20k of M25 commuting - How cheap?
Discussion
So I’ve just moved down here, commuting from Guildford to near Gatwick (around 80 miles a day) and is essentially motorway the whole journey. Boring, monotonous motorway. And, a month in, I’m at the point I’m not really fussed if I’m doing it in a Roller or a Ferrari. I just want it as cheaply as possible with the least stress.
I have a budget of around £1500, am looking for 50mpg+ if possible, cheap tax, insurance and trying a bit of bangernomics enabling me to put some money aside for toys.
Current train of thought is a circa mid 2000’s Avensis D4D. Completely tedious, boring and importantly cheap.
Anyone got any experience/suggestions?
I have a budget of around £1500, am looking for 50mpg+ if possible, cheap tax, insurance and trying a bit of bangernomics enabling me to put some money aside for toys.
Current train of thought is a circa mid 2000’s Avensis D4D. Completely tedious, boring and importantly cheap.
Anyone got any experience/suggestions?
Edited by em177 on Thursday 8th March 20:44
em177 said:
So I’ve just moved down here, commuting from Guildford to near Gatwick (around 80 miles a day) and is essentially motorway the whole journey. Boring, monotonous motorway. And, a month in, I’m at the point I’m not really fussed if I’m doing it in a Roller or a Ferrari. I just want it as cheaply as possible with the least stress.
I have a budget of around £1500, am looking for 50mpg+ if possible, cheap tax, insurance and trying a bit of bangernomics enabling me to put some money aside for toys.
Current train of thought is a circa mid 2000’s Avensis D4D. Completely tedious, boring and importantly cheap.
Anyone got any experience/suggestions?
That distance is very close to what you could manage in a 24Kw/h Nissan Leaf, which you could pick up for around £8k. Yes, that's £6,500 over budget but you'll be spending £40/month on electricity rather than £200/month on fuel. Tax zero, insurance very low, and EV's are brilliant in stop/start motorway traffic.I have a budget of around £1500, am looking for 50mpg+ if possible, cheap tax, insurance and trying a bit of bangernomics enabling me to put some money aside for toys.
Current train of thought is a circa mid 2000’s Avensis D4D. Completely tedious, boring and importantly cheap.
Anyone got any experience/suggestions?
Edited by em177 on Thursday 8th March 20:44
A much nicer place to be than an old banger, very few worries about repair costs, and all lovely a few other advantages too.
If you could charge up at your destination you'd be in clover as the range would be fine.
A 30Kw/h Leaf will do it with ease but those are around £14k right now. Even so, there's probably a deal to be done from a Nissan dealer and the figures might end up working.
Of course you might be a complete petrol/diesel head and would (perfectly reasonably) hate the idea of an EV, but 80 comfortable miles in stop/start traffic is screaming Nissan Leaf to me.
You won't see 50mpg on a £1500 diesel 40-45mpg is a more realistic figure.
I'd say look for a Mercedes:
C270
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
C220
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Vauxhall Vectra
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
S60 D5
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
I'd say look for a Mercedes:
C270
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
C220
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Vauxhall Vectra
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
S60 D5
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
OP, you're in shed territory for sure. I'd say a Skoda/Golf with a 1.9Tdi. comfiest thing you can find.
SCEtoAUX said:
That distance is very close to what you could manage in a 24Kw/h Nissan Leaf, which you could pick up for around £8k. Yes, that's £6,500 over budget but you'll be spending £40/month on electricity rather than £200/month on fuel. Tax zero, insurance very low, and EV's are brilliant in stop/start motorway traffic.
I wouldn't fancy trying 80 miles in a Leaf24 in Winter. That would be proper heater-off and confident plan B territory.I do pretty much the same but bit further south down the m23 to Staines.
Youll get stuck in slow traffic around Leatherhead and maybe before the A3 and M3 junctions depending on the time.
Today 2 lanes were closed on the M25 for a section due to a crash or lorry problem which added 40minutes otherwise it's between 40 and 70mph. Had a few podcasts to listen to which passed the time nicely.
I started to hate tyre roar, some nasty concrete sections on the M25, the noise means listening to pod casts or audio books needs high volume. So a good tyres and a well insulated car would be nice.
Being mostly motor way and rarely stop, start I don't think a auto is needed.
A torquey engine is nice for days when you don't feel like running up and down the gears. Also not a small complex engine like a vvt or ecoboost.
