Suggestions for a diesel daily hack!

[V8 Devil]

Any suggestions for a cheap diesel daily hack for the winter. I really want to put the Chim away and just use her at the weekends.

Edited by V8 Devil on Friday 7th December 16:15

[poorpeet]

Depends how cheap. Early Mondeo v/cheap & everyone can fix em & they have an air bag & abs.
Most of the French diesels are cheap. I run a Laguna but, they don't like being neglected & can be pricey if let go. On the plus side they have loads of kit & 5 star ncap rating

[Veg]

Cheap diesel. Had loads but would always say a VW Passat 1.9TDI (Red DI 130bhp or red I 110bhp)is the best. Mine has 200,000 miles and all it ever needs is 10,000 mile services and a cambelt every 60,000 miles. 50 mpg too. Only problem is the water drains under the battery (on the scuttle) which can overflow into the cabin. Just needs unblocking.

[nikman]

V8 Devil said:

Any suggestions for a cheap diesel daily hack for the winter. I really want to put the Chim away and just use her at the weekends.

Edited by V8 Devil on Friday 7th December 16:15

Mine's a Merc E300 Turbodiesel. Love it. Had since new and now 156,000 miles. Fantastic highway cruiser and MPG in high 30's. Air-con comfort with useful electric bits to help you stop Oh, and it's quick! How much - don't know but can't be a lot at that sort of age.. I think it still looks OK

[Parrot of Doom]

V8 Devil said:

Any suggestions for a cheap diesel daily hack for the winter. I really want to put the Chim away and just use her at the weekends.

Edited by V8 Devil on Friday 7th December 16:15

Hopefully you'll use her more than just on weekends. Chims don't like being parked up.

[David Godfrey]

Mondeo tdi or tcdi go for a cheap ghia X and you get all the toys, leather, heated seats etc

[GTIR]

Got a nice taxed and mot'd Merc 190D, even throw a veggie oil kit in!

[caduceus]

GTIR said:

even throw a veggie oil kit in!

Whats one of those then?
I know you can run some diesels on old chip fat, but didn't know there was a kit to put on cars.

[Munter]

caduceus said:

GTIR said:

even throw a veggie oil kit in!

Whats one of those then?
I know you can run some diesels on old chip fat, but didn't know there was a kit to put on cars.

These guys are mentioned on another thread. No idea if it's any good. But they sell such a piece of kit.

http://www.dieselveg.com/

[V8 Devil]

I like the look of the Merc 190D although at 250000 miles, how many more miles are left in her. What are you wanting for her?
I have been thinking of a 306 but previously had a 306 gti-6 so would like to try something a bit different.
I'm not looking to spend much on one £1000 max as I only need to travel 10 miles or so to work, it just needs to be as reliable as possible and cheap to run.
I'll use the Chim on Sunny days and at weekends so she'll get used plenty.

[coolcatmaz]

I have a Polo tdi as my daily work horse.....cheap to run and surprisingly nippy.

[Tunku]

My livesaver is a Citroen ZX 1.9D. Not fast, no toys, but battles on for next to nothing.

ETA, it's an estate, so also useful for "those" jobs. eg. doing the rubbish tip run.

Edited by Tunku on Friday 7th December 20:59

[Skodaku]

Skoda Octavia 1.9 TDi. Loads around, bullet-proof and cheap to run/insure etc. If something smaller would do, look at a Skoda Fabia vRS; 130bhp Tdi/6-spd manual, fun, fast and frugal............and bullet-proof.

[eltax91]

306 1.9 DT or the more expensive 2-0 HDi - much better but much pricier

[wideload]

If you are doing that sort of mileage, surely a cheap petrol car would show better value than a diesel on purchase price and range of possibilities due to the relitively low mileage, especially if you want to run the TVR over the summer as well.

[Matthew_Eames]

306 DT is a good option, HDI is a much better engine but for what your after a cheap early car will be fun to drive (well sort of) and cheap to run, and shouldnt lose you much cash at all

other option is a Bigger BMW tds or merc, depends what your after, but i would stay clear of smaller N/A dervs....they offer a few more MPG but are not worth having really

[crofty1984]

Tunku said:

My livesaver is a Citroen ZX 1.9D. Not fast, no toys, but battles on for next to nothing.

ETA, it's an estate, so also useful for "those" jobs. eg. taking bodies to the lake.

Edited by Tunku on Friday 7th December 20:59

EFA

[Jasandjules]

Veg said:

Cheap diesel. Had loads but would always say a VW Passat 1.9TDI (Red DI 130bhp or red I 110bhp)is the best. Mine has 200,000 miles and all it ever needs is 10,000 mile services and a cambelt every 60,000 miles. 50 mpg too.

+1

[GTIR]

Munter said:

caduceus said:

GTIR said:

even throw a veggie oil kit in!

Whats one of those then?
I know you can run some diesels on old chip fat, but didn't know there was a kit to put on cars.

These guys are mentioned on another thread. No idea if it's any good. But they sell such a piece of kit.

http://www.dieselveg.com/

I bought it about three yars ago, had it on my Pug 405 and never got round to fitting it to the Merc although the pipes are installed. Basically its an electric heater, second tank with feed and return pipe for the veg plus a load of electrics for switches and stuff.

[macdeb]

Why move topic???? Lots of Chimaera owners have diesels as daily drivers. Seems a reasonable question to ask on TVR forum.

Edited by macdeb on Saturday 8th December 18:46

Edited by macdeb on Saturday 8th December 18:48

Edited by macdeb on Saturday 8th December 18:49