Be a good parent and belt the children

Thu, Aug 09, 2012

The law with respect to seatbelts just got a little tougher. From now on if you don’t wear your own seatbelt and make sure that any kids wear theirs then you could be hit with two penalty points.

Electric Golf at 'Fully Charged 2012' last month

Thu, Aug 09, 2012

The Volkswagen Golf Blue-e-Motion visited Ireland for the first time last month. It came as part of Volkswagen’s international roadshow as it prepares for its entry into the electric vehicle market.

TomTom Places now available in Ireland

Thu, Aug 09, 2012

TomTom is rapidly expanding its local search engine, TomTom Places. The service has recently been introduced in Sweden, Austria, Norway, Spain, and is now available in Ireland.

Europeans are buying more efficient cars

Thu, Aug 09, 2012

New cars sold in 2011 were 3.3 per cent more fuel efficient than those sold in 2010.

Seat sponsored hole-in-one prize at the Ladies Irish Open

Thu, Aug 09, 2012

Seat Ireland offered the prize of a new Leon car to any of the competitors who sank a hole-in-one at the recent Ladies Irish Open, which was held at Killeen Castle, in County Meath. The venue hosts a magnificent Jack Nicklaus Signature Course set over 350 acres among superb natural woodlands.

New edge protector saves your door from damage

Thu, Aug 09, 2012

An optional feature called door edge protector will be available on the new Ford Focus models when it arrives in Ireland. It is also on the new Ford Focus ST which arrives in Ireland in September, writes Padraic Deane.

New Opel Astra van launched

Thu, Aug 09, 2012

Opel Ireland has launched a commercial variant of its successful Astra five door hatchback. And the first major fleet of new Opel Astra five door vans has been supplied to Eircom, Ireland’s largest telecommunications provider, writes Padraic Deane.

World's 'most economical’ luxury-class hybrid

Thu, Aug 09, 2012

At the end of this year Mercedes-Benz will introduce is new diesel-powered E 300 bluetec hybrid on the Irish market.

How do you squeeze more mpg from your car?

Thu, Aug 02, 2012

As everyone knows petrol and diesel have become wickedly expensive this year. Even though oil prices have come down a bit we are being hit by a falling Euro and we are still stuck with those massive, punitive taxes that have been piled onto the price by our own government in the last four years.

New Seat Toledo on the way

Thu, Aug 02, 2012

The new Toledo is coming. It is described by Seat as a saloon with a dynamic modern design, driven by highly-efficient engines, with outstanding practicality and excellent workmanship.

Roving eyes of distracted men

Thu, Jul 26, 2012

Men have a roving eye even while behind the wheel, it appears. In the latest AA survey of Irish motorists we asked drivers about what things distract them. Quite a lot of us are prone to slips in concentration and have had ‘near misses’ or just given ourselves a severe fright because our attention wavered.

Both genders were distracted in almost equal amounts by sights like advertising billboards, Garda checkpoints or traffic accidents. But when it comes to the distraction provided by an attractive member of the opposite sex, men are way out on their own.

All-new Peugeot 208 has gone on sale

Thu, Jul 26, 2012

Peugeot's eagerly awaited 208 super-mini has arrived in Ireland. The new hatchback from Peugeot draws on all the strengths and successes of Peugeot's iconic 205, the 206, and the European best-selling 207. It will retail in Ireland from €14,495 plus dealer delivery related charges for the new 1.0 petrol 68bhp three-door version.

Kia drives Team Ireland in London

Thu, Jul 26, 2012

Kia Motors Ireland is sending a fleet of Sportage and Optima Models to London to help Team Ireland with their logistics for the Olympic Games.

Penalty points system to change

Thu, Jul 19, 2012

In a few months the penalty points system will be ten years old. What a quick decade that was. The system was launched in a fanfare by the late Seamus Brennan back in October of 2002. At the risk of sounding old, I remember it well.

I had been personally very involved in the AA’s campaign to have a points system introduced and we had a number of meetings with Minister Brennan to persuade him of the idea. He was terrific, and pushed through their introduction when lots of others wanted to delay.

New Mini Clubvan targets business users

Thu, Jul 19, 2012

The Mini Clubvan is a compact van for business and leisure, and the first premium model in the small car-based van segment.

The Volkswagen Golf van is back

Thu, Jul 19, 2012

Volkswagen has just reintroduced the Golf van to the Irish market, having won the Continental Irish Car Derived Van of the Year 2011 in November 2010.

Stunning new Mercedes-Benz SL arrives

Thu, Jul 19, 2012

Sixty years after the first SL was launched, the latest version of this iconic roadster has arrived in Ireland.

French taking their road safety seriously

Thu, Jul 12, 2012

If you are planning to drive in France this summer then be warned that our continental friends have decided to take road safety very seriously these days. Amongst the things you will need to bring are a hi-viz jacket, a self-breathalyser and a carefully respectful manner, en francais si possible, when dealing with French police.

Every year we deal with drivers going abroad, either for insurance or just for general advice. France is the most common port-of-call, after the UK where the rules are very similar to here.

Jazz is the Which? Car best used supermini

Thu, Jul 12, 2012

The popular Honda Jazz has another accolade to add to its growing trophy cabinet - it has been named best used supermini by consumer champions Which? Car.

New Ford Ranger pick-up is the one to beat

Thu, Jul 12, 2012

The new Ford Ranger pick-up arrived in Ireland recently with an entry level price of €25,194. And Ford boasts that it combines the toughness and capability of a pick-up truck with smart technology, outstanding safety, and the highest standards of quality and comfort.

The new Ranger made history when it became the first pick-up truck to be awarded a maximum five-star safety rating by crash safety testing body, Euro NCAP. The Ranger achieved one of the best overall scores awarded by Euro NCAP; itsfive-star rating reflects a strong performance in adult, child, and pedestrian protection.

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