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

Expert answer

Hi Fergal,

I have just spent a week in a TDCi Mondeo. It was an automatic and I really liked it. The gearbox is a little lazy at times, but overall the car is a joy to drive. There is a new Mondeo coming later this year though so you might want to hang on for that as it features new engines as well.

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Hi Paul,

That is a tough one. Do you opt for awesome power on one hand or do you choose the newer car with less power, but more finesse? The answer to this is really down to how much you value your €45,000. Once the new model settles into the market, which in truth will only happen when the 520d arrives properly in the next few weeks, then the value of the older model will drop and there will also be less demand for the more expensive versions such as the 535d. This had a home in the boom years but is pretty rare now and likely to be less sellable in the future.

Don't get me wrong; the 535d is a fabulous car, but I would have to be sensible and say get a new 520d. For a start it is much better value than the old car, is better equipped and is also more powerful than the old 520d. I drove the Touring version in Munich recently and while it isn't a rocket it is certainly fast enough. 

The only way I would buy a 535d would be if I was buying an older one. Here is a 2006 model, with low mileage for €25,995. This would still be a nice car and you won't lose your shirt on it!

Paul, be sensible this time around and get the new car - you won't regret it.

Expert answer

Hello Breda,

I have driven both of these cars and they are both good value and will be cheap to run too. The offers on the Renault Mégane at the moment under the scrappage scheme are pretty hard to resist.

An 86hp diesel version will cost you from €14,800 and that is seriously good value. You can get better equipped variants for a little more and the higher powered version is €18,400. I enjoyed my week in the TOMTOM edition and it came with a very clever multimedia centre.

You can find the prices and details here:

http://renault.ie/cars/grandmegane/prices.html

The Mégane never really stood out against its rivals until the scrappage scheme, but now it is the second-biggest selling model under the scheme. Price is the key here. It is a decent sized estate car for the price of a supermini. Renaults are way better built than they were before, so you can probably expect few problems if any.
To drive it is comfortable, very easy to live with and the fuel economy is super.

The other French car you have in mind is the Peugeot 308 SW. This starts at €25,475 (for the diesel) and comes with a more powerful 110hp diesel engine. Obviously this is quite a major price difference. Under the scrappage scheme however you get €4,000 off this so it will end up at €21,475. This is good value for what is a high quality car and it is much better than the 307 SW that is replaces.

Here are the details of the Peugeot scrappage offers:

http://www.peugeot.ie/contentv3/index.cfm?fuseaction=page&pageID=18547&parentID=18457

There is a €6,675 difference between the two cars as it stands under the scrappage scheme and equipment levels are likely to be very similar. Under normal circumstances, if the prices were similar, I would say go for the Peugeot, but I'd say out of these two you are getting so much for your money with the Renault, then perhaps go for that.

Expert answer

Hi Ollie,

Cars like your Golf are retailing for around €8,000, so you might get close to this as a trade in against another car. Presuming that it might be a little less, say €7,000, we could say that you have a €13,000 budget overall. I will come back to you shortly once I have done some more research for you. 

Expert answer

Hi Ruth,

Not a word of a lie: I picked one up this morning from Honda to test for the week. Paddy has driven it for longer so he'll give you his opinion too, but my first impressions are better than expected. Until recently, hybrids were designed first and foremost for the American market and they were quite different to drive to conventional cars. Most of that is still true, but both the Toyota Prius and Honda Insight are more normal than what has gone before and even more efficient.

The official fuel economy and emissions figures of the Insight are pretty impressive though, at 4.4 - 4.6 litres/100km and 101 - 105g/km of CO₂ depending on which version you choose. The Toyota Prius boasts even better numbers, though it's a few grand more expensive.

So far I've averaged about 5.4 litres / 100km in mixed driving and I'd expect that to be pretty representative unless you're on a long motorway run, where the average might improve further.

I prefer the interior of the Insight to the Prius', even if Honda has used too much hard plastic for my liking. The Honda is more conventional, despite the presence of strange plant graphics in the dashboard to tell you how economically you are driving. You sit low down and there's loads of space for five adults and a fair amount of luggage.

The steering wheel on our test car is really shiny and a bit slippery, but I'm sure that'll change with use. Its controls for the stereo are nice and tactile though. Shame I can't say the same for the spindly gear lever, but there you go.

Overall it's easy to drive and while it's no performance car it keeps up with traffic easily enough. That aside, the Insight's engine is commendably quiet, unless you really put your foot down. However, I noticed that road noise is quite prominent in return.

I'd personally prefer a regular car to either the Prius or Insight hybrids. If fuel economy were the most important factor I'd opt for a good turbodiesel model. There is a lot of choice on the market for the €22,000 - €23,000 asking price of the Honda.

Expert answer

Hi Patricia,

The correct tyre pressures for the Citroen Xsara from 1997-2000 are 31 psi front and rear, but you might want to adjust this upwards slightly if you carry a fully laden car.

Remember to check your tyre pressures every 2 weeks to ensure you have the correct pressure as under-inflation can cause uneven tyre wear and decrease fuel economy. You can buy small devices to check your tyre pressure at places like Halfords or other car parts outlets.

As regards the Xsara owner's handbook, you could go down the route of getting them from a dealer, but we reckon eBay is your best (and cheapest) bet. We found one for around a tenner here

Hope this helps!

Expert answer

Hi Ciaran.

Funnily enough, I was just last week at a tyre event and we got a full briefing on tyre wear, which I knew would come in useful somehow.

Firstly, no this isn't normal wear at all unless you were on a track racing. I take it that you aren't and from what you are saying the wear is even. Usually shoulder wear is a sign of under-inflation. Under-inflation can also lead to tyre blow-outs.

Drivers should check their tyre pressure every two weeks according to the manufacturers. One-sided wear is usually an alignment issue and that doesn't seem to be the case here.

Anyway, we contacted Bridgestone / Firestone on your behalf and they are happy to send out an engineer to inspect your tyres. I have sent you their details. They want to check out if there is a fault and we can take it from there.

What we will say about tyres is that it does not make economical sense to buy cheap ones. They tend to be of lower quality and there is no wisdom in having poor tyres on your car. See how you get on with the engineer and let us know by posting a comment back on this page.

Hope that helps.