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Hi Mairead,

Typically for a Hyundai, there are no major problems to report with a Tucson. Just tread slightly carefully, as they were popular with hard working types such as builders etc. and many have lived hard lives as beasts of burden, so be alert for signs of excessive wear and tear. Otherwise, just make the usual checks for history and condition and you should be OK.

As for fuel consumption, you're dealing with both an older-tech engine (that 2.0-litre has since been replaced by Hyundai's new 1.7 diesel) and a tall-ish, heavy-ish SUV body. So you're probably looking at around 35-45mpg, rather than the 45-55mpg you'd expect from a newer model.

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Hi Stan,

OK, well currently (as of the end of September), the best selling cars in Ireland are, in descending order, the Hyundai Tucson, the Nissan Qashqai, the Volkswagen Golf, the Skoda Octavia, the Ford Focus, the Ford Fiesta, the Kia Sportage, the Toyota Yaris, the Toyota Corolla and the Volkswagen Tiguan. The biggest-selling market segment is the SUV/H1 segment (that’s the Qashqai-Tucson-Sportage mid-size SUVs) all of which cost between €24,000 and €40,000 depending on spec.

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Hi Ian,

There are a couple of alternatives to the Q7 alright. The Land Rover Discovery is probably the best all-round seven-seat SUV on the market and easily matches the Q7 for driver appeal, cabin space and premium image. The only problem is that Land Rover is still working its way up from a low point in terms of reliability, and while the current Disco is certainly very well built, we'd reckon that a Q7 would be a little bit better in terms of reliability when you're talking about a car that's already a few years old.

In fact, we know of only two issues with the Q7. One, it's apparently quite hard on tyres and two, if it's got an electric tailgate, it can open or close with a mind of its own sometimes, although that should have been fixed in a recall by now.

You could go for a BMW X5 with seven seats, but there's not as much space in the third row in the BMW, so it depends on what you need those extra chairs for. If it's only for occasional use, for kids etc, then the X5 is well worth a look and is a fantastic car to drive. If you need to put adults back there, stick with the Audi. You could downsize to a Hyundai Santa Fe seven-seater of course, which is a reliable, affordable choice but lacking both third row space and the cachet of the Audi.

Or you could steer away from the SUV world altogether and get a Mercedes-Benz E-Class Estate with the extra rear-facing seats in the boot. Bit of an unsung hero that one, and much cheaper to run than a big 4x4. Or, of course, you could do the whole off-roader thing properly and get a long wheelbase Land Rover Defender, but you'll need ear plugs for long journeys.

Choosing between a 2007 or a 2008 Audi Q7 is all down to the price and the individual car. There was a facelift in 2009 that brought some engine updates and cabin and styling changes, but if you can find a good 2007 one, with a full Audi service history, you could be looking at paying as little as €20k. A Q7 for the price of a new Ford Focus? Not bad...

Let us know which way you go

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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

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Hi Alanna,

If you like the Mazda, then it would be well worth considering an upgrade to the current-shape Mazda3 with the 1.5-litre SkyActiv diesel engine — it's smooth, refined, very economical and with the usual Mazda reliability. A lovely car. Also worth considering are the Honda Civic 1.6 iDTEC diesel or Kia cee’d 1.6 CRDi.

A few reviews for you:

Mazda3 review

Honda Civic review

Kia cee'd review

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Hi Vincent,

Not that tough, these days actually. Would you consider an Opel Mokka? Not the greatest car ever made or anything but it has a higher seating position, which may help and, better still, its front seats are approved of by the Aktion Gesunder Rucken, which is the German Bad Back Association. If you don’t fancy the Mokka, I too am a bad back sufferer and I always found that the seats in the Citroen C3 Picasso were always very comfy. Worth a try at any rate.

Here are the reviews:

Opel Mokka X review

Citroen C3 Picasso review

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Hi Martin,

You're in an enviable position and, before going into more detail, we'd be very happy with any of those cars as an ownership proposition.

Personally, I'd be sorely tempted by the Evoque. There are plenty of colour and wheel options to change its appearance to your liking, it's much more of an occasion inside and it drives like a hot hatch (the chassis is very much road-biased, though it does well enough off-road when needed). Admittedly, certain versions of the BMW and Audi may be more economical, but I'd look at it very closely.

When the current BMW X3 came out it really took a leap forward from its predecessor in terms of comfort, quality and refinement, but between that and the Audi Q5 I may too be swayed by the fact that the Audi has had a more recent update. I also prefer how the Q5 looks. There's very little between them depending on which engines you're looking at.

The best advice is to go test drive each car for as long as possible, paying close attention to the specifications of the test cars.

In terms of automatic gearboxes, unless you're looking at a petrol Q5 (which I doubt!) or the high-performance SQ5 TDI model (fantastic) then the only option is the dual-clutch S-Tronic unit. This helps with efficiency and allows the driver more control when he wants it, but is not as smooth as a traditional torque converter gearbox, as fitted to the Evoque and BMW. They're both smooth systems, but the eight-speed item in the BMW is the most impressive, managing to minimise fuel consumption increases.

Hopefully that's of help, but come back to us if you need more

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Hi Niall,

Well, that kind of depends what you want it for. If you're looking at it because you want a big, four-door family SUV then, no. You see, that Pathfinder is based on the Navara pickup and it's a pretty crude device, lacking the kind of refinement and comfort you'd get from, say, a Land Rover Discovery. That said, if you're looking for something to do a bit of hard work and the occasional bit of off-roading, then go right ahead - it's perfect for that kind of life. Just watch the clutch, it seems to be a weak point and can be rather expensive to fix.

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Hi Michael,

The BMW X6 really does split opinion with its SUV-that-wants-to-be-a-coupé styling. It's less practical than the BMW X5 it's based on too. However, it's well made, exceptional to drive and fast. That 3.0-litre diesel engine is a gem too, being both frugal and powerful. I'd personally prefer an X5, but each to their own!

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Hi Ronan,