Why don't Irish buyers get as much choice?

HELPDESK:Answers to your motoring queries

From CV Reilly: I wish to buy a new car for the first time since 1987. I find the range offered by the Irish subsidiaries minuscule compared with that offered in the UK and they decline to import as a special order anything other than their local offering.

For example, I am a golfer and I like the new Volkswagen Golf but unfortunately it will not accommodate my golf clubs. In the UK an Estate version is offered but not in Ireland. What is the point of having a separate regime in Ireland?

It really depends on the particular car firm whether or not the Irish offering is the same as in Britain. Many of the premium players, for example, will get you whatever your heart desires. The response from the more mainstream brands is perhaps less effusive.

These car firms claim the reason they dont import all their model ranges to Ireland is simply down to cost and the relative size of the Irish market.

With every iteration, you need to agree prices and import paperwork for the car in question; add them to the systems; and allow for additional training and marketing. All for a version that might only record a handful of sales over the years. Instead they say they are concentrating on the most popular model and engine choices for here.

According to Adam Chamberlain, head of sales and marketing at VW Ireland, in the case of the Golf estate, volumes were just too low to warrant carrying the car in Ireland. However, they are happy to discuss individual options for models they dont carry here through their customer services department.

In reality what you are seeing here is an effort by the distributors – many of whom are now direct subsidiaries of the car firm – to reduce stock levels both at national and dealer levels. None of them want to be caught with car parks full of unsold cars, as they were when the recession first hit 18 months ago.

The downside for customers is, in some instances, longer waiting times for delivery, and in your case, a failure to offer the car at all.

While its not ideal for customers, its perhaps understandable in the current climate that dealers and distributors dont want to carry the risk of stocking cars that dont sell for months or even years.

As a consequence, Irish buyers in some instances will not get the same choice as other markets. Its a real shame, but then we are always free to import such cars ourselves.

From BC: My local Toyota dealer in Cork said there is a new Toyota Corolla coming out in six weeks or so. Do you have any news prices specs on this?

It’s not really a new model - more a tweak. A new headlight cluster and the addition of a new engine variant would seem to be about the height of the difference. The biggest change is a new 1.33-litre petrol engine that drops from tax band D to band B. If you were considering the 1.4-litre then it’s probably worth the wait. Aside from this the changes are very minor. No prices as yet.

Send your queries to Motors Helpdesk, The Irish Times, Tara Street, Dublin 2, or e-mail motorshelp@irishtimes.com