What car would be ideal for 100 mile commute each day?
Discussion
Hi there,
I currently drive a 2016 ford fiesta titanium, 1.6 diesel.
I do 50 miles to work and 50 miles home.
I've had it for 2 years, have 39 months of £190.09 payments to make on it. So nearly 7.5k on it.
Costing me around £70 to £80 a week on fuel alone, £124.37 on insurance.
I was wondering if there was a more ideal car that I could trade this one in for that would be better for commuting.
Ideally keeping the monthly payments the same or lower so I would have to keep paying the finance for this car but hoping a trade in would allow me add the rest of the finance onto another car. My car according to autotrader is worth £4,640
There is company cars I could get however they are only electric and I don't have anywhere to charge at night at home and for a company car it would be about £450 a month to get one, plus wait times are about a year which isn't great as I am looking for other jobs so not an ideal solution. If I get a job closer to home it's less of an issue it's just the current travel.
I'm not the biggest car person so I'm not fully sure what I should go for or the best route to take or if I should stick with what I have the now.
Thanks in advance.
Also, first time posting hope everyone is having a great day
I currently drive a 2016 ford fiesta titanium, 1.6 diesel.
I do 50 miles to work and 50 miles home.
I've had it for 2 years, have 39 months of £190.09 payments to make on it. So nearly 7.5k on it.
Costing me around £70 to £80 a week on fuel alone, £124.37 on insurance.
I was wondering if there was a more ideal car that I could trade this one in for that would be better for commuting.
Ideally keeping the monthly payments the same or lower so I would have to keep paying the finance for this car but hoping a trade in would allow me add the rest of the finance onto another car. My car according to autotrader is worth £4,640
There is company cars I could get however they are only electric and I don't have anywhere to charge at night at home and for a company car it would be about £450 a month to get one, plus wait times are about a year which isn't great as I am looking for other jobs so not an ideal solution. If I get a job closer to home it's less of an issue it's just the current travel.
I'm not the biggest car person so I'm not fully sure what I should go for or the best route to take or if I should stick with what I have the now.
Thanks in advance.
Also, first time posting hope everyone is having a great day
Hi Chris,
I do 110 miles a day and have chosen a 2018 Jaguar XJ 3.0d to do it in. Average weekly efficiency is around 45mpg. The benefit of a big exec car like this for commuting is it results in a lot less fatigue than if you were driving a smaller, less comfortable car. I sometimes alternate the commute with my i3 (fiesta size) and on treat days my mustang. The Jag leaves me feeling much more relaxed and less stressed than the other two. Heated/ventilated massage seats are extremely comfortable and NVH is much lower than the other two cars so your ears aren't ringing after a long drive in a less well insulated car (I'm looking at you i3!)
Ultimately though it'll be personal preference based on what's important to you. For this commute comfort is most important so that's what I've prioritised.
Hope that helps
I do 110 miles a day and have chosen a 2018 Jaguar XJ 3.0d to do it in. Average weekly efficiency is around 45mpg. The benefit of a big exec car like this for commuting is it results in a lot less fatigue than if you were driving a smaller, less comfortable car. I sometimes alternate the commute with my i3 (fiesta size) and on treat days my mustang. The Jag leaves me feeling much more relaxed and less stressed than the other two. Heated/ventilated massage seats are extremely comfortable and NVH is much lower than the other two cars so your ears aren't ringing after a long drive in a less well insulated car (I'm looking at you i3!)
Ultimately though it'll be personal preference based on what's important to you. For this commute comfort is most important so that's what I've prioritised.
Hope that helps
The car is great just after the 2 hours worth if driving I get home and I am just exhausted. Plus maintenance on the car is costly haha.
The fiesta the now can be pretty loud when driving, I'm not sure if there is air gaps but I have been told that's not an issue.
I am due to get the car checked as my brakes(atleast I think it's my breaks) have been making a clicking noise when driving whether that's at 10mph or 65mph.
