Argh...do I go for a petrol or a diesel???
Discussion
In the past, I have refused to do what car threads, as I generally have enough knowledge about cars to make my own mind up, but now I'm after a "budget" car I'm struggling somewhat to decide. I started off with looking at a tdci Focus' then onto 1.9tdi PD vehicles, but now I'm thinking maybe a petrol of some sort might be ideal...
So, my criteria is as follows:
> Budget up to about £1500
> Mileage covered per week is approx 200-250miles, so petrol or diesel? - Generally a 14 miles round trip/day to work and back, plus a 50 mile round trip to the Missus twice a week and the odd weekend away.
> Must seat 4 adults with room for a bit of luggage (so the min. being say a 5dr Fiesta)
> Must be economical
> Must be reliable and easy to repair mechanical wise if something does go wrong
> Must be able to do odd Motorway jaunts in a bit of comfort
Basically, something cheap and cheerful.
Open to all sensible ideas...try me!
So, my criteria is as follows:
> Budget up to about £1500
> Mileage covered per week is approx 200-250miles, so petrol or diesel? - Generally a 14 miles round trip/day to work and back, plus a 50 mile round trip to the Missus twice a week and the odd weekend away.
> Must seat 4 adults with room for a bit of luggage (so the min. being say a 5dr Fiesta)
> Must be economical
> Must be reliable and easy to repair mechanical wise if something does go wrong
> Must be able to do odd Motorway jaunts in a bit of comfort
Basically, something cheap and cheerful.
Open to all sensible ideas...try me!
I'd go for a diesel Octavia, 1.9TDi. Nothing to worry about with those in terms of the mysterious "modern diesels will cost you £1m per annum to fix" stories.
That will seat 4 and carry some luggage with ease.
They're cheap to buy too. I don't understand the argument about buying a petrol engined car because it's cheaper than a diesel engined car. If you're spending £1500 on a diesel engined car, it isn't costing any more than a £1500 petrol engined car. And it will cost you less to run.
That will seat 4 and carry some luggage with ease.
They're cheap to buy too. I don't understand the argument about buying a petrol engined car because it's cheaper than a diesel engined car. If you're spending £1500 on a diesel engined car, it isn't costing any more than a £1500 petrol engined car. And it will cost you less to run.
I only do about 7k miles a year but I got a 52 plate Focus 1.8 TDCi 115ps with 50k miles on the clock about 6 months ago. It returns 50mpg+ no matter where its being driven although i havent done any M-way journeys so dont know if it would return 60mpg+, tax is £130 pa.
The wife used to have a 1.6 petrol Focus and it did mid 30's mpg just pottering about and low 40's mpg on a M-way run at best.
The TDCi is much better to drive, alot more poke and easier to leave in a higher gear and just put your foot down. Given the choice i'd pick the TDCi every time.
The TDCi though has cost me a little more as the turbo became coked up and needing the vanes inside it cleaning out (turbo was fine mechanically). This meant a probable £150-£200 bill (yet to get the bill from the garage) although i think this was slightly unlucky on my part.
Saying that the sister in law who bought my wifes 1.6 Focus off her had the water pump let go 6 months ago (car was ~6yrs old at the time).
No matter what you buy if its getting on in its life it will need maintenance.
The wife used to have a 1.6 petrol Focus and it did mid 30's mpg just pottering about and low 40's mpg on a M-way run at best.
The TDCi is much better to drive, alot more poke and easier to leave in a higher gear and just put your foot down. Given the choice i'd pick the TDCi every time.
The TDCi though has cost me a little more as the turbo became coked up and needing the vanes inside it cleaning out (turbo was fine mechanically). This meant a probable £150-£200 bill (yet to get the bill from the garage) although i think this was slightly unlucky on my part.
Saying that the sister in law who bought my wifes 1.6 Focus off her had the water pump let go 6 months ago (car was ~6yrs old at the time).
No matter what you buy if its getting on in its life it will need maintenance.
To the OP; your requirements seem to be very similar to mine. I used to have a Mk4 Fiesta 1.4 which, rust aside, was perfectly adequate. Like I said, rust became an issue, so this year I changed it to one of these, and the economy is quite staggering for a 2.0 petrol;
A 1.8 VVT-i like this one should be good for over 45mpg on your commute.
http://www2.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Well built, reliable, robust, frugal, no timing belts to worry about. A million taxi drivers can't be wrong.
A 1.8 VVT-i like this one should be good for over 45mpg on your commute.
http://www2.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Well built, reliable, robust, frugal, no timing belts to worry about. A million taxi drivers can't be wrong.
Kong said:
I would get a petrol as your mileage isn't high enough to risk the potential repair bills on a diesel.
A cheap commonrail is very dicey but theres always the option of an old school diesel like a W124 250/300D or E34 525TDS if you can find a decent one. Crude but indestructable. - Edit- the Rover L-series diesel engine is as tough as old boots and found cheap as chips in the 400/45. As a bangernomics AtoB tool, these are brilliant.
Edited by SuperHangOn on Monday 3rd October 13:22
Sellers always assume diesels chould be sold for far more than they are worth. they are also very dull to drive. far better going for something petrol at this level. I have a Mk III Golf GTI 8v which will do 30mpg on average and is at least capable of being fun.
Something like a Honda Civic EP3 shape would also fit the bill.
Something like a Honda Civic EP3 shape would also fit the bill.
SuperHangOn said:
E34 525TDS if you can find a decent one. Crude but indestructable.
I drove mine into a brick wall, didn't even leave a scratch. 230,000 miles, never bothered servicing it when i owned it, ran it off all sorts of crap (chip fat etc), didn't miss a beat.Gearbox got amnesia eventually and it had to be put down.
Thanks everyone. Plenty of food for thought!
I'd love the 525tds or the W124 250/300D, but what I'm assuming, if something goes wrong with these, then it's mega bucks to fix? Please correct me if I'm wrong.
I'm going to look further into
Octavia 1.9TDi (which I was orignally looking at)
MK1 Focus TDCi and 1.6L Petrol
Toyota is now a possibility...never thought of these!
The X type is a no no for various reasons
306/406HDi/TD - I did once own a 406 1.9td, but after about 2 years/40k miles of ownership, it started costing me money...immobiliser electrics/front springs snapped etc. Saying that, it could be a possibility, if I can find a low mileage one.
I'll get searching!
I'd love the 525tds or the W124 250/300D, but what I'm assuming, if something goes wrong with these, then it's mega bucks to fix? Please correct me if I'm wrong.
I'm going to look further into
Octavia 1.9TDi (which I was orignally looking at)
MK1 Focus TDCi and 1.6L Petrol
Toyota is now a possibility...never thought of these!
The X type is a no no for various reasons
306/406HDi/TD - I did once own a 406 1.9td, but after about 2 years/40k miles of ownership, it started costing me money...immobiliser electrics/front springs snapped etc. Saying that, it could be a possibility, if I can find a low mileage one.
I'll get searching!
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