Does warranty apply in Republic?

HELPDESK:Answering all your motoring queries

From RC:

I’m looking at importing a car from the North and have been told that the manufacturer warranty applies down here so I have nothing to worry about in that regard. However a friend has said he read about owners being told that their warranties don’t apply in the Republic. Is that true?

The manufacturer warranty does apply here but in many instances you will find that it only runs for a proportion of the overall warranty period. While you don’t specifiy the details of the car in question – or its warranty offer – in many situations the first year is covered by the manufacturer on a European-wide basis, but the rest of the warranty period may be covered by the national distributor.

In those instances there might be a longer warranty available in the UK market than in Ireland, for example, and Irish dealerships are not obliged to apply the same cover. You need to study the warranty cover on the car carefully before making your decision.

From EL:

I’ve been told that the car I've ordered will not be in the country in time to benefit from the scrappage deal. Can this be true? I ordered the car two weeks ago on the presumption that once the order was in place I would benefit from the scheme.

Unfortunately for you, the rules are quite clear and your new car needs to be registered by June 30th at the latest to qualify.

Hopefully you would have agreed the deal with the dealer on the expressed understanding that it was to be part of the scrappage scheme. You could then discuss with the dealer whether there might be a car in stock that fits your needs and that can be registered under the scheme.

Most mainstream manufacturers have cars in stock for this eventuality but there is no way to avoid the ruling that the new car has to be registered before next month to get the Government scrappage grant. You will also have to ensure that your old car is scrapped by June 30th as well. Time may be against you, but the key would be to discuss the situation with the dealer immediately.

From AR:

We have two cars, but changing circumstances mean that we need to cut back on our spending. My wife has been offered the chance to buy out her company car – a 2005 VW Passat 1.9 diesel with 80,000 miles on the clock. It’s being offered to her for €7,500 by her firm. Is that a good deal and should we go ahead with it?

I’m not sure we need another car but my wife has had this car since the beginning and has kept it well. Our other car is a 2004 Opel Zafira and we need this for school runs.

For the mileage and the fact that she knows the car’s service history and has seemingly not had any problems with it, then I think the offer is good. You would probably find it difficult to find an equivalent replacement for this sort of money. While a smaller car might cut your motoring costs, it will require a greater outlay initially and perhaps even a small loan. That’s probably not what you want to be entering into at this stage.

Send your queries to Motors Helpdesk, The Irish Times, Tara St, Dublin 2 or email motorshelp@irishtimes.com