Hi Jack,

There's nothing wrong with using a 1.6 diesel car as a starter car, other than the fact that insurance is likely to be incredibly high. The insurers are still seemingly obsessed with the size of an engine in Ireland and new drivers are therefore encouraged to go for engines of no larger than 1.2 litres in general.

Other than that, a diesel really isn't suited to low-mileage use unless all that mileage is at higher speeds - i.e. on the motorway. Some components in the engine and the exhaust can get clogged up if not used at higher speeds regularly, leading to high repair bills.