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Hi Mark,

Of the two, I'd go for the Note. The Almera is a reliable old workhorse but it's about as dull as a car can get. The Note, by contrast, is nicer to look at, pleasant to drive and massively spacious and practical. There are a few things to keep an eye on though,  which is surprisingly given Nissan's reputation for reliability. Electrical gremlins, including needing a complete reset and reboot of the ECU, are not uncommon, while the folding rear seat mechanism can jam. There have been reports of problems with the diesel engines on early models too.

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Hi Eoin,

I hate to say it but an SUV may not be what you need. To get three kids in comfortably, you really need a car with three individual seats across the back and only the likes of the Land Rover Discovery or Toyota Land Cruiser have those - and they're big, heavy and expensive to run. 

 So you may need to look down the MPV route. Don't panic - it's not as bad as it sounds. Have a look for a nice Ford S-Max. Tonnes of room, extra seats in the (massive) boot and affordable running costs. 

That said, it depends on the age of your kids. If they're big enough to not need booster seats (or if only a couple of them still need one) that opens up your options a little. If you still fancy an SUV, try a Nissan X-Trail; spacious, reliable, good to drive.

Let us know what you go for

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Hi Mark,

The more recent versions of the Renault Grand Scenic are at least reasonably reliable, and the commonly-seen 1.5-litre diesel engine is a sold enough old lump, and well proven in various Nissans and Renaults. The recurring nightmare is that of electrical problems. Renaults, older ones at any rate, just seem to eat through their cabling and wiring and everything from electric windows to engine management and injection problems can crop up. Buy very, very carefully if you're looking at  anything older than 2008.

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Hi Hector,

With that kind of mileage, I'd say your ballpark is in the €5-6,000 range.

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Hi Sharon,

I always think an estate is better for a two-kid family, rather than going for the styling and dynamic compromises an MPV forces upon you. A good idea for that kind of budget might be to upgrade to a more recent Focus Estate. A budget of €6k would get you a high-ish mileage 2008 version with the 1.6-litre diesel engine, which will cost you buttons to run - an easy 58mpg.

It's spacious and comfy and as long as you like your current Focus you won't go wrong. Looking for more of a change? How about a Kia cee'd SW 1.6 diesel EX? Again, cheap to run, really reliable and lots of room in the boot for buggies etc. A cracking family car, that one. Fancy something a bit more rugged? Maybe try a Nissan X-Trail, front-wheel drive with the 150hp 2.0-litre diesel engine. A really terrific car that, but obviously it will be more expensive to run than a smaller estate.

As for trade-in on your Focus, I'm afraid I wouldn't expect too much. Probably only about €1,000 to €1,500.

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Hi Kellie.

Generally speaking, they should be OK. All the mechanical bits are old, proven Renault and Nissan parts, and thanks to the fact that Logans are pretty well shorn of equipment, there's not that much that can go wrong. Dacias also come with an optional five-year warranty, which should put your mind at rest.

However, it's worth pointing out that the Logan estate we tested recently had a wonky driver's door, putting some doubt over the quality of the assembly and the German TUV (the national safety and quality testing organisation) rates the Logan as having a 13 per cent fault rate. Now, that figure is only a guideline and it does encompass the old Logan (the one that was never sold here) as well, but just for comparisons, the TUV rates a Ford Fiesta at a 4.8 per cent fault rate.

In other words, they're probably fine, but try and make sure you buy one with lots of warranty left, just in case.

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Hi Breda,

This really sounds like a valve timing problem to us and that may not be detected in the diagnostics computer. Bring the car to a mechanic and ask them to check the timing. This could take them an hour or so.

Let us know how you get on

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Hi Helena,

I presume you mean the diesel versions of both cars? If so, according to the official figures, a Qashqai 1.5 dCi diesel will return 54.3mpg on average, while a Corolla Verso 2.2 D-4D will return 44.8mpg.

Hope that helps

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Hi Mech,

There are few drawbacks to be honest. If you're importing the car from the UK then there is no drawback at all, other than the extra bit of legwork and travel needed to find and bring the car home. And of course you should consider potential difficulties with warranty, financing and trading in your current car.

If you're importing a Japanese model there can be a few issues to look at. Some parts are different, which can make repair and maintenance work a little tricker (and occasionally more expensive) and Japanese emissions laws are different too, so the car may need a tweak to the engine management system to pass the NCT emissions check. Helpfully, there are still several companies in Ireland that specialise in the importing of Japanese market cars and they'd be able to help you out with any of that.

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Hi Alanna,

I reckon the Qashqai +2 might be the best one to go for. The extra seats are pretty small but the boot on the +2 is simply massive when they're folded flat, so that's helpful when you're lugging around two small ones and their various chattels. Don't worry about running costs too much - the Qashqai looks like an SUV but it's really a hatchback with attitude and the 1.5 diesel engine is reliable, economical and has reasonably low emissions too.

That Toyota 1.4 diesel you mentioned would indeed be much less powerful than your Mazda's engine - it's about 20hp down and noticeably so. Volkswagen Jettas are indeed reliable, but I reckon that the Nissan would be slightly more so, so make that your first choice.

Let us know how you get on