Expert answer

Hi Edward,

There is no such thing as a cheap used BMW. I just recently sold a 2002 BMW 318i Touring and I loved it, but the repair bills when things went wrong were high, even from independent garages, so you need to bear this in mind.

Having said that, you could get something that will be similar, like a Lexus IS 200 perhaps, which should be less costly to put right if things go wrong.

Here is one for €3,975 and it is from a main SIMI dealer.

Or how about this? A nice Subaru Legacy for just €2,950? This would be a great car for the money.

Expert answer

The reason we have talked about the Qashqai+2 a lot of late is that there seems to be quite a few people asking us about seven seats, but not really wanting an MPV. The Verso is an MPV, so as such is usually compared to its main rivals such as the Ford C-MAX and Renault Scenic.

Compared to the Qashqai+2, the Verso comes with a 2.0-litre diesel engine and the Qashqai+2 usually comes with a 1.5-litre diesel engine. The Verso has more power with 125hp against 104hp in the Qashqai+2. The Verso has faster acceleration (about two seconds faster to 100km/h from rest) and in terms of fuel economy the Verso again is slightly more frugal. The CO₂ emissions in are both Band C, with road tax of €302. However the new Qashqai+2 does drop a tax band to Band B.

Both cars have five-star Euro NCAP safety ratings and come with multiple airbags. ESP (electronic stability control) is standard fit on both cars too. The rear-most row of seats would be more generous in the Verso compared to the Qashqai+2 even though they share an almost identical wheelbase. There is also more shoulder room in the second and third row of seats.

In terms of price, a 2009 Verso will cost you about €25,000 - €27,000, while a new Qashqai+2 will cost you from €30,450 for a new one and about €26,000 - €27,000 for a 2009 model.

Both have pretty poor luggage space with the rear-most seats in place, but loads with the third row folded, so it depends how often you intend using the seats.

I hope this helps.

Expert answer

Hello again Angela,

I know Shane answered your last question, but I think I can answer your follow up question. The Golf and Leon are quite similar; the Leon is definitely the prettier car and the Golf the more sensible. I know what you mean about the Leon range, as there are 17 different versions, which seems excessive.

The thing is with SEAT is that it tends to get the older technology from Volkswagen, so the Leon still has an older engine range, namely the 1.9-litre TDI, which is quite a noisy old engine. The 2.0-litre TDI is also available in the Leon, but at a higher cost.

The 1.6-litre 105hp engine in the Golf is a newer and cleaner engine, with better fuel economy. It hasn't made it to the Leon just yet, so the better engine is in the Golf right now.

In terms of running costs, the road tax is slightly less on the Golf, at €104 against the €156 in the Leon. The Golf has slightly better fuel economy (62.8mpg v 56.5mpg) but that is a relatively small difference.

That Leon is great value, but in terms of an investment I would be inclined to go with the Golf, as I would think the residual value will be better with the newer Golf with the newer engine.

Hope that helps

Expert answer

Hello Brian,

This is an interesting one. I am guessing, as you own and love the 406 Coupé that you don't really want something too mainstream. It might seem obvious to put you into something like a BMW 3 Series Coupé, but I don't think that is what you are after.

As you probably know, you might not get offered very much for your 406 Coupé, which is a shame. Try to sell it privately because these cars do have a loyal following and if you got €2,000 that would no doubt be welcome. There is one for sale with a lot less miles than yours in Dublin for €2,650, so work backwards from there. 

Trading it is probably the easiest. Let's say that you have a budget of €16,000 and see what is around that might suit. 

One, perhaps rather obvious, choice would be to go for a Peugeot 407 Coupé. The diesel model sold really well and remains expensive, but I found a 2007 2.2-litre petrol version with just 21,000 miles on the clock and they are asking just €14,950. You can find it here:

http://tinyurl.com/33k7nl3

That might work given the really small mileage that you do and since you loved your 406 Coupé then this could be a great buy. 