The seats of the car aren't bad, better than the i10 I had (arnold clark damaged the engine so got them to take it back without me paying off the finance so I wasn't screwed over fully and got this fiesta quickly as it was needed to get to work.) But after maybe 20/30 minutes i start to get a stiff back and neck.
The cruise control does help wonders though
The fiesta the now can be pretty loud when driving, I'm not sure if there is air gaps but I have been told that's not an issue.
I am due to get the car checked as my brakes(atleast I think it's my breaks) have been making a clicking noise when driving whether that's at 10mph or 65mph.
The seats of the car aren't bad, better than the i10 I had (arnold clark damaged the engine so got them to take it back without me paying off the finance so I wasn't screwed over fully and got this fiesta quickly as it was needed to get to work.) But after maybe 20/30 minutes i start to get a stiff back and neck.
The cruise control does help wonders though
I bought a 2016 330d outright for that purpose. I don't do loans or car renting so can't advise on that point. It's interesting enough to keep me awake on the boring commute and frugal enough to make rancid diesel ownership worthwhile.
But if you think Fiesta maintenance is expensive, then the conversation is over at this point.
But if you think Fiesta maintenance is expensive, then the conversation is over at this point.
Are there EV chargers at work which you can guarantee will be available for you every day? If so, you don't need to charge at home, if you get something like a Vauxhall Corsa-e it'll have enough range to do both legs. If you need the car at weekends, then you can use public rapids for quick top ups if necessary.
When I used to commute, I got an EV and hardly ever paid to charge it publicly, or even at home, because there were free chargers at work. As close to free motoring as I've ever come.
When I used to commute, I got an EV and hardly ever paid to charge it publicly, or even at home, because there were free chargers at work. As close to free motoring as I've ever come.
Edited by CivicDuties on Wednesday 24th April 15:09
When I had a 50 mile commute, I used a motorbike a lot of the time and the train sometimes.
Still used the car fairly often, e.g. buying stuff from Sainsbury or BeanQueue on the way home.
20k miles a year knocks the value off cars, I used various estates, Peugeot 406, BMW 320d, Audi 100....Mondeo..
Using the bike and train sometimes, I was probably only doing 10k a year commuting, but even at double that, the saving of having a smaller more mpg car is not huge.
Train was competitive on a weekly season ticket.
I'd say it's less tiring in a medium sized German car (I think the Mondeo was made in Germany.?) than in something Fiesta sized.
Leave early, don't rush, put some decent music on.
One could consider an EV.
Cheapest hy'n'dry with 200 mile range on AT is £12,500 or so.
That would pay for itself in 178 weeks of £70 fuel bills.
Do Your Own Man Maths, your own way!
Still used the car fairly often, e.g. buying stuff from Sainsbury or BeanQueue on the way home.
20k miles a year knocks the value off cars, I used various estates, Peugeot 406, BMW 320d, Audi 100....Mondeo..
Using the bike and train sometimes, I was probably only doing 10k a year commuting, but even at double that, the saving of having a smaller more mpg car is not huge.
Train was competitive on a weekly season ticket.
I'd say it's less tiring in a medium sized German car (I think the Mondeo was made in Germany.?) than in something Fiesta sized.
Leave early, don't rush, put some decent music on.
One could consider an EV.
Cheapest hy'n'dry with 200 mile range on AT is £12,500 or so.
That would pay for itself in 178 weeks of £70 fuel bills.
Do Your Own Man Maths, your own way!
I was going to suggest looking at Personal Contract Hire deals and wait from something in the Golf class to come through though looking at your annual mileage I don't think that'll work.
Like everything you pays your money and takes your chance. I would want something reliable, spacious with great MPG. Something like a Skoda Octavia Diesel. I spoke to someone recently who had one on hire and over a few weeks averaged over 60mpg. 3 years old sub 50,000 miles will cost £15K.
