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Hi David,

Right, I’m going to make a couple of assumptions here — one is that this is the 140hp 2.0-litre TDCI diesel that we’re talking about, and that it’s the post-2010 facelift model. If so, then CO₂ emissions for the automatic model are 149g/km, and that means you’re in Band C for motor tax, which is €390 a year.

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Hi Marlene,

In terms of reliability, I wouldn’t have any worries — Hyundai’s reliability reputation is iron-clad, and besides; if you did have any trouble with it, there’s that five-year, unlimited mileage warranty backing it up. One word of caution though. The Kona’s best engine is the 1.0-litre T-GDi petrol version, which is a sweet engine with good economy and might be a better ownership bet unless you’re doing big miles every year. Alternatively, it’s well worth checking out the new all-electric Kona, which has a really long one-charge range. 

Read all our Hyundai Kona reviews here

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Hi Simon,

We’ve double-checked this with Audi, and yes — under certain circumstances you can have both the upgrade pack and the free auto gearbox on your A4. The 191 complimentary Style Pack includes a metallic paint finish, ambient lighting pack, heated front sports seats, comfort armrest and front parking sensors. The Audi A4 Style Pack also comes complete with 18-inch alloy wheels on SE models and 19-inch alloys on the S line, offering a customer saving of over €4,000 for the SE and €4,500 for S line model. It’s only available in limited quantities though, and only up to the 28th of February.

As for the automatic gearbox offer, that’s a dealer-led promotion, where dealers are offering this on certain models, so you might need to ring-around your nearest Audi dealers to make sure you can avail of that on the car you want.

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Hi Tom,

It kind of depends on what price range you’re looking at. The more expensive you go, the more available such options are. The likes of a BMW 5 Series or an Audi A6 would be the easiest to find with all of these options on the one car, but it becomes much more problematic if you’re shopping lower down the price lists. Come back to us and let us know your budget for more useful assistance.

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Hi Enda,

For starters, as far as I can work out, all new hybrids currently on sale are automatic, so there's no such thing as paying a premium for that side of things. On a trade-in, I'd suspect that your aunt will get no more than €3,500 for the Ibiza, even though the mileage is very low, so let's work with a budget of around €23,500.

That would get the top-of-the-range Toyota Yaris Hybrid, which is a perfectly good car for low mileage use by one person. The Yaris has been updated recently and it remains a very solid buy. For a few grand more, the entry-level version of the brand new Toyota Corolla Hybrid is within reach, which is a far more substantial car, but outside the budget you mentioned.

There are no other new hybrid cars on the market within budget, I'm afraid. At this price point, we'd suggest that an efficient petrol engine is possibly better value, but if your aunt really wants a new hybrid, then the Yaris is not a bad option at all.

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Hi Janie,

On the parking sensor issue, it just seems to be a bit of a quirk with the Audi Q7 that to get the front sensors on when moving forwards, you have to press the parking sensor switch, although they do, as you point out, come on automatically when you select reverse. We’re not sure why this is, but it might be worth a visit to your dealer to see if there’s some finicky bit of software code that can be re-set to activate them automatically at low speeds.

As for the stop-start system, if could be a few things. Obviously, there may be a fault, in which case get the car booked into your dealer for a check-up. Or it could be that you’re doing a lot of low-mileage, short runs, which aren’t allowing the engine and other systems to get fully up to temperature. Stop-start isn’t a simple on/off system — it’s controlled by the engine management and that won’t let stop-start activate if it thinks that the engine hasn’t warmed up enough (stopping and starting a cold engine can be damaging) or if it has detected that you have a lot of high-energy drain systems (air conditioning, demisters etc) running. Try and analyse your driving the next time you go out and see if any of this fits. If not, head for your dealer. 

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Hi Stephen,

OK, the theory goes that a car registered between January and July 2008 will automatically switch to the CO₂-based system at its first renewal if, and only if, it’s beneficial to do so. In other words, and this is according to the Motor Tax office, it’ll stay on the old system if it’s cheaper to do so.

According to what you’ve told us, your car should have switched to the new system no later than June of 2009, but needless to say it’s possible for it to have, for some reason, slipped through the net. I’d think a quick chat with your local motor tax office should sort it out either way. 

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Hi Afeez,

I’m assuming that’s a 1.6 HDI diesel model? If so you need to watch for excessive black smoke from the exhaust, which could indicate a blown turbo. Check too to see if the diesel particulate filter is working properly — if it’s a low-mileage car (and that is quite low miles) then it may not have been driven regularly enough to keep the filter clean, and they’re expensive to fix and clean. If it has air conditioning then that needs specific servicing so check that has been done and, if you notice that the car pulls to the left at higher speed, then it might need new front tyres. Other than that check that all switches and buttons are working properly, and that the car has a full and complete service history.

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Hi Brian,

The Tiguan and the Ateca are, essentially, the same car, so you may as well get the SEAT, as it’ll be the cheaper of the two. There’s virtually no difference in terms of the way it drives nor the interior space and quality. The 3008 is an interesting alternative though — arguably more stylish inside and out, but it feels subjectively less roomy, and it may not be as solidly reliable in the longer term. Worth taking into consideration though. 

Read our reviews below:

Peugeot 3008 reviews

SEAT Ateca reviews

Volkswagen Tiguan reviews

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Hi Anthony,

You should be fine, actually. Your 3 Series should (emphasis on SHOULD) be worth around €22-25,000 as a trade-in, and a 171 4 Series Gran Coupe starts at around €30,000-ish, so adding €10k of change-up budget should put you in the right ballpark. Ditto the A5 Sportback, although you will find examples of both on a 171 starting with a €4 rather than a €3… Shopping around a bit should do the trick, though. Both cars are excellent choices, and go for the Audi if you want maximum reliability.