If you want something very pretty and unique, how about an Alfa Romeo Brera? Here is a 2.2-litre petrol model for €17,950, but you could well haggle this price down further. There aren't too many about and while we cannot say that it won't give you the odd headache, it is a real head turner.

http://tinyurl.com/3ydqk89

Even if you're not a BMW guy, it's worth considering a 2006 320d Coupé, which will be reasonably economical for under €16,000. This one is in Monaghan and the mileage is pretty good at 69,000 miles.

http://tinyurl.com/3yr7wgq

I don't think you need a diesel given your mileage. I'd pick a Volkswagen Golf GTI. I know it isn't a coupé, but it is a super car to drive. This one is a 2006 model, but you might sneak into a 2007 version for your budget too. The example we found has the brilliant DSG gearbox, has done just 26,000 miles and is loaded with kit. It is such a rewarding car to drive and, since you live in the city, the gearbox should suit you perfectly giving you the best of both worlds.

http://tinyurl.com/32aftto

Please feel free to come back to us if we are way off the mark!

Expert answer

Hi William,

When it comes to a mid-sized luxury car it must have leather upholstery and an automatic transmission. Air conditioning would also be a must, but most cars in this class have it as standard nowadays. 

The thing with the 520d is that more recently there have been a lot bought with manual transmission because it brought down the price of the road tax, so it might not be that easy to find automatic versions.

Having said that, I would still look for these two items because the buyer in this segment tends to favour these essential items so it should be easier to sell or trade at a later stage.

After that I wouldn't be overly worried about what it has, although unusual colours can be a problem later on. Stick with black, silver or grey and you should be ok.

Hope this helps.

Expert answer

Hi Angela,

Let's start with looking at the prices of the cars you listed when bought new:

Kia cee'd: 1.6-litre diesel starts at €18,550. There are four versions to chose from, including an automatic and a version that sneaks into band A for tax.

Kia Venga: only available with Kia's new 1.4-litre turbodiesel engine. There are just two trim options, LX and EX and the price is either €18,320 or €19,615. Both have emissions of 117g/km, which means cheap band A road tax.

Hyundai i30: five versions of the same 1.6-litre diesel engine (CRDi) available. Ranging from €18,495 to €25,495. There's an automatic option and two different power outputs, the lower of which is in band A.

Peugeot 308: five versions of the same 1.6-litre diesel engine (HDi). Ranging from €19,795 to €24,335. Four of these are in band A, including the 'Ecomatique' automatic version.

SEAT Leon: a massive eight-model diesel (TDI) range in both 1.9- and 2.0-litre sizes. Two of them drop into band A, while the fastest 2.0-litre model is in band C. Prices range from €20,105 to €26,290.

As your question was purely about value, then it comes down to the Hyundai and Kias. We found the Venga to be quite impressive, though it's a pity there is so little choice in the range.

This appears to boil down to the Hyundai i30 and Kia cee'd. The latter was facelifted earlier this year and it's an even better car than before, but what tips the balance in the Kia's favour is its untouchable warranty. All models get a seven-year warranty, which is huge peace of mind.

Depending on your budget limits you should also take a look at the Skoda Octavia.

I assume you don't have a car to trade in on the scrappage scheme, as that would change things a little. Renault for instance has fantastic offers on its Mégane.

Obviously all of these cars can be had second-hand too, where you'll get a higher spec car for the same money, albeit with kilometres on the clock.

Let us know what you decide or if you have any other questions just pop them in the comment box below.

Thank you

Expert answer

Hi Joe,

I recently drove the Golf BlueMotion and the review will go up shortly, but what I can say is that I was really very impressed by the car for a number of reasons. Obviously this is the full BlueMotion version and that differs slightly to the 'BlueMotion Technology' model that we have seen before. 

This new car gets a full raft of eco measures. There is Stop/Start, regenerative braking, a modified radiator grille, low rolling resistance tyres and a specially tuned diesel engine. The result is emissions of 99g/km and fuel economy of 3.4 l/100km. Now, you would want to be really hyper-miling to get those figures but we got close to that on our few days with the car. The economy was really staggering. 

