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Hi Thomas, 

Taxed as a commercial the price is a fixed €333 per year, but if you mean taxing it privately, which reverts to the old by-engine-size system, then the 1.6 diesel Partner would cost €514 per annum.

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Hi Gary,

We'd definitely advocate for an estate over an MPV or SUV as they're more space efficient, more fuel efficient and generally better to drive, especially as you clearly spend quite a bit of time on the road.

Assuming you're on the motorway for much of that, then a diesel probably makes the most sense, though if you're generally at lower speeds, it's well worth considering a hybrid instead to keep your maintenance bills down.

Within budget are some lovely premium estates, such as the Audi A4 and A6 Avant, along with the BMW 3 Series Touring, Volkswagen Passat and Skoda Superb, though you might have to compromise and go for high-mileage examples.

There are a few diesel Ford Focus estates around as well, along with the underestimated Kia Ceed estate. On the hybrid side, there's an estate version of the Toyota Corolla to consider as well.

Come back to us if you'd like help narrowing down your search, as you have loads of choice with €20,000 to spend.

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Hi Damien,

We need to obtain the VRT band and guess the OMSP (Open Market Selling Price) first up. The latter is the value Revenue reckons the car is worth registered in Ireland and there’s no sure-fire way to obtain that. For the sake of our calculations, let’s say it’s €3,000.

Although the CO₂ rating of the 1998 525td might suggest it’ll be in a lower VRT band, the Irish government ‘uplifts’ the values of older models so that they can be compared with cars tested on the newer ‘WLTP’ system, and that will mean VRT of 41 per cent for this car.

If the OMSP is €3,000, then the VRT would be €1,230.

We can’t find a value for the NOx emissions, unfortunately, and if the car doesn’t have that figure on its certificate of conformity then you could be charged the maximum, which is a huge €4,850 for diesel cars.

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Hi Marie,

I can confirm that those cars' engines do not have wet timing belts - they are traditional 'dry' belts instead. I believe the issues you mentioned relate to Ford's EcoBoost petrol engines only. 

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Hi Peter,

All the various 2.0-litre engines (TDI diesel and FSI/TFSI petrol) in the 2004 Audi A3 used cam belts.

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Hi Fergal,

The first one that comes to mind is the Skoda Superb. A new generation of this massive car was launched last year and it’s a great option. It’s bigger than the Mondeo and can be had with a 2.0 TDI diesel engine.

A lovely car is the Peugeot 508, which can be had with a 1.5-litre diesel, but you might find it small inside in comparison to your Mondeo. Worth a look anyway.

There really aren’t many others if you’re sticking with a diesel saloon, unless you go for one of the premium brands - both Audi and Mercedes sell diesel engines still in the A5 and C-Class, respectively.

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Hi Louise,

The difficulty here is working on what OMSP (Open Market Selling Price) Revenue is likely to place on the vehicle, especially one so rare. Let’s say a maximum of €4,000, though it should be worth less than that.

Then we need the CO₂ rating, as that gives us the VRT band and percentage. Our data shows that the car would have a CO₂ value of 137g/km. However, that’s the old “NEDC” figure and the Irish government will apply an “uplifting” formula to bring it up to WLTP standards for VRT calculation. It comes out as 166g/km.

That means VRT in Band 18, or 30 per cent of the OMSP.

With an OMSP of €4,000, the VRT would be €1,200.

And don’t forget the NOx levy, which would be quite high for that car as well regardless of the OMSP.

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Hi William,

That engine uses a timing chain.

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Hi Ger,

If you’re sticking with automatic, then your choices are very limited. We found only the Opel Grandland and SsangYong Korando, neither of which we’d be huge fans of.

Here are the manual models we found that otherwise fit the brief:

Cupra Formentor: We really like this car as it looks great, and it drives well. You might find it a little too low down for your liking as it’s not as tall an SUV as the Qashqai, but worth a look.

Dacia Duster: Not quite as solid as the Qashqai perhaps, but it’s very comfortable and you’d get more for your money - you could get a 2024 version for example.

Ford Kuga: A comfortable and well-built option. Plenty of them about.

Hyundai Tucson: Very spacious inside and in the boot. Loads of them around as it has been the best-seller for so long. Despite that it still looks interesting outside. Good reliability. Strong reputation shown by the fact that you’d probably only afford a 2022 example with your budget.

Kia Sportage: Identical to the Tucson under the skin so it just comes down to which of the two you prefer the look of. Though the Kia has a longer warranty in terms of time if mileage is low.

Mazda CX-5: Fantastic to drive and feels like a premium car in comparison to most others here. Might cost a little more to run and they’re not very plentiful on the used market.

Peugeot 3008: A stylish replacement for the Qashqai. Solid car. Double-check you can get on with the cabin layout.

SEAT Ateca: Once one of our favourite cars of this size, though it is getting on in years now. Might not feel as modern as some cars on this list, but is still well made, comfortable and spacious.

That’s still quite a long list, admittedly, but hopefully it helps you drill things down to a shortlist. We have our own preferences, and you will, too.

Feel free to come back to us if you want further help of course.

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Hi Gerry,

As you probably know, taxing a commercial vehicle privately means going by the engine size. The Partner's van fits into the 1,501-1,600cc category so it will be €514 per year to tax.