Expert answer

Hi John,

Yes, just go to the system settings menu (have a look at your owner's manual) and change the selection from Metric to Imperial. It takes a couple of seconds, but best to do it when you’re stopped rather than driving.

Expert answer

Hi Daithi,

Well, the best brands for residual values are generally held to be Toyota, Skoda or the premium German car brands. That said, Kia tends to perform quite well in residual terms right now, not least because of that impressive seven-year warranty. An Optima should make a good choice, then, as would a Toyota Avensis. That said, it’s very clear right now that the market is moving, rapidly, to being centred around SUVs and crossovers, not traditional four-door saloons, so you might be well advised to have a look at one of those — a Kia Sportage, perhaps, or Toyota RAV4, Hyundai Tucson, Nissan Qashqai or Volkswagen Tiguan.

Expert answer

Hi Enda,

There's a growing number of options for seven-seat SUVs. The new Skoda Kodiaq is excellent and €50k would buy you one with a lot of toys. The Kia Sorento is also in that price bracket and is big, roomy and hugely comfortable. Ditto the Hyundai Santa Fe. Peugeot's incoming new 5008 is worth a look too. Here are our reviews of them all to help you out:

Skoda Kodiaq review

Kia Sorento review

Hyundai Santa Fe review

Peugeot 5008 review

Expert answer

Hi Amylee,

We really like the Renegade - true, the looks won't please all, but it's decent to drive, that 1.6 diesel is frugal and has good power (bit noisy though) and there's decent space in the cabin. Quality levels seem good too, although the boot could be bigger. Out of 100? 65-70 I'd say. 

Read our Jeep Renegade review here

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Hi Martin,

We haven’t actually done that, as yet, but here’s a quick rundown of our favourites:

1. Skoda Superb Combi: massive, roomy, cavernous, spacious, replete with space — whatever way you want to put it, the Superb is the best estate around simply because you can fit the most amount of stuff into one. Looks good too, and is exceptionally comfortable. Not the sharpest thing to drive, but you won’t really care.

2. Mercedes-Benz E-Class Estate: really good looking, massive boot, staggeringly high quality cabin, comfortable, smooth 2.0-litre diesel and surprisingly good to drive.

3. Volvo V90: another one that’s surprisingly good to drive, with sharper steering than you’d expect. Gorgeous interior, exceptionally comfy seats and the only problem is that the boot isn’t quite as big as it should be. Exterior styling does kind of make up for that, a little.

4. Volkswagen Golf Estate: not the obvious choice perhaps, but adds extra space (lots of it — a 605-litre boot) to the Golf’s usual other qualities of quality and classiness. An ideal family car and more affordable to buy and run than an average SUV.

Expert answer

Hi Ciara,

It’s always tempting to trade in a car that’s starting to look expensive, but for the most part, it’s almost always more economical to keep an existing car going, even if it does need regular servicing. In fact, that regular servicing is the key to all of this — keep it looked after and there’s no reason why it shouldn’t provide years of service yet. As you point out, the diesel filter needs longer journeys to keep it from clogging up, but a regular circa 20-30km run at motorway or main road speeds should be enough.

Expert answer

Hi Donna,

The current Hyundai Tucson and Kia Sportage are both just about wide enough to take three child seats across the back, or you could try the SEAT Ateca or Volkswagen Tiguan too (this has the widest back seat of all those). The Skoda Kodiaq is brilliant, but it’ll be outside your budget if you want a diesel, or, if you can hang on until the summer, the new Peugeot 5008 is coming, which has three ISOFIX points in the back, and should come in for under €30k.

Relevant reviews:

Hyundai Tucson review

Kia Sportage review

SEAT Ateca review

Volkswagen Tiguan review

Skoda Kodiaq review

Peugeot 5008 review

Expert answer

Hi Brendan,

We really like the Ateca, and the 1.4 turbo petrol engine really suits it, so that’s the one we’d advise you to go for. There’s an updated version of the Qashqai coming very shortly, so bear that in mind if you’re looking at the Nissan — you might be able to get a better bargain on a run-out model.

SEAT Ateca 1.4 TSI review

Nissan Qashqai review

Facelifted Nissan Qashqai preview

Five best mid-sized SUVs and crossovers in Ireland

Expert answer

Hi Liam,

OK, first off you don’t need and shouldn’t be buying a diesel. With that kind of mileage, and doing most of it in town, you’ll never get enough efficiency out of the engine and you’ll run into trouble with the particulate filter and more potentially.

Of the three cars you’ve mentioned, I think that the Mercedes B-Class might actually be the most sensible, and it’s certainly the roomiest if you’re concerned about carrying big loads. Worth remembering that for similar money you could probably get yourself into a nice C-Class Estate too, which is only a little smaller inside and a whole lot nicer to drive. I’d be tempted to stick with the Mercedes, too, for safety reasons, if your son is going to start learning to drive.

The Tiguan is another very good option, and there are versions with Volkswagen’s excellent 1.4 turbo petrol engine if you shop around. Again, safe and good to drive, if not quite as roomy as the B-Class. I’d avoid the Duster at this point — it’s diesel only, and not as safe as the Merc or Volkswagen.

Expert answer

Hi Jacinta,

Mostly, SUVs with three ISOFIX points in the middle row are the really big ones - Land Rover Discovery, Audi Q7 and so on. The good news is that Peugeot is about to launch the new 5008 and that has three ISOFIX points in the middle row, but it won't be on sale until July in Ireland.