13 February 2025

New Kia EV6 now available in Ireland


First models of Kia’s new EV6 have landed in Ireland priced from €49,510, writes Trish Whelan

The significantly revised EV6 features a refreshed exterior design, a more luxurious and modern interior, improved battery performance and a broader range of convenience features including a new steering wheel and saw pad design, Kia’s next-generation infotainment system and connected car Navigation Cockpit with expanded over-the-air software updates and upgrades. 


The lineup for Ireland consists of Earth and GT-line (€54,300), specifications, both coming with the 84kWh battery as standard. The Earth model gets 19-inch alloys, vegan leather seats, heated front seats and steering wheel, power adjustable front memory seats, dual 12.3-inch dash screens, front and rear parking sensors, powered tailgate, adaptive smart cruise control, blind-spot collision avoidance, highway driving assist and high beam assist. The top GT-line adds its own styling features, 20-inch alloys, a glass sunroof, heated rear seats and highway driving assist 2 featuring lane change function. 

Since its launch in 2021, the EV6 has achieved over 3,000 sales in Ireland and was the first Korean car to win the European Car of the Year title in 2022, also winning the Irish Car of the Year title in the same year.


 

12 February 2025

Hyundai's Inster EV drives a value proposition


Hyundai in Ireland have set a highly attractive price for their new Inster small electric car, which is now being delivered to first customers here, writes Brian Byrne. But the €18,995 starting level may not last beyond summer, according to the Irish distributor.

Meantime, it seems that 90pc of the initial 400 firm orders made 'sight unseen' in the last few months are for the higher-spec Elegance version at €21,995. The key difference between the two is a slightly larger 49kWh battery that the 42kWh on the entry car, offering a rated 360km of range.

The big surprise when potential customers see the Inster in the metal is the roominess, especially for passengers in the rear. 

Hyundai Ireland are expecting to sell 1,000 units of the Inster this year. A van version is coming towards the end of the year. 




New driver number regulation for insurance renewals


Driver numbers will be required on all motor insurance renewals in the state from the end of March, writes Brian Byrne. The number is on driving licences and those of all named drivers on policies must also be provided.

Failure to provide the driver number will mean motorists will not be able to renew their car insurance.

The numbers will subsequently transferred to the Irish Motor Insurance Database (IMID) which is aimed at keeping uninsured drivers off Irish roads. An Garda Síochána can access the database through their mobility devices, enabling them to spot drivers without insurance.

On the Irish plastic card driving licences, the driver number can be found in field 4d on the front of the licence. It contains nine numbers and no letters. 

6 February 2025

Grandland moves Opel upmarket in segment


Opel is moving more upmarket in the C-segment SUV market with the new Grandland, which is now on sale in Ireland with electric and hybrid variants, writes Brian Byrne. The segment is the biggest one in the Irish market.

The car is the top of the line in the brand's SUV range here, with the Mokka at the smallest end and the upcoming new Frontera to fill out the middle.

The electric Grandland has a 73kWh battery outputting 213hp and with a rated range of up to 523km. The 136hp hybrid (MHEV) powertrain is based on a 1.2 3-cylinder petrol engine with a battery-electric motor capable of fully electric city driving for up to 50pc of the time. A plug-in hybrid version is planned.

Cargo capacity of the Grandland is 550L in all versions. In-cabin storage totals 36L including a refrigerated space under the front central armrest.

The new generation of the car is longer, wider and taller than the car it replaces. 




VW teases '€20,000' entry electric car


Volkswagen will showcase a concept entry-level electric car at the beginning of next month, but it won't go into production until 2027, writes Brian Byrne. The carmaker is floating a price in the region of €20,000.

A first glimpse of the concept car was given at a  works meeting in VW's headquarters at Wolfsburg. Workers were told that the company has a target of making e-mobility 'attractive for everyone'.

Volkswagen plans nine new models by 2027 including the production version of the already-announced ID.2all for less than €25,000. 

5 February 2025

Toyota is top seller in January


Toyota was the best selling car brand in January, with five models in the top ten by nameplates, writes Brian Byrne. It's the fifth year in a row that the brand has held top spot in the most important buying month.

The cars were the Yaris Cross, RAV4, Corolla, Toyota C-HR and Yaris.

The market share of petrol-electric hybrids increased markedly, and in January represented 14.1pc of the total market by powertrain. 

Car sales up for January

Volkswagen's ID.4 was top electric car seller in January.

In what the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) says is a 'promising start' to the year, new car registrations for the month of January were up 7pc (33,521) compared to January 2024 (31,407), writes Brian Byrne

Light Commercial vehicles (LCV) are down 16pc (6,270) compared to January last year (7,478). While HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) registrations are showing an increase of 8pc (489) in comparison to January 2024 (454).

Imported Used Cars saw a 5pc (5,604) rise in January 2025, when compared to January 2024 (5,325).

Electric Vehicle (EV) sales experienced the highest monthly sales recorded to date, 4,925 registrations in January, representing 20pc increase when compared to 4,093 in January 2024. 

Petrol cars remain the most popular powertrain at 28.24pc, followed by Hybrid (Petrol Electric) 24.89pc, Diesel at 16.31pc, Electric at 14.69pc and Plug-in Electric Hybrid at 14.17pc.

Automatic transmissions account for 71.71pc of market share, while manual transmissions continue to see a decline. 