There is 105hp from the 1.6-litre diesel and it isn't a rocket: 0-100km/h takes 11.3 seconds. It is however, a very nice car to drive. It doesn't feel slow because it is geared well. And it is a nice place to be. For the price, it is quite well equipped. 

Obviously, price is an issue. There is no real incentive to buy this car for its emissions like there is in other markets. In some markets, such as the UK, if your car has less than 100g/km you don't pay road tax, but here everything under 120g/km is Band A and the Ford Focus 1.6 D Style will cost you about the same to run, yet is €1,545 cheaper to buy. 

To answer your original question though, if I was buying a Golf, yes this is the one I would have (aside from the GTI of course). I really liked it. 

You also have to look at the Skoda Octavia too. For €23,820 you could have an Octavia with the same engine, but with the DSG automatic transmission. Hope this helps, feel free to come back to us if you have any more questions.

Expert answer

Hi Tony.

Thanks for writing in. With €30,000 to spend you have quite a fair degree of choice. As you are retired, I would imagine that you might want something for a variety of purposes. You mention that you will travel a bit with some of the work you are going to be doing now. When you refer to farming work, then I guess you might end up in a muddy field now and again too, so perhaps some off-road ability would be a help too?

I don't want to ask a retired gentleman his age, but I know that when you get older access becomes important and something a little higher will be easier on 'well-used' joints and kind on your back too. I would recommend the Skoda Yeti because I think that this could tick a lot of the boxes. It has great build, is comfortable, easy to get in and out of and if you get one with four-wheel drive then it will cope with all your farm work too.

A figure of €25,220 will get you a 2wd Yeti 2.0-litre TDI (110hp) with all the bells and whistles. The 4x4 model isn't on sale yet, but we will check with Skoda and find out when that version arrives. If you don't think you would need the 4x4 version for towing or getting over bad terrain then you should probably get the 2wd version as it keeps fuel economy and emissions low.

It will cost you just €156 to tax each year because emissions are just 138g/km and the 110hp 2.0-litre diesel is eager enough too. We reckon this car could really suit you.

Another option would be the Subaru Forester Diesel. The newer model is a little over your budget, but you could get a 2009 model for about €30,000.

Anyway, hopefully this steers you in the right direction. We will come back to you on the Skoda Yeti 4x4 once we have spoken to Skoda.

Expert answer

There has been a huge move towards diesel cars here in Ireland because of the change to the road tax and VRT laws in July 2008.

Since then, as you may or may not know, road tax and VRT are calculated according to a car's CO₂ emissions and because diesel cars use less fuel than petrol ones, their emissions tend to be lower.

When your father bought the Mazda6 in 2008 it may well have been better value than the diesel model. Now, there is much less difference between the price.

Before we move away from Mazda, there is now a very good range of diesel engines in the new Mazda6 and that might make the most cost-effective swap if he was happy with the car he has because you will most likely get the best trade-in price from a Mazda dealer. However, by the sounds of things he wants a change.

Covering only 10,000km a year we previously might have said that there was no real need to buy a diesel because you would not save the extra price of the car in fuel.

This point remains true, but the difference now is that the market has changed so much to diesel that petrol cars are likely to lose their value faster and become increasingly unwanted by used car buyers, so at this size of car, we would say yes, move to diesel. Also, if you do buy new, your father will most likely benefit from lower road tax.

Without knowing a budget it is difficult to point you in the right direction but from the cars you mention I'm guessing the budget is between €25,000 - €35,000. This does offer a lot of choice.

The 2004/2005 BMW 320d is certainly an option. Since the current shape model came out in 2005, we would encourage you to look at these, or even a 2006. The prices of these are quite competitive at the moment. A 2005 320d SE at a SIMI dealer would probably cost you between €15,000 - €17,000.

BMWs are always tempting to buy used, but you must choose one that has been properly serviced and cared for, because they can become more expensive to put right as they get older. The choice of used 320d models at the moment is vast so if you do go down that route, shop around. It is a great car and with the small mileage your Dad does it is unlikely to end up costing you too much.

If you want to go down the new route, there are a few that would spring to mind. The first is the Skoda Superb. This car is really brilliant and huge too. It is well made and loaded with equipment. If your Dad likes comfort then this will be right up his street.

