Expert answer

Hi Chloe,

The fact that you really seem to like your car would signify that perhaps you should simply change to the 1.7-litre diesel SXi version of your car and save yourself a few quid in the process. You will probably get around €11,000 - €11,500 for your car at current market prices, but that should leave you well placed to replace it with a diesel model without too much trouble.

There weren't too many SXI models in Ireland with diesel engines but there do appear to be a few Vauxhalls imported with this spec that might work for you unless you had any particular objections to driving a Vauxhall over an Opel. 

You could have a diesel version for in and around the same money so perhaps you could even get into a slightly newer model if you were prepared to invest a few more quid, but since money saving seems to be the aim here then maybe just swap into a diesel. 

Aside from that you could perhaps look at getting a Volkswagen Golf BlueMotion, which is incredibly fuel efficient. This would make a great buy for you really and something like this would be very cheap to run. 

I hope this helps,

Expert answer

Hi Eric,

I know that Nissan are experiencing enormous delays with the Qashqai and that it can mean waiting a few weeks more for your car. The fact that you are being offered a loan car is quite good service on the part of the dealer. Usually, the car would be put on to your insurance unless of course they have another arrangement. I think they are being very fair with this, some dealers would just tell you its delayed and leave you to your own devices.

Expert answer

Hi Ronan,

I reckon a Volkswagen Golf Van would do a brilliant job for you. You told us by e-mail that you have another €2,000 to spend on top of the value of your Toyota Avensis so I reckon this one could be a good option. 

The Ford Focus van is good too, but I don't imagine you want to be a two Focus family! If I was having a car-van I'd have a Golf. 

Hope that helps

Expert answer

Hi Jane,

First things first. The petrol versus diesel debate. Everyone is very caught up on diesel cars right now and that makes a lot of sense when you are buying new because they have lower road tax, but since small cars tend not to use a lot of fuel, the road tax should be quite low anyway. The mileage you are likely to do might warrant a diesel, but the diesel small cars tend to be a lot more expensive, so in this case I would say that a petrol model would do you fine and still won't cost the earth to run.

The VW Polo is an excellent choice because it is really nicely built and holds its value well too. I did a search for ones with the lowest mileage within your budget from main SIMI dealers (so there is more security and better history checks on the car). A 2007 Volkswagen Polo with just 15,000km on the clock is within your budget and would be a really nice buy. It would be dead cheap to run too. 

This 2008 Ford Fiesta is really nice too; with 11,000km on the clock so it is practically brand new. This is a five-door model so it might be a little more practical. It is at the upper end of your budget but you wouldn't pay the advertised price. 

One I would love you to consider though is the Suzuki Swift. It is a smashing little car. It is really reliable, cute, nicely built and fun to drive. It's a 2008 model with low mileage for less than €9,000. 

I've always had a bit of a soft spot for the Renault Clio (it was my wife's first car and it was great) and you could find another one with ridiculously low mileage for less than €9,000 too. Here is one I liked the look of.

You wouldn't really go wrong with any of these. Personally, I'd be really tempted by that low-mileage Polo as a long term investment because you will always get a good bit of your money back. 

I hope all that helps

Expert answer

Hi Zoe,

We spoke to Shane Teskey from Motorcheck.ie as he is a bit of an expert in this area and he told us that the rules state that the car "needs to be complete", but the thing is that the car doesn't need to get there under its own steam. I would say that if you spoke to your local authorised scrap yard then they might be of assistance on the matter. I would imagine that if you swapped the engines there would be no issue. They just won't allow parts of cars to be used to claim the discount on the scheme.

We will check out this a little more for you.  

Expert answer

Hi Fergal,

The Ford Kuga is a great choice and is really good value now as a two-wheel drive version. With the problems we have been having with the weather you can see why people would want to choose the four-wheel drive one. You pay about a €2,000 premium for four-wheel drive and if we are going to continue to have the weather we have been having then it might be worth it. 

We also really like the new Skoda Yeti 4x4. We drove it last week and it is super. You can have one with all the bells and whistles for about €31,000. The new Kia Sportage is really nice looking too and you can get the 2.0-litre "First Edition" model loaded with kit for €31,495. 

There are lots of options around now for the right money. I think out of this lot, I probably would choose the Kuga because it has the best interior and best road manners. 

Come back to us if you have more questions and let us know what you decide upon.

Expert answer

Hi William,

We'd be only too happy to help you choose a new car if that's the route you want to go down, but one suggestion we'd have that could save you the cost of changing cars is to change the tyres on your Santa Fe to winter tyres.

Many people think that winter tyres are only of use in snow and ice, but that's far from the case. Regular tyres begin to go hard (and hence lose grip) at just seven degrees Celsius. That's regardless of how wet or dry the road surface is. Winter tyres, however, do not go hard at these temperatures and hence retain much higher levels of grip.

It's often said that a two-wheel drive car on winter tyres is better in slippery conditions than a four-wheel drive car on regular tyres.

I have first-hand experience of using winter tyres over the past week and I can confirm that they really make a huge difference. Bear in mind that they help with braking and turning, as well as traction.

You may have heard people say that winter tyres wear out quicker, but actually that's not the case at this time of year. When the temperatures are low, regular tyres wear quicker than winter tyres.

Admittedly, winter tyres wear quicker and their braking performance isn't as impressive as a regular tyre's in warm weather.

There's no doubt that winter tyres are more expensive to buy, but it'd be cheaper than changing your car.

If, however, you want to change your car regardless, come back to us and we'll help you through it.

Expert answer

Hi Tom,

As it turns out, Audi will reveal the new A6 to us in just a couple of weeks!

Stay tuned...

Expert answer

Hi Fergal,

An all-new Focus should be here early in 2011. More information was released this week (click here for the news story). The updated Mondeo will be on sale in Ireland before the end of 2010 (click here for our news story). I'm afraid we don't as yet know anything about a new Fiesta.

Prices are never released very far ahead of a car's launch unfortunately, but you can expect them to be in the same ballpark as the outgoing models'.

Hope that helps

Expert answer

Hi Emma,

It's likely that the brakes have seized on that wheel. Don't worry though, it's usually not a big deal to sort out. It happens a lot to cars that are not used regularly.

If at all possible, move the car to a safe, flat piece of ground. This may require more revs than usual and in fact, doing this might be all it takes to unstick the brakes. If they are still stuck, then jack up the car and take off the wheel. Release the handbrake and tap the hub firmly with a rubber-coated mallet.

If that still doesn't do it, then you'll need to enlist the help of a mechanic, but in most cases just moving the car will do the trick.

In future, if you know you'll not be using your car for a while, don't use the handbrake. Park the car in gear and put blocks in front of the wheels.

Hope that helps