Increase in NCT failures due to faulty tyres


Eighty-five thousand cars failed their NCT in 2024 because of defective tyres, writes Brian Byrne. That was one in ten of the 856,000 cars that wee failed during the year.

The biggest reason for failure was faults in the steering and suspension, at 14.9pc of the total. Lighting and Electrical came next (14.1pc), followed by the 'side slip test' which measures how a car can maintain a straight line when driven without the steering wheel (12.2pc).

Tom Dennigan, head of premium German tyre manufacturer, Continental Tyres Ireland, commended the NCT service for excellent work to help keep dangerous cars off the road. "However, it is hard not to be alarmed at that growth in test failures that are attributed to defective tyres, an increase of 10,000 from last year," he said.  Tyres are the easiest element of the test to get right — a driver can easily check and see if a car’s tyres are fit for purpose."

He added that many local tyre services will provide a car owner with a free professional check of their tyres. 

28 January 2025

Skoda Kodiaq PHEV review: Trish Whelan, Irish Car


Skoda introduced a plug-in hybrid variant to its Kodiaq SUV line-up last year in the form of the Kodiaq iV, joining the two 2.0 TDI 150hp and 193hp diesels, the latter mated to a 4x4 all-wheel-drive transmission. 

While the original large 7-seat Skoda Kodiaq was one of the Czech brand’s best-selling models with over 12,000 vehicles delivered to Irish families since 2017, the iV PHEV version is only available as a 5-seater. The car stands 1,674mm high, is 1,864mm wide and has an increased wheelbase to 2,790mm. It also has chrome roof rails and tinted windows. 


The exterior has crisp, elegant lines and a distinctive light signature that I’m sure won’t date for many years to come. It can be fitted with up to 20-inch wheels. The iV badge at the rear distinguishes this as the PHEV version. Light beams into the cabin through the panoramic sunroof (€1,680) making it bright and airy. The very well laid out dash has the new easy-to-use 13.0-inch touchscreen infotainment display as well as the navigation system. These were part of the Technology pack at €1,471. A 10.25-inch driver’s information cluster shows all the relevant information including your digital speed. There are three large knobs for the climatronic air conditioning system and front seat heaters. 


A stand-out feature for me was the beautiful tan-coloured Cognac leather upholstery which, besides looking so good, proved very comfortable for both myself and my front seat passenger. The driver’s seat comes with power seat adjustments including lumbar support and three memory seat settings. 

You can charge two mobile phones wirelessly in the Phone Box compartment in the dash. There’s a USB port beside the rear view mirror while the small USB ports over the storage compartment allow data transfer as well as charging. Storage areas include two gloveboxes, a deep area below the slidable centre armrest and huge door bins. You can lower the second row of seats at the touch of a lever. There’s a highish tunnel for the person seated in the middle seat to manoeuvre their feet around, but rear knee room is more than generous and head space absolutely fine for most adults. You’ll also find two lightening USBs, a 12V socket and an air conditioning control panel. 

My car had a power tailgate and high boot floor, some hooks and a handy net for securing luggage. An under floor area is for storing cables. 


Trims are Selection, Selection+ (my car) and Sportline. Each is well specced. My Selection+ trim had seven airbags, Adaptive Cruise control, Hill hold control, Forward collision warning, Rear Assist, front and rear parking sensors, trailer hitch preparation (towing weight braked is 1800kg, unbraked 750kg), rear view camera system, and three child seat anchors. 

This was the 1.5 TSI 204hp petrol coupled with a DSG 6-speed gearbox. The electric motor and powerful 25.7kWh lithium-ion battery allow for an emission-free electric range of over 100km in the WLTP cycle which is more than enough for most people’s daily commutes. The selector gear lever located on the right of the steering column includes a S mode which allows the gears to change at higher speeds. Drive modes are Comfort, Eco, Individual and Sport. To activate pure electric drive, you select the E-mode function. The model ditches the very back two seats of the 7-seater to make room for the big battery but still leaving 745 litres of luggage capacity which can be expanded with the second row of seats folded down. 


The Kodiaq PHEV has a claimed fuel consumption of 0.4-0.5 L/100kms. My fuel return - driving mostly in hybrid mode - came in at 7.2L/100kms (-0.6 kWh/100km). Torque is 250Nm and from 0-100km/h takes 8.4 seconds. Annual road tax is €140. I was able to get an excellent driving position and found this big car very easy to drive and even to manoeuvre. Handling was also very good; steering was perfectly weighted. Full marks for the excellent blind spot detector, on the inside of the side mirrors, that shows a large warning light when a vehicle is approaching from either side. Skoda sell a lot of diesel cars and the Kodiaq 7-seat diesel returns around 4.5/5.5 L/100kms and is priced from €53,970. 

A real niggle, as in many new cars, was the Lane Assist feature which in this case was far too sensitive, almost taking over the steering if it detected I was not in the centre of my lane, when indeed I was driving correctly in my lane. I turned it off, as usual. 

Charging the PHEV with a DC fast charger to 80pc takes 25 minutes, but most owners will charge at home overnight. Diesels are priced from €53,970; the mHEV 7-seater from €54,68; my PHEV car €63,290. Optional equipment and metallic paint added another €4,166 taking the price of my car as tested to €67,456. The standard version of the Skoda Kodiaq was awarded a maximum five-star safety rating from Euro NCAP in 2024 along with its sibling Skoda Superb.