Expert answer

Hi Brendan,

We do love a bit of car-related man-maths around the CompleteCar.ie office. Yes, in theory, you could save that €425 per week travelling cost with a Tesla Model 3, once we make a couple of assumptions, and bearing in mind that a Model 3 is not free — a basic Standard Range Plus model is quoted at €625 per month in repayments on Tesla’s Irish website. With a claimed one-charge range of 409km, your theoretical Model 3 should be able to get from Dublin to Monaghan and back in one charge, with a little left over for safety (assuming it’s around 135km door-to-door). If you can charge at home and charge in Monaghan, then each full charge will cost you around €8-10, depending on your electricity tariff and how low the battery gets before you plug it in. That should put a significant dent in your travelling costs. It would also be helpful if you could charge up at work, but that’s more for ensuring you have a full charge in case you need it — the shorter intra-Dublin commute wouldn’t put much strain on your battery.

So, that’s all good. Buying in the UK, though? Not worth it. We ran the maths on this a while back and working off the base model prices — £38,500 in the UK and €48,900 here, a quick conversion at today’s rates shows that the equivalent Euro price of a new Tesla Model 3 would be €45,069. A saving? No — although the VRT would cost you nothing at the point of import (thanks to the €5,000 rebate), you would have to pay VAT on entry, as it’s a new car, and so the price would go up by €10,350. You’re better off buying local in this instance.

Expert answer

Hi Daniele,

Lots of things can cause slow starting of a modern diesel engine, including issues with the fuel system or glow plugs, or indeed the battery. You'll need to get your car along to a good mechanic to have it checked over.

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Hi Kieran,

We would expect most stop-start issues to be sorted by a new battery, but the installer is correct: auto stop won't always work. In fact, we get so many queries about the subject that we wrote this feature you may find of interest: Why won't my car's stop-start system work?

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Hi Clare,

Stop-start systems are a source of annoyance for a lot of people. We get so many queries about them that we wrote this feature you may want to read: Why won't my car's stop-start system work?

Saying all that, the point of a stop-start system is to reduce fuel consumption and emissions, so it's seriously pointless to go on a drive specifically to charge up the battery to make it work. It could be that your battery needs to be replaced completely.

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Hi Richard,

We've not come across any issues with the GLC, though most would still be under warranty. It sounds like an issue with the wiring loom or possibly even the battery. We recommend you bring the car to a good auto-electrician to have it checked over.

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Hi Beth,

Stop-start systems from all car makers do indeed have a long list of situations in which they won't work. We get so many queries about it that we wrote a guide called Why won't my car's stop-start system work?

It's certainly preferable to have the stop-start system not working rather than the car cutting out when you don't want it to.

Expert answer

Hi Philip,

Generally speaking, long-term hybrid reliability seems to be excellent. It probably helps that most hybrids that have been built and sold so far have been made by those paragons of reliability, Honda and Toyota. Both companies say that many of their older hybrid models — first generation Prius dating back to 1997, and Civic IMAs dating back to 2002 — are still on the road and in regular use. Indeed, Honda says that it has never had to replace a battery pack on models such as the post-2010 Insight or the little-seen Jazz Hybrid. Toyota says similar things about older Prius and Auris models, and points to the huge numbers of those cars being used on taxi fleets, racking up mega-miles with no major reliability issues to report. That’s likely helped by two things — electric motors are simple and therefore generally reliable, and most hybrid cars on the road at the moment use older-style nickel batteries, which aren’t as energy-dense as newer lithium-ion batteries, but which again are simple, rugged and reliable.

Even if you do need to eventually replace a battery pack, it’s not that expensive to do so — a second generation Prius pack change costs around €1,400 — not far off what you’d have to pay for a major engine rebuild or replacement, and you’re about as likely to need one. Basically, the advice is as for any second hand purchase — buy on condition, not mileage, make sure it has a full and complete service history and, if you have any concerns in the longer term, consider taking out a second-hand warranty programme.

Expert answer

Hi Alma,

It’s most likely to be the 23kW battery, as the Zoe 4.0 was only launched at the very end of 2016 and, Irish car sales being what they are, few if any would have been sold before January 2017. If you need confirmation, check the VIN number with a Renault dealer and they will be able to tell you more precisely. 

Expert answer

Hi Roy, 

That's not something we've come across, I'm afraid. There can be many simple reasons for a stop-start system to not work (see our popular feature on that subject here), but usually they are temporary. I guess if your battery was replaced, there may be some additional reprogramming required, but that wouldn't be standard on all cars.

If someone has told you that this is necessary, make sure you get a second opinion from another garage, preferably an official Suzuki service outlet. And if Suzuki told you that, then ask for a little explanation.

We'd be interested in the answer if you want to pop a comment in below this at a later stage.

Expert answer

Hi Anne,

There are loads of different reasons why a stop-start system won't work as you might expect it to. Most of the time it's down to the condition of the battery or the drain on it, though it could be due to the ambient temperature, too. Here are a couple of items on the site to read through before you consider having the car looked at:

Why won't my car's stop-start system work?

Why does my stop-start not always work?