Expert answer

Hi Eoin,

Go for the Corolla. Its long term reliability prospects are better than those of the Polo, it'll be far more comfortable on the motorway and barely any more expensive to fuel and tax.

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Hi Keith,

The extra spec probably won't make much difference I'm afraid. Once there's a few basic items such as air conditioning, a decent stereo and some nice wheels, most second hand buyers don't care about spec - they're only interested in the car itself, its history and its likely reliability. With that in mind I'd say you're looking at a value of between €8,000 and €9,000.

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Hi Annette,

I think your best bet could be to upgrade to a newer Mazda3 Saloon. The second generation 3 four-door is a really nice car - spacious, comfy and reliable, and if you get a 1.6 diesel from 2008 onwards you'll be paying half nothing for your road tax. 

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Hi Barry,

To be blunt, you're going to struggle to get a decent diesel engined car at that price level. There do seem to be one or two diesel Peugeot 307s or Renault Méganes around at that sort of money but we'd advise serious caution before purchase - neither have a great reputation for reliability. 

Unless you're covering mega-miles every week, you would probably be much, much better off getting a tidy 1.4 petrol hatchback, perhaps a circa 2002 Toyota Corolla? Really solid on the reliability front, excellent fuel economy and affordable motor tax. It would be a much better idea than going all out for diesel but ending up with a less reliable car.

What do you think?

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Hi Jemima,

It really depends on which model you're talking about. Assuming it's the all-new Qashqai launched this year, the 1.5-litre dCi diesel are in Band A2, costing just €180 per year to tax; the 1.6-litre diesel (manual or automatic) is in Band A4 at €200 per year; while the 4x4 Qashqai with the 1.6-litre diesel is in Band B1, costing €270 per year. The 1.2-litre petrol versions are also in Band B1.

Hope that's of some help

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Hi George,

We'd need to reg. number to give you a definitive answer, as the official emissions rating for that car depends on a number of factors, including the factory-fitted wheel size, whether it has stop-start and whether it's the five- or seven-speed automatic gearbox. Possibilities include:

- 16-inch wheels, five-speed auto, no stop-start: 154g/km - Band C - €390 per year

- 16-inch wheels, seven-speed auto, stop-start: 129g/km - Band B1 - €270 per year

- 18/19-inch wheels, seven-speed auto, stop-start: 138g/km - Band B2 - €280 per year

Come back to us with either the registration or all those details and we'll give you the definitive answer.

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Hi Tony,

There are some nice Ford Fiesta automatics around, usually with the 1.4-litre petrol engine that should fit your needs rather nicely.  Or better yet, what about a Honda Jazz 1.4 ES with the CVT automatic gearbox? We found one online for just over €16k and it's a cracking car - high quality, reliable, spacious and with a terrific 1.4-litre engine.

Let us know what you think

Expert answer

Hi Joe,

We suspect the advertisers are being a bit ambitious there. Generally speaking, you cannot tax a 3.0-litre as a 2.0-litre – that’s called fraud. However, you can tax a commercial vehicle with a 3.0-litre engine for €333 a year, which is roughly equivalent to taxing a 2.0-litre diesel with Band C emissions, but it’s a very inaccurate way of describing a car.

Also, to tax a vehicle as a commercial means that you cannot, under any circumstances, use it for personal use, such as school drop-offs or shopping. If you’re caught, it can mean a fine of up to €4,000. Generally, we’d say anyone using a phrase such as ‘taxed as a 2.0’ is being a bit too fast and loose with the truth, so is best avoided.

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Hi Sean,

The CO₂ emissions of that model are 139g/km so the annual motor tax is going to cost you €280. VRT is much, much harder to calculate as it's down to the spec more than the year and mileage, and the mandarins of Revenue are famously arcane in their calculations. Prices for that model seem to hover around the €15,000 mark so, assuming Revenue accepts that as being the Open Market Selling Price (OMSP), then the VRT would be 19 per cent of that, which is €2,850.

Please don't take that as gospel though!

Expert answer

Hi Anna,

There are several versions of that car, and there as a model year change in late 2009 so it depends which it is exactly. Here are a few examples, assuming you're not talking about the estate:

- 1.8 TDCi saloon with 100hp and five-speed manual gearbox: 149g/km CO₂ (Band C): €390

- 1.8 TDCi saloon with 125hp and stop-start (called 'Eco') and five-speed manual gearbox: 139g/km CO₂ (Band B2): €280

- 1.8 TDCi saloon with 125hp and five-speed manual gearbox: 154g/km CO₂ (Band C): €390

If you give us the registration number we can give you the exact price of tax.