Our choice would be the 2.0-litre TDI Comfort for €27,805. It is excellent value for money and comes with lots of creature comforts (cruise control, climate control, etc.), a 170hp diesel that is powerful, yet still frugal at 5.8 l/100km. Road tax on this car is €302 per year. For me, if I were heading out to buy a family saloon today, I wouldn't pass the Superb.

You mentioned some other cars there. The Jetta isn't a bad car, but it's been out a few years now and is probably due an update, so I wouldn't buy that new. The Audi A4 is nice. A new one is going to cost you from €34,060 before you start looking at optional extras, so a 2009 model would make sense with all the options already added. €35,000 should get you a nice 2009 TDI version with lots of the toys thrown in.

Please feel free to come back to us with more details if you like (just add a comment below), but for me I would probably have the Superb.

Expert answer

Well you haven’t said what your budget is but there are plenty of interesting cars that are available under the scrappage scheme.

Alfa Romeo’s Mito is a small premium hatchback, and its clean 1.3-litre diesel engine puts it in Band A; the 1.4-litre petrol and 1.6-litre diesel models fall into Band B. Prices start at €18,995 before you take away the government discount.

The Audi A3 with the 1.2-litre TFSI petrol, the 1.6-litre diesel and 2.0-litre diesel all qualify for scrappage, as does the Cabriolet version. The A3 3-door starts from €25,195 before scrappage discount, it’s €26,195 as a 5-door Sportback model, and €32,785 for the Cabriolet version before the €1,500 discount.

The A4 with a 2.0-litre diesel engine in either 120bhp, 136bhp and 170bhp all fall under Band B in either saloon or Avant form. Prices start from €34,060 (€32,560 with scrappage) for the diesel saloon and €36,460 (€34,960 with scrappage) for the Avant. The stunning A5, with a 170bhp 2.0-litre diesel engine, falls into Band B. Prices start at €44,265 (€42,765 with scrappage). You can also have the Audi A6 2.0-litre TDi with 136bhp, which is in Band B. This huge car starts from €39,735 (€38,235 with scrappage). The Audi TT diesel is a really superb car to drive. At €44,175 for the Coupé (€42,675 with scrappage), this is a brilliant buy and that fact that it costs €156 per year to tax makes it all the sweeter.

BMW also has a huge number of models that qualify for the scrappage scheme. Its 2.0-litre diesel is used in various power outputs across the 1-Series, 3-Series and 5-Series and these all have emissions of less than 140g/km, even when fitted with an automatic transmission.

The 1-Series is available with clean diesel engines ranging in power from 115bhp to 177bhp. Prices start at €24,900 for the 3-door 116d, €23,400 with the scrappage discount.

The BMW 3-Series starts from €33,310 for the 316d. All its models get €1,500 off from the government through scrappage. Largest of all is the 520d. Although there is a new model coming later in the year, the run-out models of the 520d are expected to sell well, especially with a price tag of €40,220.

Mercedes-Benz has a number of models that qualify under the scrappage scheme. The standout model is the C-Class Blue Efficiency 200 (136bhp), 220 (170bhp) and 250 (240bhp) manual versions, the E-Class 200, 220 and 250 manual version and the E-Class Coupé 220 and 250 models with manual transmission. Prices start at €36,500 (€35,000 with scrappage) for the C200 CDi, €41,200 (€39,700) for the E200 CDi and €47,700 (€46,200) for the E-Class Coupé E250 CDi.

Finally, what about the Volkswagen Scirocco? You can have the 1.4-litre TSi petrol or 2.0-litre TDi Sport model under the scrappage scheme. Prices start at €25,190 for the Scirocco (€23,690 with scrappage),

To answer your question though, which is fastest? We think it is the BMW 123d Coupe. It has emissions of 138g/km yet has a top speed of 238km/h and 0-100km/h time of 6.9 seconds. This is faster than the Audi TT TDi, which has a top speed of 226km/h and 0-100km/h time of 7.5 seconds.