Expert answer

Hi there,

Well the obvious choice would be to go and get the latest Renault Laguna Sports Tourer, which could cost you as little as €23,090 under the scrappage scheme with a 2.0-litre diesel engine. This might be a bit over budget though. 

You are almost certainly going to get the best deal from a Renault dealership. The Grand Mégane is another option, but this only comes with a 1.5-litre diesel or 1.6-litre petrol. I am not sure why you would need it to be over 1.6-litre because the modern smaller engines are really good and the 1.5-litre diesel in the Mégane is really very competent. 

Hope that helps - if you need further advice please drop us a line in the comment box below

Expert answer

Hi Hany,

I guess this depends on you budget really and whether you can get the full scrappage allowance from Renault on your Fluence. If your car is ten years or older then obviously this car becomes very cheap and therefore very appealing.

If you are asking which is the best car of the two then I would say that the Mazda3 is a better car. It feels a little better built, has a better diesel engine and will almost certainly be worth more in three or four years time. 

However at the moment, the Fluence is so much cheaper that it really is hard to ignore it, so all things being equal, at the moment the Fluence is probably a better buy. I hope this helps! 

Expert answer

Hi William,

The first thing I would say is, do you really need a diesel? The diesel version of small cars tend to cost more and if you aren't really doing excessive mileage then you might not reap the benefits of owning one. For example a diesel Ford Fiesta costs €1,000 more than a petrol model and the annual road tax on the petrol model is only €156 - just €52 more per year than the diesel option. Often, in a small car, a petrol engine is really the best option.

The first car that you mention, the Fiesta, has been one of the real stars of the scrappage scheme and one of the best-selling cars in 2010 and for us, it is still the best supermini in the class. It is well built, drives really well and has pretty styling. The offers on the Fiesta for scrappage are very tempting and you can shop around to get the best deal, but you will find that there are greater discounts on the petrol models.

A car we rate here at CompleteCar.ie is the Volkswagen Polo and the 1.2-litre TDI BlueMotion model in particular is excellent offering outstanding fuel economy and ultra-low emissions. The Polo is the sort of car that you would like holding on to for four to five years as they age well.

There are obviously some incredible offers in the Renault range, as the company is offering by far the most generous discounts when it comes to new cars. You could have a petrol Clio from €8,990 under scrappage. There is a diesel version available too and with all the discounting this would come out as one of the cheapest five-door diesel superminis around.

I think if you are intent on diesel then perhaps you should look in value terms at a slightly larger car. I would be very tempted by a Hyundai i30 1.6-litre diesel. You can have one of these, which has five doors, is going to be very reliable and will cost you from €14,995 under scrappage, which is really excellent value.

However a car that has really impressed us of late is the new Nissan Juke. Here you are getting lots of car for the money. The diesel Juke starts at €20,195 (full price list here) and this car would qualify for scrappage as it has Band B emissions. 

That's a few for you to consider but do come back to us if you have more questions!

Expert answer

Hi Richard,

Firstly the car needs to be safe; it needs to be good value; and it needs to be reliable. We tend to encourage buying from SIMI dealers because you do have a little more comeback and the cars tend to be a little better, so having a look on the beepbeep.ie website we found a few options. 

The first model we have chosen is the Toyota Yaris, which will be ultra reliable and painless to run. There is one in Ardee that is within budget (you should get it for less if you haggle) and while this 2003 model has done 89,000 miles it will be capable of a whole lot more. 

I really like the Ford Fiesta and the model that was around in 2003 onwards is a great little car. This Fiesta is right on budget. 

The Renault Clio from 2004 was a lovely wee car and this one here has just 46,000 miles on the clock. I think they really suit young women, as they are rather chic. 

I guess the sensible choice here would be the Yaris, but I would probably have the Clio. 

Hope that helps

Expert answer

Hi Alan

The scrappage scheme has been good news and as you might have seen today SIMI is calling for an extension of this. Unless this happens, there would be no point in you getting a new car at the end of the year under scrappage because the €1,500 that you would get off this in the case of something like an Insignia would not be as much as you could lose eventually by buying a car later in the year. 

Sure enough, you could buy the Laguna and get €3,000 off. It isn't an awful car, but there really isn't anything remarkable about it and I personally wouldn't spend over €20,000 on one. I actually think the Renault Fluence is a better buy than the Laguna and it costs much less. It is a fine big car and really well equipped. 

However, with your budget we could do a whole lot better. Supposing that you get at least €1,000 for your Corsa, then you still have a generous budget. There is always the temptation to look at the German cars and as long as you realise that these can get pricey to service and run as they get older, they can be a great buy. 

