Thinking of changing the car
Discussion
Hi folks. As per the title - I'm thinking of changing the car. I currently have a Fiesta Mk6.5 1.25 Style Climate. I've had it for about 6 years and it's never set a foot wrong. I'm after something with a bit more power and better looks (the Fiesta is mauve, so I get ripped into a lot by my friends
). My current commute is 50 miles round trip 3 times a week which is mostly motorway and dual carriageways, and it can sometimes feel like a bit of an ache with the 1.25 Fiesta. My estimated annual mileage is roughly 12k a year.
I've got two cars in mind: Audi A3 2.0 TDI Black Edition or a Ford Fiesta Zetec S 1.6 TDCi. Would be grateful for opinions and especially thoughts from owners of either of these cars - comfort, economy, running costs, etc.

I've got two cars in mind: Audi A3 2.0 TDI Black Edition or a Ford Fiesta Zetec S 1.6 TDCi. Would be grateful for opinions and especially thoughts from owners of either of these cars - comfort, economy, running costs, etc.
The Fiesta is on a 2010 (60) plate and the A3 is on a 2011 (61) plate. Appreciate the advice - I thought 12k was right on the border of diesel territory? My mileage may increase in the next year (possible job change). My approximate weekly mileage is 3 days in the office (50 miles round trip), possibly 15 miles on my 2 days working from home, and then maybe 50 miles on the weekend.
I like the Fiesta purely for economy and I've heard they can do a fair number of miles to a tank of diesel. Although the A3 is a solid car and would be good fun (I've driven an A4 so I have an idea of what the A3 would feel like to drive) - plus the flat bottom steering wheel is pretty cool.
Edit: Or alternatively, maybe a Fiesta Zetec S 1.0 EcoBoost?
I like the Fiesta purely for economy and I've heard they can do a fair number of miles to a tank of diesel. Although the A3 is a solid car and would be good fun (I've driven an A4 so I have an idea of what the A3 would feel like to drive) - plus the flat bottom steering wheel is pretty cool.
Edit: Or alternatively, maybe a Fiesta Zetec S 1.0 EcoBoost?
Edited by lloydyyy on Monday 10th April 14:05
"economy" figures in a diesel are a massive red herring, especially with the DV6 (1.6td) engine in any guise (Citroen, Peugeot, Ford, Volvo etc).
If you get the wrong model year* at the wrong mileage/history, there could well be a £500-£1000+ service bill waiting to bite if/when the DPF needs replacing (and possibly a pressure sensor etc).
(*There was a crossover with many models whereby this 'isssue' was amended and they no longer needed replacing as part of a service interval)
Generally you're going to have a lot more expense on a turbo diesel due to the way EURO4+5 emissions over complicated things and made them fussy.
That's not too say you can't get reliable or cheap-to-service diesels, just make sure you consider all costs in your economy calcs
If you get the wrong model year* at the wrong mileage/history, there could well be a £500-£1000+ service bill waiting to bite if/when the DPF needs replacing (and possibly a pressure sensor etc).
(*There was a crossover with many models whereby this 'isssue' was amended and they no longer needed replacing as part of a service interval)
Generally you're going to have a lot more expense on a turbo diesel due to the way EURO4+5 emissions over complicated things and made them fussy.
That's not too say you can't get reliable or cheap-to-service diesels, just make sure you consider all costs in your economy calcs
Thought to revive my old topic instead of starting a new one.
Just changed jobs and so my mileage has changed a bit. It's now a 70-mile round trip to/from my new office and I'll be there 5 days a week. Although I'll be car-sharing with a friend and we'll be doing a week-on and week-off approach.
As a rough guess, my mileage would be 400 miles each week I'm driving to/from the office, and including some weekend mileage. So for 26 weeks of the year, my estimated mileage would be 10,400. And for the other 26 weeks of the year where my friend will be driving us to/from the office, I suppose my estimated mileage would be 1,300 if I base that on purely 50 miles per weekend. So my estimated total annual mileage would be 11,700 miles minimum. You could probably add a few hundred miles on to factor in some extra mileage to pick him up and drop him off on my driving weeks.
Would I still be better off buying a petrol?
Just changed jobs and so my mileage has changed a bit. It's now a 70-mile round trip to/from my new office and I'll be there 5 days a week. Although I'll be car-sharing with a friend and we'll be doing a week-on and week-off approach.
As a rough guess, my mileage would be 400 miles each week I'm driving to/from the office, and including some weekend mileage. So for 26 weeks of the year, my estimated mileage would be 10,400. And for the other 26 weeks of the year where my friend will be driving us to/from the office, I suppose my estimated mileage would be 1,300 if I base that on purely 50 miles per weekend. So my estimated total annual mileage would be 11,700 miles minimum. You could probably add a few hundred miles on to factor in some extra mileage to pick him up and drop him off on my driving weeks.
Would I still be better off buying a petrol?
Edited by lloydyyy on Tuesday 20th June 17:18
lloydyyy said:
Thought to revive my old topic instead of starting a new one.
Just changed jobs and so my mileage has changed a bit. It's now a 70-mile round trip to/from my new office and I'll be there 5 days a week. Although I'll be car-sharing with a friend and we'll be doing a week-on and week-off approach.
