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Hi Mark,

Yeah, Chevrolet wouldn't be a good one to be trying to sell at the moment. Now that the brand has pulled out of Europe, the impression (not entirely correct it should be said) will be that parts and servicing will be difficult to come by. Beyond that, the brands that are difficult to sell on are the ones that no-one's heard of. If you've got some oddball private import you'll struggle, but anything that's on sale in the Irish market will prove no more difficult than anything else - it's down to the specific model at that point.

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Hi Mark,

I'd say you're looking at in and around €45,000 for it.

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Hi Michael,

I'd say, as a trade-in, you'll make somewhere in the high-thirties, probably €36 to €37k.

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Hi Christian,

I'd say you should get in and around the €27,000 mark for it.

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Hi John,

You need to be very careful buying a car without an NCT. For all its flaw the test does go some way to ensure that cars on the road are at least basically roadworthy and a car without an NCT can be hiding all sorts of problems. 

You also need an NCT to be able to tax (and in most cases insure) your car so you need to get it booked in as soon as possible. If you're buying it from a dealer or garage, they really should have the car NCT'd before selling it. If you bought it privately then the previous owner has missed at least one NCT test and either needs to produce an Off The Road certificate or you're into a legally murky area.

Anyway, the short answer for you is to get the car tested and sorted ASAP.

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Hi Rakesh,

That kind of budget should get you into a Mazda3 1.6 D circa 2005, 2006. Buying from a dealer potentially gives you more peace of mind but if you do your homework and get a history check then buying private can be fine too.

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Hi Sean,

Yes you can. It'll set you back €1,250 a year in tax though with 220g/km emissions.

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Hi Michael,

Without knowing anything else we'd assume this is a feature of the car's immobiliser. Not all work the same. It's likely that you don't need to get out of the car, just take the key out of the ignition and press lock and then unlock again.

As to how it's activated, it's probably a time thing.

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Hi Nicola,

You haven't given us a year but we'll take a stab at circa 2007, which would suggest a value of about €6,000 to €7,000. The three-door is worth a bit less than a five-door and obviously this is hugely dependent on condition and history.

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Hi Caroline,

How hard? How long is a piece of string? You're pitching it about right, in terms of price, but to get rid of it quickly you just need to stick to some rules. Make sure the paperwork and history are all present and correct, make sure the service history is up to date, have the car professionally cleaned inside and out and then make sure you advertise it both nationally and locally, with good quality photos and a clear, simple description of the car.