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Hi Oonagh,

Not many; you really need to be looking at MPVs such as the Volkswagen Touran and Toyota Verso, or the Ford S-Max or SEAT Alhmabra if you fancy something bigger. That said, the recently introduced Hyundai Tucson and Kia Sportage are just about wide enough, but it depends on what seats you're using. Also, larger seven-seat 4x4s such as the Volvo XC90 and Land Rover Discovery will take three-abreast, but they're expensive to buy.

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Hi Brendan,

There is no specific market data for Ireland in this respect. The old rule of thumb still holds true - if you want ultimate reliability, buy a Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Suzuki, Subaru or Mazda. You could probably pretty easily add Kia and Hyundai to that list too now.

The best I can do for you is to point you towards the results of the JD Power Vehicle Dependability Study for the UK market in 2015. An independent research agency, JD Power ranks the various brands surveyed by problems per 100 cars - although it's worth remembering that those problems can range from minor electrical niggles to total engine failure, so you can't read everything into the stats. The last set of figures, ranked from best-performing to worst, were:

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Hi Paul,

Yes, and no. And a bit yes. It still depends on your lifestyle and driving habits. Lots of short journeys, mostly around town? Don't mind taking the time to plan long journeys carefully and be prepared to take breaks for charge ups?

Things are getting dramatically better though. Nissan has just updated the Leaf with a new 30kwh battery (read our review of it here) that extends its range to around 250km, which is a lot more useful, and if you're suitably loaded a Tesla Model S can go for 500km between charges.

If you're not quite ready to take the full electric car plunge, how about a plugin hybrid? Short hops under electric power with a petrol engine for longer journeys. Try the Volkswagen Golf GTE, Audi A3 e-tron, Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV or a Volvo XC90 T8.

However, if you're looking for a second hand car, your options with electric power are severely limited, as sales have been slow so far.

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Hi John,

The Q7 and BMW X5 would both be good choices, as would a Land Rover Discovery (although you'd definitely want to take out an aftermarket warranty on any of those three at that price level).

Better options are out there though. Volvo's XC90 is hugely spacious and built to last, but if you want something totally indestructible, track down a long wheelbase Toyota Land Cruiser.

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Hi James,

The new Volvo S90 saloon, which will share its engines, chassis and, yes, that gorgeous interior, with the XC90, will go on sale in mid 2016 and will make a full public debut at the Geneva Motor Show next March. There'll be a massive V90 estate too we're told.

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Hi Darragh,

All versions of the XC90 sold that year were in Band F, costing €1,200 per annum to tax.

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Hi Martin,

There are a few, actually. Volvo sells the V60 D5 Twin Engine here in Ireland, which is a plug-in diesel-electric hybrid, while Citroen sells the DS 5 Airdream Hybrid4 200. Peugeot used to sell the 3008 HYbrid4 too, but it doesn't appear to be on the price list now, while Mercedes-Benz has had diesel-electric hybrid tech for a few years.

In fairness, we don't expect them to get any more plentiful or popular. Hybrid technology is expensive to produce and diesel technology is more expensive than petrol, so putting two expensive sets of components together inevitably means a high purchase price, even if the emissions are low and the VRT is kept in check.

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Hi Karena,

You're right on the edge for choosing between petrol and diesel. If those miles are mostly on the motorway then diesel may still make sense, but if they're mostly at low speeds then you're right in considering petrol.

Now, the Volvo V40 is a fine choice, but I'm not sure what year you're looking at, as the latest petrol models are powered by a relatively efficient turbocharged 1.5-litre petrol engine, badged either T2 or T3. The EcoBoost Focus is also a cracking car. Try to get a test drive in a few before you decide and come back to us if you need more assistance.

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Hi Annemarie,

It depends what you want to do. Do you want to trade it in for 'scrappage' against a new car? Simple, there are several car makers currently running scrappage-style schemes and you could get as much as €4,500 for your old Volvo, depending on which car you're trading it in against.

If you just want to get rid of it, then there are a number of private firms that will pay you for the car and come and collect it. A quick run through Google will find one of these for you, but you need to be wary - if a car is sold as scrap it must actually be scrapped, and you should be issued with an End Of Vehicle Life certificate that you can then present to the National Vehicle and Driver File maintained by the Dept. Of Transport Tourism and Sport. That's a legal requirement and if you don't comply then it's a fine or court case time.

So you need to make sure that the person scrapping your car is above board and professional. Don't, whatever you do, ring one of the mobile numbers on road-side signs saying 'we scrap your car for cash' because they don't - they give you €100 and then tart the car up to sell it on again.

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Hi Caroline,

The new V60 Cross Country is on sale now from €40,845 (click here to go to Volvo's configurator for that car). We've not driven it as yet, but will be during the summer. For what it's worth, we really like the regular V60. Read our review of that here.