Fuel prices steady amid fears
FUEL prices remain steady across the country ahead of expected increases in March, an AA study says.
The average petrol price across the state is €1.61, just 0.6 per cent more than in December
2022. Diesel fuel has dropped slightly, with the average at €1.71,
1.7 per cent less than in
December 2022.
This steadying of prices comes ahead of an
EU-wide ban on the importation of Russian oil products, which comes into effect from February 5, which could lead to price increases.
The government is also due to end a
THIRTY-FOUR per cent of motorists are considering buying a new vehicle this year, research by smart mobility services specialist Easytrip has found.
The results also revealed that hybrids are the top choice at 39 per cent, followed by electric at 27 per cent, diesel at 23 per cent and petrol at 9 per cent.
Of the 5,000 respondents to the survey, 83 per cent stated that they
DESPITE industry challenges made worse by the Covid-19 pandemic, Dacia sold an impressive 573,800 vehicles in 2022, registering 6.8 per cent growth compared with 2021, and achieving its highest ever share of the European retail market.
Last year, Dacia achieved a recordbreaking market share in Europe with 7.6 per cent of PC sales to retail customers, strengthening its position for the second year in a row [having claimed a 6.2 per cent share in 2021].
The brand also reached a significant milestone in 2022, selling its eight millionth vehicle globally since 2004.
In Ireland reduction on duty on petrol and diesel at the end of February.
It comes as sanctions slapped on Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine are expected to bump up prices. “Europe has been raising its diesel imports from
Asia and the Middle East; the two regions are now expected to shoulder exports after the ban. “The longer freight distances, however, and higher demand for tankers shipping the fuel into Europe have meant freight rates are rising, potentially adding to the cost at pumps,” said Paddy Comyn, of AA Ireland. don’t believe Ireland will reach the target of 945,000 electric vehicles by 2030.
They highlighted what they perceived to be the top five barriers of driving an EV as purchase prices, the public charging network, range, length of charge time and higher electricity costs.
One in six respondents also said climate change reports are influencing their vehicle buying decisions.
Dacia had its highest market share result since the brand’s launch here just 10 years ago at 3.2 per cent share of the market, with overall sales up 56 per cent on 2021. Dacia has also launched four new key models in less than 15 months, namely the Sandero, Spring and Duster in 2021 and the Jogger in 2022.
At the end of 2022, all four models benefited from the final step in Dacia’s new identity deployment strategy, having adopted the brand’s bold new visual identity.
This included new colours and the recognisable Dacia Link emblem featuring “D” and “C” letters, as shown here by the new Duster.
BRANDED: The Dacia Duster IT MAY be the baby of the ever-expanding BMW X line of luxury SUVs but the new X1 has really come of age in this, its third generation.
In its 10 years or so since it first knocked onto the scene, the X1 has become an important car for BMW and is one of their most popular models — serving, as it does, as an entry point to the coveted X models which have overtaken the saloons and estates to be BMW’s biggest sellers.
However, this is not a shrunken X5 by any means, even though it’s got a lot of the road presence and swagger its bigger brothers have in spades.
The new BMW design language of whopper kidney grilles and stern, angular front lines is present and correct and the back is a thing of beauty, which wasn’t the case the last time around, where I felt the back looked weak and let the car down a bit.
Hybrid
Stunning looks aside, it’s a bit of an engineering wonder, capable of being powered by anything from a 1.5l petrol power plant right up to powerful diesels, hybrid drives and even a fully electric iX1 xDrive30 will be coming later this year.
That boasts a range of up to 438km and the all-wheel drive set-up generates the equivalent of 313bhp and a 0-100kmh sprint in just 5.6 seconds.
The hybrid BMW X1 xDrive30e and BMW X1 xDrive25e both feature an integrated electric drive unit powering the rear wheels, combined with a threecylinder petrol engine that drives the front wheels via the seven-speed Steptronic transmission with double clutch.
In a nice touch,
BMW Charging is included as standard for BMW
Charging and IONITY waived for the first 12 months for retail customers.
However, for my test drive I had the XDrive 23i, a two litre petrol-engined thing of beauty with a decent 218hp keeping everything moving.
As you’d hope for, handling is excellent in the X1 with clever engineering and assistance systems letting you push the physics VALUE: The BMW
X1 in white iX1 and plug-in hybrid variants.
Thst means access to over 1,900 charging points included in Ireland, with the monthly fee for BMW