my 1999 Avensis and the scarcity of petrols and abundance of diesels on the market baffles me. I don't think it wise to buy diesel for my standard drive of eight miles to work and home and same six days a week with road trip round 300 miles just six times a year.
This is supposedly "economical" and "green driving" even though in London it costs more for a permit going into city with diesel car and trends in London have historically impacted directly on us in three to five years. I would love to know of a diesel car 2008-2011 (for cheap tax) with no necessary DPF that I have to worry about, or will I stick to petrol believing that in five years time petrol is a more saleable/popular engine than diesel is? Then there might be a hybrid to suit. Volkswagen, Japanese or any good 1.4+ hatch or saloon suggestions?
Thanks,
Pauline.
Pauline Anne Connor (Galway)Feb 2016 Filed under: petrol vs. diesel
Expert answer
Hi Pauline,
You're absolutely 100 per cent dead right - diesel is not for everyone and especially not for those with overall low mileages and short commutes. And as the recent emissions scandal has shown us, diesel exhaust can be staggeringly bad for your health.
As for finding a diesel without a DPF filter, I'm not sure you'll be able to. In order to meet the particulate emissions legislation under EuroV and EuroVI regulations you pretty much had to have one. Some people have, of course, removed the DPF to avoid maintenance issues, but then you're just spewing out a plume of highly carcinogenic soot particles as you drive...
So, I think your best bet is to go for a compact turbocharged petrol engine or, just maybe, a hybrid. The Toyota Prius would potentially be ideal for your daily drive, but could be a bit of an over-thirsty pain on that six-time-a-year longer journey. Try instead a car fitted with the Volkswagen Group's excellent 1.2-litre TSI turbo petrol engine (Golf or Skoda Octavia are the best ones), a Ford Focus with the 1.0 EcoBoost engine or maybe an Opel Astra 1.4 Turbo. Here are a few relevant reviews for you to consult:
Which of these €4,000 cars are most reliable?
Hi,
I'm looking to buy a car around €4,000. Had a look at the Audi A4, Skoda Octavia, Volkswagen Passat and Toyota Avensis. Which one from your point of view would be most reliable given all of them would be 10 years old and more.
Thank you
Martin Faturik (Dublin)Feb 2016 Filed under: reliability
Expert answer
Hi Martin,
Go for the Octavia or Avensis according to taste - both have superior reliability (crucial when you're buying an older car) and the Avensis will, just slightly, have the edge in that respect.
I'm looking at a 2014 Skoda Rapid.
Hi,
I'm looking at a 2014 Skoda Rapid. I don't see many of them around so unsure what to do about it.
Aisling Breen (Wicklow)Jan 2016 Filed under: choosing used car
Expert answer
Hi Aisling,
Not a huge seller, the Rapid, but it's a perfectly decent car. Skoda designed and built it as a more affordable alternative to the Octavia - it kind of sits between the Octavia and the smaller Fabia in price and space terms. The upsides are a big boot (huge, actually) and a decent line-up of petrol and diesel engines. The downsides are a slightly narrow cabin and bouncy, skippy rear suspension. Plus the interior doesn't look or feel as sophisticated as that of the larger Octavia. It'll be an affordable and very reliable family car though.
Toyota Corolla or Skoda Octavia?
Thinking about buying a 2008 Toyota Corolla or Skoda Octavia, similar mileage, 1.4 petrol. Thoughts?
Brendan Toohey (Drogheda )Jan 2016 Filed under: choosing used car
Expert answer
Hi Brendan,
Both decent cars. Go with the Corolla if reliability is your overriding priority (although the Skoda's hardly fragile or anything) and go with the Skoda if space and a big boot are your priorities.