Ecoboost v TSI v PURETECH v TCE

[A500leroy]

Now that Vauxhall and Fiat have got into bed with PSA, the engines in the title are all thats really availble in normal petrol cars, so which ones WORST and which would you spend your 10 grand on with a secondhand version?

[MustangGT]

More a case of PSA and FCA becoming Stellantis including a few more brands.

Ecoboost = Ford
TSi = VAG
Puretec = Stellantis
TCE = Renault/Nissan

Not sure about best/worst.

[Fastdruid]

The problem is that they're all little more than "brands". Take Ecoboost for example, it is used on Fox, Dragon, Sigma, Mazda L, Nano and Cyclone engine families. Some are better than others but they vary from an I3 to a V6 and 999cc to 3496cc! The Mazda-L particularly has been through a few different names in its time.

Same goes for (T)(F)SI, it's technically a technology rather than even a family and used on a variety of engines, I4,I5,VR6, V10 & V12.

Unsure about the others.

[clockworks]

How many miles would a small £10k car have done? Not sure I'd completely trust any tiny turbo to reach 100k miles.

I did a bit of research before buying my C3 Aircross, and decided to play it safe and buy a pre-reg 1.2 Puretech. Should be fine as long as the wet belt is replaced at 60k.

For best reliability in a small car, I'd go for the Fiat 1.3 diesel Multijet. Easily capable of well over 100k

[Pica-Pica]

A500leroy said:

Now that Vauxhall and Fiat have got into bed with PSA, the engines in the title are all thats really availble in normal petrol cars, so which ones WORST and which would you spend your 10 grand on with a secondhand version?

The VAG TSi. We have a Skoda Fabia 1.2 TSi at 10 years old and 76k miles. Never missed a beat.

[ChrisH72]

I spent my 9k on a leggy Fiesta ST 3 years ago. It's on 78k miles now with no problems.

There are a lot of reported issues with the 1.0 ecoboost but it seems the 1.6 fairs better.

The tiny turbos aren't really made to take huge mileages but I guess reliability also comes down to correct maintenance. Quite a few ecoboosts go pop but then there are millions of them and how many owners just drive them without even bothered to get them serviced?

[MC Bodge]

I had a 1.4TSI 150. It was a great engine.

The later 1.5 may not be.

The 1.0 Ecoboost requires an expensive timing belt change at 10 years.

[ZX10R NIN]

A500leroy said:

Now that Vauxhall and Fiat have got into bed with PSA, the engines in the title are all thats really availble in normal petrol cars, so which ones WORST and which would you spend your 10 grand on with a secondhand version?

Buy the car that suits you best all are decent some have wet belts etc.

[Fastdruid]

ChrisH72 said:

I spent my 9k on a leggy Fiesta ST 3 years ago. It's on 78k miles now with no problems.

There are a lot of reported issues with the 1.0 ecoboost but it seems the 1.6 fairs better.

The 1.0 and 1.6 are entirely different, the 1.0 is the Fox engine while the 1.6 is the Sigma. Again the "Ecoboost" name is little more than a brand so you can't say if it's good or bad without being specific about which exact engine!

[georgeyboy12345]

Yeah, it depends.

Ecoboost
1.0 and 1.5 - wet cambelt design puts me off
The 1.6's pre 2017 had that overheating issue, but should have been recalled
The 2.0 is based on the Mazda L engine and is pretty solid
The 2.3s had problems with leaky head gaskets and warped blocks, again I think these were recalled and fixed after 2018
Don't know about larger engine sizes.


TSI engines
General rule, avoid anything pre 2013.
The 1.8 and 2.0 litres (EA888) gen 1 and 2 pre 2013 had issues with timing chain guides and were direct injection. After this for the gen 3 they switched to multipoint fuel injection and made the timing chain guides from something better than plastic.
The 1.0, 1.2 and 1.4 litres pre 2013 (EA111) also had timing chain issues and a load of other problems. Post 2013 the EA211 did away with the troublesome chain and switched to belts and addressed the other issues too.
The later 1.5 EVO engine had some jerkiness issues which should have been addressed, but also is a bit off putting.
I'm not too familiar with the larger engines like the 3.0 and 4.2, etc, but I think the same avoid pre-2013 rule holds true.