You have a staggering amount of choice. For sheer ease of ownership I have noticed that Lexus IS models are really good value now. You can get a 2008 IS 220d for under €25k and that would be a pretty nice car to own. Here is an example. 

If you were buying new or almost new, this 2010 Subaru Legacy diesel is also within your budget. 

However, you could go a little larger and get yourself a 2007 BMW 520d. This example is from a main dealer and has tiny mileage and would be a really nice car to own. It has done just 20,000km and is an automatic too with a nice spec for just €28,000. I would find it very hard to pass up on this car to be honest. You could opt for one with a manual gearbox and get lower road tax, but to be honest, this is where my money would go.

I hope this helps

Expert answer

Renault have come back to us with the information. 

The pressures in are front: 2.1 bar (30 psi)and rear 2.0 bar (29 psi) on the 225/55 R17s.

If you do a lot of motorway driving then these should be 2.2 bar (32 psi) front and 2.0 bar (29 psi) rear.

I hope this helps.

Expert answer

Hi Donal,

We got a little more information from you and we now know that your budget is around €20,000 with scrappage. The Corolla has grown in size as a saloon so I guess you aren't after something of that size. My first thought had been a Skoda Octavia diesel, which starts at €19,340, but this is also quite a big car so might not appeal.

Another excellent choice would be the new revised Mazda3. This comes with a good diesel engine and is available as a saloon, but isn't overly bulky. We drove this car recently and found it really competent. The four-door saloon version starts at €22,525, though there is €3,530 off in the scrappage deal so it would cost you €18,995, which is well under budget.

Another option would be the Renault Fluence. This is a substantial car and you get so much for the money. We had the top spec TomTom edition and although the sticker price is €23,500 it drops to €19,000 under scrappage. Read our review of the car here. However, if you think the new Corolla is too big, you may find that the Fluence is as well.

It is very hard to look beyond the Ford Focus too. The saloon might be just over your budget, but there is an excellent offer on the hatchback, which is €21,015. With scrappage this would be under budget.

In answer to your question, best for comfort, economy and reliability (and not too big), the Mazda seems to suit you best out of this lot, especially when it comes to the price. They are pretty good at holding their value too.

I hope this helps. Please feel free to come back to us if you have more questions. Just drop them into the comment box below.

Expert answer

Hi Patricia,

You're right, most seven-seat MPVs have tiny boots when all seven seats are in use. One car that springs to mind straightaway is the Renault Grand Espace. This has a little more luggage space than the regular Espace. We found one on beepbeep.ie for well under your budget: click here to have a look.

You mentioned that you don't like the idea of a minibus style car, but it's worth checking a few out. The Mercedes-Benz Viano can be had for your budget for instance.

Safety and reliability are your priorities. The Espace scored well in the Euro NCAP safety ratings when it was launched and though there were reliability issues early in its life, these seem to have been ironed out by now.

I realise that's a very limited response. It might be worth considering using a roof box. That would widen your choice a little.

Let me know if we can help any further and what you decide upon. You can reply by logging in and putting a comment in the box below.

Expert answer

There is no denying that the Fluence is a lot of car for the money. The TomTom edition you mention is €23,500 and it comes with all the bells and whistles and depending on your car and how old it is it could end up costing you just €19,000. This Renault is loaded with kit and the multimedia system in it is really good.

The Astra will cost you €24,155 in SRi spec so you are starting off at a higher price and the Fluence will still have better equipment levels than the Astra.

These are two quite different cars. The Astra will be much more sporty and will feel more agile, while the Renault is aimed more at comfort and space. You are likely to get a better offer on your Corsa from the Opel dealer, but a greater discount from the Renault dealer.

It really would depend on the driving you intend to do and how long you will keep this car. If I were up and down a motorway all day and in the car a lot, I would have the Renault. If I was a keen driver and enjoyed the odd back road blast I'd probably have the Opel. In terms of value, the Renault has the edge, but the Opel might be worth more in three years time.

This is a case where you really just have to drive both cars and trust your feeling on them.

Up to you from here. Let us know in the comment box below how you get on.

Expert answer

Yes, your car is eligible for the scrappage scheme. The best car you could get, if your budget stretches, is the Renault Fluence, which would cost €15,800 under the scrappage scheme. 

Renault also has a special option for taxi drivers:

"Renault has a specific extended warranty programme of up to 5 years with unlimited mileage for taxis.

Renault Ireland is the first car company on the Irish market to offer very high mileage customers like taxi drivers who purchase a Renault, this extended warranty programme. Drivers can opt for a 4^th year or 5^th year extended warranty with unlimited mileage from €529.00."

Hope that helps.