Thinking of a V50 (advice please)
Discussion
It was a geartronic (after a manual 2.0D) and it seemed much noisier than the 2.0D. Notably at 70mph cruising you could hear / feel the thrum unlike the 2.0, and the slightest throttle seemed to result in a lot of noise and very little shove. Make no mistake, it was gaining speed deceptively, but it didn't *feel* any faster than the 2.0D. Couple in more tax (company car) and less MPG, it just didn't make sense.
In fact, I took that logic to extreme and just ordered a 1.6D, with Family Pack, High Performance audio, etc.
It was a real shame as I wanted to say "to hell with the tax/mpg" and order a D5, but it just wasn't for me.
In fact, I took that logic to extreme and just ordered a 1.6D, with Family Pack, High Performance audio, etc.
It was a real shame as I wanted to say "to hell with the tax/mpg" and order a D5, but it just wasn't for me.
I must admit I wasn't impressed with the D5 auto in the V50. The auto seems to rob a lot of the performance potential of the bigger engine.
I then tried the D5 with the manual box when that came out, and that was much, much better. The one I drove had only 1400 miles so might still have had some freeing up to do, but it still felt a lot quicker than a colleagues 2.0D.
I have the 1.6D in my Focus, and ignoring all of the troubles that engine has had ( a hard job as there have been so many), it is underpowered. The V50 is a good 100kg heavier than my Focus, so things could only be worse.
Sensibly the 2.0d is the best option, but I put my unsensible head on and ordered the D5 manual R-Design Sport and decided to ignore the tax implications
The more interesting 5cyl noise and pull in 6th are worth it IMHO.
I then tried the D5 with the manual box when that came out, and that was much, much better. The one I drove had only 1400 miles so might still have had some freeing up to do, but it still felt a lot quicker than a colleagues 2.0D.
I have the 1.6D in my Focus, and ignoring all of the troubles that engine has had ( a hard job as there have been so many), it is underpowered. The V50 is a good 100kg heavier than my Focus, so things could only be worse.
Sensibly the 2.0d is the best option, but I put my unsensible head on and ordered the D5 manual R-Design Sport and decided to ignore the tax implications
The more interesting 5cyl noise and pull in 6th are worth it IMHO.plfrench said:
Sensibly the 2.0d is the best option, but I put my unsensible head on and ordered the D5 manual R-Design Sport and decided to ignore the tax implications The more interesting 5cyl noise and pull in 6th are worth it IMHO.
Forget all the tax and mpg trivia, the 2.0D depreciates less rapidly than the D5, which is the main cost of ownership. But it probably makes the D5 a good used buy. But the V50 is not a car I'd ever consider to be a "sports" car, so for me the 2.0D was a no-brainer. It has enough power to get the job done comfortably and efficiently, which is what these cars are all about. The more interesting 5cyl noise and pull in 6th are worth it IMHO.Sorry, it's a company car, so tax does play quite an expensive role. You are right about it not being a sports car obviously, but I found the D5 so much more characterful than all of the other 4 cylinder engines on my Diesel only car list. Not much in it performance wise between the D5 and the 170bhp VAG engine, but the hint of a growl made me smile
ian_c_uk said:
It was a geartronic (after a manual 2.0D) and it seemed much noisier than the 2.0D. Notably at 70mph cruising you could hear / feel the thrum unlike the 2.0, and the slightest throttle seemed to result in a lot of noise and very little shove. Make no mistake, it was gaining speed deceptively, but it didn't *feel* any faster than the 2.0D. Couple in more tax (company car) and less MPG, it just didn't make sense.
In fact, I took that logic to extreme and just ordered a 1.6D, with Family Pack, High Performance audio, etc.
It was a real shame as I wanted to say "to hell with the tax/mpg" and order a D5, but it just wasn't for me.
I guess every demo car cant be the same, so maybe you didnt get a very good one. But having driven the 2.0D (in a mondeo) in both standard and chipped form, it can in no way be compared to the D5. The D5 is so much smoother, sounds better and is much more powerful and quicker. I can kind of understand that it might not "feel" that quick, but it definitely is and it's a lot lot quicker than a 1.6D.In fact, I took that logic to extreme and just ordered a 1.6D, with Family Pack, High Performance audio, etc.
It was a real shame as I wanted to say "to hell with the tax/mpg" and order a D5, but it just wasn't for me.
Between the 3 engines, the 2.0D has to the best mix/compromise for performance and economy (I dont pay company car tax, so cant comment on that). However, for speed and fun, it has to be the D5 everytime
Not sure what Volvo have done to the Ford 2.0 TDCi but imo to a large extent it has been transformed, both in behaviour, delivery and reliability. I got sick of the software updates on our Fords though frankly I wonder how much of this was down to the dealers.They seemed to be habitually overbooked with the result that many times vehicles were handed back uncompleted. Typically it seemed to be injectors uncalibrated which left engines running like a bag of spanners and very difficult to judge if the upgrade had cured the reported problem.
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