I've got about 40 mpg in 1.4 (turbo) and 1.6 (Focus MK1) petrols and 30mpg in a 3.0 petrol. NA are more relaxed on the motorway. A 1.9 diesel Alfa 147 was nice too but had road noise.
Recently did the journey in a mk5 Golf with a 1.4 na petrol engine and found it a nice drive. Still road noise but better than the Alfa's and Focus. Could imagine that being cheap to run, fuel and maintenance.
Watch out for the yellow cameras when the variable speed limit is being enforced.
Youll get stuck in slow traffic around Leatherhead and maybe before the A3 and M3 junctions depending on the time.
Today 2 lanes were closed on the M25 for a section due to a crash or lorry problem which added 40minutes otherwise it's between 40 and 70mph. Had a few podcasts to listen to which passed the time nicely.
I started to hate tyre roar, some nasty concrete sections on the M25, the noise means listening to pod casts or audio books needs high volume. So a good tyres and a well insulated car would be nice.
Being mostly motor way and rarely stop, start I don't think a auto is needed.
A torquey engine is nice for days when you don't feel like running up and down the gears. Also not a small complex engine like a vvt or ecoboost.
I've got about 40 mpg in 1.4 (turbo) and 1.6 (Focus MK1) petrols and 30mpg in a 3.0 petrol. NA are more relaxed on the motorway. A 1.9 diesel Alfa 147 was nice too but had road noise.
Recently did the journey in a mk5 Golf with a 1.4 na petrol engine and found it a nice drive. Still road noise but better than the Alfa's and Focus. Could imagine that being cheap to run, fuel and maintenance.
Watch out for the yellow cameras when the variable speed limit is being enforced.
Evanivitch said:
OP, you're in shed territory for sure. I'd say a Skoda/Golf with a 1.9Tdi. comfiest thing you can find.
Oh I couldn't agree more. Just floating the idea and of course other people might be in a similar predicament and reading this thread, but with a slightly lower range requirement.SCEtoAUX said:
That distance is very close to what you could manage in a 24Kw/h Nissan Leaf, which you could pick up for around £8k. Yes, that's £6,500 over budget but you'll be spending £40/month on electricity rather than £200/month on fuel. Tax zero, insurance very low, and EV's are brilliant in stop/start motorway traffic.
I wouldn't fancy trying 80 miles in a Leaf24 in Winter. That would be proper heater-off and confident plan B territory.SCEtoAUX said:
That distance is very close to what you could manage in a 24Kw/h Nissan Leaf, which you could pick up for around £8k. Yes, that's £6,500 over budget but you'll be spending £40/month on electricity rather than £200/month on fuel. Tax zero, insurance very low, and EV's are brilliant in stop/start motorway traffic.
A much nicer place to be than an old banger, very few worries about repair costs, and all lovely a few other advantages too.
If you could charge up at your destination you'd be in clover as the range would be fine.
A 30Kw/h Leaf will do it with ease but those are around £14k right now. Even so, there's probably a deal to be done from a Nissan dealer and the figures might end up working.
Of course you might be a complete petrol/diesel head and would (perfectly reasonably) hate the idea of an EV, but 80 comfortable miles in stop/start traffic is screaming Nissan Leaf to me.
And just over 3 years to make back the 6.5k difference...A much nicer place to be than an old banger, very few worries about repair costs, and all lovely a few other advantages too.
If you could charge up at your destination you'd be in clover as the range would be fine.
A 30Kw/h Leaf will do it with ease but those are around £14k right now. Even so, there's probably a deal to be done from a Nissan dealer and the figures might end up working.
Of course you might be a complete petrol/diesel head and would (perfectly reasonably) hate the idea of an EV, but 80 comfortable miles in stop/start traffic is screaming Nissan Leaf to me.
Get a Volvo D5
What about a squashy old petrol barge like this? Utter luxury and barely run in. You'd actually look forward to the drive home.
Daily fill up may get a bit boring,as would the 290 g / km but that's a small price to pay....
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Experience in these types of commute tells me to prioritise the following:
- Excellent seats
- Decent stereo
- Auto and cruise
- Left foot rest (seriously)
- Lots of toys (sat nav even if you are doing the same journey day in day out - comes into its own if you need to re-route around traffic)
- Big and solid (no econohatches)
So really, something like the aforementioned Volvo S60, or a Dame Edna Saab 9-5.
