Expert answer

Hi Patrick,

That's a lot of questions! Let's start with the Santa Fe. Your budget is likely to limit you to the last of the older generation. It's a tough piece of kit, but not great on the road in terms of comfort. It's reliable, though expensive enough to maintain. Early versions had clutch judder, but this should have been fixed in later versions with a new flywheel. We've not heard about diesel pump and injector trouble.

Given that budget we'd rather the Hyundai Tucson. There are plenty of them about and it's much nicer to drive on the road. Saying that, it's a good deal smaller than the Santa Fe. It's not as expensive to service however. It's the same story with the older Sportage, though we'd prefer the Tucson.

The RAV4 is a fine choice all-round. It's generally reliable and good on the road. I wouldn't be very worried about extra wear and tear in the driveline.

Don't forget about the Nissan X-Trail, Honda CR-V and Suzuki Grand Vitara. All worth a closer look.

Has that helped you create a shortlist?

Expert answer

Hi Rory,

I'm sure you're aware that your budget will get you any number of relatively new regular cars such as the Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Corolla and Ford Focus, along with bigger models like the Ford Mondeo and Toyota Avensis.

However, given your current choice of car I'd suspect that you'd like to retain the elevated driving position and your mileage dictates a diesel engine. Most cars can take a tow bar and you don't have heavy towing needs so that's not a major consideration. Likewise, all SUVs etc. will have room for your golf clubs.

So the logical choices based on all that include:

BMW X3: Good diesel engine, spacious, but your budget may only get you an older example.

Citroen C-Crosser: Great 2.2-litre diesel engine; rest of car built on Mitsubishi mechanicals.

Honda CR-V: Bomb-proof reliability, but again may have to settle for older example.

Hyundai Santa Fe: Big and comfortable, though running costs higher than smaller SUV.

Mitsubishi Outlander: Spacious, well made, ok diesel, if loud.

Nissan X-Trail: Strangely forgotten, but plenty around at this price.

Peugeot 4007: Shares its engine and underpinnings with the Citroen above.

Suzuki Grand Vitara: Very reliable.

Toyota RAV4: Another with impressive reliability. Possibly the choice of the lot at this price.

There are loads of older, bigger SUVs for sale at that price too, but they'll cost you more to run for no real benefit.

If you're willing to change body styles completely it's worth checking out something like a BMW 120d Coupé or a diesel 3 Series Coupé. There are also plenty of great estates on the market for that budget, including the Audi A4 Avant and BMW 3 Series Touring. I know you don't need that space for a family, but it's useful for a lot of other things.

Come back to us with more information and we'll help to narrow your search further.

Expert answer

Hi Oliver,

You can't go too far wrong with a Toyota Land Cruiser. Your budget should get you a 2006 version with four-wheel drive and there are plenty around. Mitsubishi Pajero also worth a look.

If you'd consider pick-ups there's the Mitsubishi L200, Nissan Navara, Toyota Hilux.

Come back to us with a shortlist if you want us to help you decide further.

Expert answer

Hi Rob,

For that budget we are assuming you are looking for a second-hand car. The Honda CR-V springs to mind, but the tax could be a little high for you as your budget will get you a pre-2008 version, which came with 2.0- and 2.2-litre engines. How about a five-door version of the Honda HR-V instead? We found this example on Carzone.ie and it looks the part. The 1.6-litre engine means it's not too much to tax either.

There are loads of Hyundai Santa Fes and the smaller Tucson around at that price too, though again their age and engine size might rule them out for you in terms of tax costs. Same story with the previous generation Kia Sportage.

Don't be tempted by older Land Rover Freelanders.

Another good option is the Suzuki Grand Vitara. A quick search showed that there are several 1.6-litre petrol versions with four-wheel drive within your budget, though most seem to be the less practical three-door body style, so you may need to look around to find a five-door example that suits your needs.

The Toyota RAV4 would be a great option, but keeping your tax bill down on a four-wheel drive version with five doors might be tricky. Recommeded though.

Hope all that helps. If you narrow down your search a little come back to us and we'll help you choose!

Expert answer

Hi Jaunkeypersad,

The Kia Rio is available in 1.0 LX or 1.0 EX. Both are petrol and manual and they cost €11,865 and €12,810 respectively. WIth 99g/km emissions they're in Band A, which now costs €160 per annum. Kia quotes 4.2 litres/100km on the combined cycle, which equates to 67.3mpg.

For the same money you could pick up a low-mileage 2010 Toyota Yaris 1.0 or even the 1.33-litre version. There are more grades to look through to see what you're getting for your money, but in terms of economy and emissions, both of those engines sit in Band A as well. The Yaris isn't as economical as the Picanto though, with the 1.0-litre returning 55.4mpg (5.1 litres/100km) and the 1.33 quoted as about 54.3mpg - or 5.2 litres/100km.

The added benefit of buying the Kia new is of course gaining the full seven-year warranty.

Hope that helps.

Expert answer

Hi Peter,

Toyota Ireland has confirmed that the plug-in Prius will go on sale here in June 2012. No word on pricing as yet though.

Hope that helps

Expert answer

Hi Antoinette,

First of all it's always worth remembering to focus on the 'cost to change' rather than the trade-in value alone. Your current car is unlikley to be worth quite €1,000 to a dealer so bear that in mind. If that gives you €5,000 in total to spend then you could potentially afford a 2005 Toyota Avensis. However, that price will get you a high mileage example so it may be worth going for a 2003/2004 example in good condition with low mileage.

I reckon you're better off with a petrol version if you're looking at an Avensis of that age. It was before the changeover to emissions-based taxation in July 2008, so the 1.6-litre petrol model was very popular - and is therefore in plentiful supply on the used market. Tax is cheaper too than the diesel of the same age due to it being calculated on engine size.

Along with that, 11,000 miles per year is not quite high enough to justify the potential extra cost of a diesel car in my opinion.

Hope that helps

Expert answer

Hi Karen,

Given the mileage and age I suspect you'll only be offered about €1,500 for this on trade-in, so it might be worth selling it privately. Shop around though, as a dealer may choose to offer more to make the sale.

Obviously all trade-ins are only worth what the dealer thinks they're worth, so take this as a guideline only.

Please do let us know how you get on with it.

Expert answer

Hi Frank,

This isn't quite an exact science and you can't really "work it out" but instead you can guess based on evidence from the past. Take a look at what the cars retail for after one year, two years, three years and so on and see what percentage of the car's original value it has retained. There have traditionally been some brands that have kept their value better than others - Ford, Toyota and Volkswagen would be some that spring to mind.

Expert answer

Hi Jim, 

I am not going to make my answer easy. I would want to drive the Passat every day, but after four or five years I would want to be trading in an Avensis. It really depends on how important pain-free motoring and good residuals are to you.

We can't decide for you Jim, so you must go with your head (Avensis) or your heart (Passat)!

I hope this (sorta) helps.