Like everything you pays your money and takes your chance. I would want something reliable, spacious with great MPG. Something like a Skoda Octavia Diesel. I spoke to someone recently who had one on hire and over a few weeks averaged over 60mpg. 3 years old sub 50,000 miles will cost £15K.
zedx19 said:
If you're looking for other jobs and actively applying, stick with the current car? I don't see the point in swapping cars if you plan on changing jobs, who knows what you might get offered as a package, or where that job might be.
This. Why change a car when you're looking for work? You never know what job you might get and you might not even need a car or possibly might be fine running the Fiesta if it's local.It's a shame you don't have access to a home charger as 100 miles in an economical EV is less than £2.
With that out the door I'd get a bigger car with an economical diesel. Almost doesn't really matter which one, a 320d Efficient Dynamics should do a genuine 60mpg and be less tiresome than a fiesta.
If it isn't all about money then I be looking at the next class up with a 6 cylinder diesel.
With that out the door I'd get a bigger car with an economical diesel. Almost doesn't really matter which one, a 320d Efficient Dynamics should do a genuine 60mpg and be less tiresome than a fiesta.
If it isn't all about money then I be looking at the next class up with a 6 cylinder diesel.
Any cooking rep mobile is my answer: 3 series, Mondeo, Insignia, Passat, Avensis - petrol would also be my answer, cheaper to maintain and cheaper at pumps, and if your careful easily get 45mpg+ on a steady run.
But the reality here is there is nothing wrong with the Fiesta.
But the reality here is there is nothing wrong with the Fiesta.
Edited by 7 5 7 on Wednesday 24th April 15:08
Another vote for 'wait and see what happens work-wise'. I have to say, I've done long journeys on a regular basis throughout my life and have had a few longish commutes too, and I don't find the car makes that much difference at all, i.e. I've never had one that I'd say was uncomfortable or made me feel particularly tired doing it. That's ranging from K11 Micras to a 330d an XC70. If you really are feeling 'exhausted' by the time you get home then I have my doubts as to whether a change of car is going to make a huge difference. So given you may hopefully have a shorter commute I'd not bother faffing about changing just yet.
rottenegg said:
I bought a 2016 330d outright for that purpose. I don't do loans or car renting so can't advise on that point. It's interesting enough to keep me awake on the boring commute and frugal enough to make rancid diesel ownership worthwhile.
Similar to my missus, and she used to do a 160 mile commute each day(80 miles each way) in a 2006 E90 330d auto. She even managed to clock up 41k miles a year in it once too. It was punchy enough/smooth enough/and economical enough too I thought. A great all round car for sure. We had it 6 years from 2006 to 2012, and we still think back fondly on it now.
7 5 7 said:
But the reality here is there is nothing wrong with the Fiesta.
Strongly disagree here.Edited by 7 5 7 on Wednesday 24th April 15:08
Fiestas are brilliant for what they're designed, but spending several hours *every working day* in one ends up becoming a complete chore.
Yes it can be done if you really want to force the point, but why suffer when something with much less NVH is readily available.
(gotta love it when people tell others that they're wrong for finding something noisy and exhausting!).
dan98 said:
If you're already into Fords, the Focus is immeasurably more comfortable and better set up for longer journeys.
I'd also be inclined to go automatic so you can sit back and just waft around.
Cruise control can be a bit marmite but I'd automate things as much as possible in this case.
Focus seats did my back in on long commutes. No lower support would leave me aching after a long drive so had to get rid.I'd also be inclined to go automatic so you can sit back and just waft around.
Cruise control can be a bit marmite but I'd automate things as much as possible in this case.
What you need is,
Auto
Comfy seats (subjective I know)
Cruise (adaptive if poss)
Long wheel base
Smalller wheel size with a decent profile tyre.
Good stereo
Diesel most probably
Decent amount of power.
Stick those into Auto trader and see what comes up although your Fiesta will probably be still cheaper to run.
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