PureTech
The 1.2s have the wet cambelt design, so that puts me off.
The 1.6s are a newer version of the Prince engine that has had weaknesses with timing chain and fuel pump sorted post 2018 I think (basically the Euro 6 ones)


TCe
As far as I'm aware, most of these are pretty reliable with only some niggly problems.

[Fade_Away]

A500leroy said:

Now that Vauxhall and Fiat have got into bed with PSA, the engines in the title are all thats really availble in normal petrol cars, so which ones WORST and which would you spend your 10 grand on with a secondhand version?

I am in same boat with similar budget, I never owned a turbo petrol before. Really want to go with one this time. There are different stories out there. Based on my very limited knowledge and reasearch so far, It appears 1.2 TSI, Ecoboost and then TCE. Puretech got very mixed reviews.

Apparently among small turbos Toyota 1.2 and Suzuki 1.0 boosterjet appears to be most reliable. I did test drove a Vitara 1.4 Turbo, It was really nippy and fun to drive but they are expensive.

I have to take decision end of May, so still looking around.

[ZX10R NIN]

In all honesty I'd buy the best 1.0T Kia Rio First Edition:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202303295...

Or GT Line I could find:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202212302...

Or it's cheaper i20 cousin:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202303135...

[Fade_Away]

ZX10R NIN said:

In all honesty I'd buy the best 1.0T Kia Rio First Edition:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202303295...

Or GT Line I could find:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202212302...

Or it's cheaper i20 cousin:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202303135...

Hi whats your opinion on Hyundai i30 1.0 GDI ? I assume it share same engine as of Rio, its bit more spacious and trunk space is decent for small family

[clockworks]

Fade_Away said:

Hi whats your opinion on Hyundai i30 1.0 GDI ? I assume it share same engine as of Rio, its bit more spacious and trunk space is decent for small family

I've got that engine (in slightly detuned form) in my current Picanto GT S. I had another one a couple of years ago. Punchy little thing, boost comes in at lower revs than the 1.2 Puretech, so less gear changing needed. The Kia will happily pull from 1500rpm, the Citroen needs to be kept above 2000rpm if there's any hint of a hill.
Not had any problems. I've not seen any reports of common problems on the Kia forums, unlike the 1.6 mild hybrid used in the Sportage - aux belt tensioner failing, despite multiple revisions.

I had a 1.0 Stonic as a courtesy car a couple of years ago, went surprisingly well.

[RVB]

I think Renault still use port injection in their 1.0TCe engine without PPF/GPF compared to the direct injection in the TSI and Ecoboost engines with PPF/GPF so I would think the TCe has a better chance of giving trouble-free motoring in the longer term.

[Fastdruid]

RVB said:

I think Renault still use port injection in their 1.0TCe engine without PPF/GPF compared to the direct injection in the TSI and Ecoboost engines with PPF/GPF so I would think the TCe has a better chance of giving trouble-free motoring in the longer term.

Not all Ecoboosts use direct injection.

Equally, PPF/GPF's aren't as problematic as DPF's because they don't need a special regen regime.

I would hope that those using direct injection have overcome the intake coking problem by now too, its been a *long* time since the first GDI's!

[blueST]

RVB said:

I think Renault still use port injection in their 1.0TCe engine without PPF/GPF compared to the direct injection in the TSI and Ecoboost engines with PPF/GPF so I would think the TCe has a better chance of giving trouble-free motoring in the longer term.

My TCe's got a GPF, but I've no idea what type of fuel injection.

[magno]

1.0 TCE engine is chain drive also. None of that wet belt nonsense.

[magno]

I have the 1.0 TCE in a new shape Sandero that runs on LPG. On LPG it feels like it has way more power than the quoted 100bhp. As a means of transport and at the price point it´s very hard to argue for a Ford, VW or PSA product.

[HelldogBE]

magno said:

1.0 TCE engine is chain drive also. None of that wet belt nonsense.

Time will tell how long the chain lasts...
But it's not looking great.