As a rough guess, my mileage would be 400 miles each week I'm driving to/from the office, and including some weekend mileage. So for 26 weeks of the year, my estimated mileage would be 10,400. And for the other 26 weeks of the year where my friend will be driving us to/from the office, I suppose my estimated mileage would be 1,300 if I base that on purely 50 miles per weekend. So my estimated total annual mileage would be 11,700 miles minimum. You could probably add a few hundred miles on to factor in some extra mileage to pick him up and drop him off on my driving weeks.
Would I still be better off buying a petrol?
I would personally buy a petrol as I prefer them to drive, but a diesel would be fine too, might save you 800-1000 quid a year in petrol, though perhaps more likely to need expensive repairs. I would buy a larger car than a Fiesta though. Considered a Civic?Just changed jobs and so my mileage has changed a bit. It's now a 70-mile round trip to/from my new office and I'll be there 5 days a week. Although I'll be car-sharing with a friend and we'll be doing a week-on and week-off approach.
As a rough guess, my mileage would be 400 miles each week I'm driving to/from the office, and including some weekend mileage. So for 26 weeks of the year, my estimated mileage would be 10,400. And for the other 26 weeks of the year where my friend will be driving us to/from the office, I suppose my estimated mileage would be 1,300 if I base that on purely 50 miles per weekend. So my estimated total annual mileage would be 11,700 miles minimum. You could probably add a few hundred miles on to factor in some extra mileage to pick him up and drop him off on my driving weeks.
Would I still be better off buying a petrol?
Edited by lloydyyy on Tuesday 20th June 17:18
cj2013 said:
"economy" figures in a diesel are a massive red herring, especially with the DV6 (1.6td) engine in any guise (Citroen, Peugeot, Ford, Volvo etc).
If you get the wrong model year* at the wrong mileage/history, there could well be a £500-£1000+ service bill waiting to bite if/when the DPF needs replacing (and possibly a pressure sensor etc).
(*There was a crossover with many models whereby this 'isssue' was amended and they no longer needed replacing as part of a service interval)
Generally you're going to have a lot more expense on a turbo diesel due to the way EURO4+5 emissions over complicated things and made them fussy.
That's not too say you can't get reliable or cheap-to-service diesels, just make sure you consider all costs in your economy calcs
Ive had 2 DV6 engines and found them to be very accurate with their fuel consumption figures, I would avoid buying a pre 2011 though as those suffered quite a few issues compared to the later ones, even had 83mpg out of mine on a long run though it took a bit of doing.If you get the wrong model year* at the wrong mileage/history, there could well be a £500-£1000+ service bill waiting to bite if/when the DPF needs replacing (and possibly a pressure sensor etc).
(*There was a crossover with many models whereby this 'isssue' was amended and they no longer needed replacing as part of a service interval)
Generally you're going to have a lot more expense on a turbo diesel due to the way EURO4+5 emissions over complicated things and made them fussy.
That's not too say you can't get reliable or cheap-to-service diesels, just make sure you consider all costs in your economy calcs
CivBrum said:
I would personally buy a petrol as I prefer them to drive, but a diesel would be fine too, might save you 800-1000 quid a year in petrol, though perhaps more likely to need expensive repairs. I would buy a larger car than a Fiesta though. Considered a Civic?
That figure sounds way out.12K miles at (for example) 40MPG is 300 gallons. Call it a fiver a gallon, so that's just £1,500 a year on fuel. If you were to get 30% more mileage with a diesel then you're saving about £350/year.
silentbrown said:
CivBrum said:
I would personally buy a petrol as I prefer them to drive, but a diesel would be fine too, might save you 800-1000 quid a year in petrol, though perhaps more likely to need expensive repairs. I would buy a larger car than a Fiesta though. Considered a Civic?
That figure sounds way out.12K miles at (for example) 40MPG is 300 gallons. Call it a fiver a gallon, so that's just £1,500 a year on fuel. If you were to get 30% more mileage with a diesel then you're saving about £350/year.
CivBrum said:
I was doing rough figures for 40mpg against 70mpg. (Quick check suggests a 1.8 petrol Civic gets 42.8 v 74 for 1.6 diesel). Maybe a little optimistic.
It's no fun being a pessimist 
"Real MPG" figures show 41 vs 66 which is probably closer. https://www.honestjohn.co.uk/realmpg/honda/civic-2...
If economy is the overriding factor then the cheaper 1.4 also have much per-mile depreciation costs. Have a look at the calculator here which has per-mile costs for new cars. http://www.fleetnews.co.uk/car-running-costs-calcu...
silentbrown said:
CivBrum said:
I was doing rough figures for 40mpg against 70mpg. (Quick check suggests a 1.8 petrol Civic gets 42.8 v 74 for 1.6 diesel). Maybe a little optimistic.
It's no fun being a pessimist 
"Real MPG" figures show 41 vs 66 which is probably closer. https://www.honestjohn.co.uk/realmpg/honda/civic-2...
If economy is the overriding factor then the cheaper 1.4 also have much per-mile depreciation costs. Have a look at the calculator here which has per-mile costs for new cars. http://www.fleetnews.co.uk/car-running-costs-calcu...

However yes I agree at lower mileages I would still buy petrol, but I think at 12k I wouldn't be totally against the idea of a diesel.
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