Daily fill up may get a bit boring,as would the 290 g / km but that's a small price to pay....
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Experience in these types of commute tells me to prioritise the following:
- Excellent seats
- Decent stereo
- Auto and cruise
- Left foot rest (seriously)
- Lots of toys (sat nav even if you are doing the same journey day in day out - comes into its own if you need to re-route around traffic)
- Big and solid (no econohatches)
So really, something like the aforementioned Volvo S60, or a Dame Edna Saab 9-5.
Edited by Dapster on Friday 9th March 08:54
redandwhite said:
SCEtoAUX said:
That distance is very close to what you could manage in a 24Kw/h Nissan Leaf, which you could pick up for around £8k. Yes, that's £6,500 over budget but you'll be spending £40/month on electricity rather than £200/month on fuel. Tax zero, insurance very low, and EV's are brilliant in stop/start motorway traffic.
A much nicer place to be than an old banger, very few worries about repair costs, and all lovely a few other advantages too.
If you could charge up at your destination you'd be in clover as the range would be fine.
A 30Kw/h Leaf will do it with ease but those are around £14k right now. Even so, there's probably a deal to be done from a Nissan dealer and the figures might end up working.
Of course you might be a complete petrol/diesel head and would (perfectly reasonably) hate the idea of an EV, but 80 comfortable miles in stop/start traffic is screaming Nissan Leaf to me.
And just over 3 years to make back the 6.5k difference...A much nicer place to be than an old banger, very few worries about repair costs, and all lovely a few other advantages too.
If you could charge up at your destination you'd be in clover as the range would be fine.
A 30Kw/h Leaf will do it with ease but those are around £14k right now. Even so, there's probably a deal to be done from a Nissan dealer and the figures might end up working.
Of course you might be a complete petrol/diesel head and would (perfectly reasonably) hate the idea of an EV, but 80 comfortable miles in stop/start traffic is screaming Nissan Leaf to me.
Get a Volvo D5
He'll also have been driving a much newer car, with almost no chance of a huge bill, and indeed a car that's perfectly suited to the type of driving discussed.
Also, the £8k Leaf will still be worth £3k, maybe £4k after three years.
Don't get me wrong though, 80 miles is too much for a 24Kw/h Leaf in winter, but the "EV for a boring stop/start regular motorway trip" is worth mentioning in the thread I think.
All I would say is something diesel and something automatic, ideally some kind of saloon with a bit of space in it.
I opted for an E320 Merc, 3.2 straight six diesel and a 5 speed auto. With a light foot you'd see 45mpg but even an E270 CDI wouldn't be a and shout. I'm fairly tall and spend 2-3 hours at a time in the car and I really can't fault it.
I'm sure there's plenty of other good sized saloons that'd offer the same though.
A comfy seat, plenty of space and an auto box for boring motorway drives.
I opted for an E320 Merc, 3.2 straight six diesel and a 5 speed auto. With a light foot you'd see 45mpg but even an E270 CDI wouldn't be a and shout. I'm fairly tall and spend 2-3 hours at a time in the car and I really can't fault it.
I'm sure there's plenty of other good sized saloons that'd offer the same though.
A comfy seat, plenty of space and an auto box for boring motorway drives.
I did Guildford to Crawley (Just past Gatwick) for over 18 months and it was a surprisingly good journey as you are going the other way to most traffic. I would say there was less than 10 occasions in that time where the M23 or M25 was totally at a standstill and I had to use an alternative route.
My advice would be to always use Waze or Google maps and buy something with very comfy seats. Having just got a S60 lease the seats are amazing so my vote would also be for some form of old Volvo.
My advice would be to always use Waze or Google maps and buy something with very comfy seats. Having just got a S60 lease the seats are amazing so my vote would also be for some form of old Volvo.
SCEtoAUX said:
Well it's only £5,600 because he'll have paid another £900 in VED, and I would guess at a higher insurance premium too.
He'll also have been driving a much newer car, with almost no chance of a huge bill, and indeed a car that's perfectly suited to the type of driving discussed.
Also, the £8k Leaf will still be worth £3k, maybe £4k after three years.
Don't get me wrong though, 80 miles is too much for a 24Kw/h Leaf in winter, but the "EV for a boring stop/start regular motorway trip" is worth mentioning in the thread I think.
So it's perfect, apart from the fact that it's way out of budget and can't complete the journey for half of the year.He'll also have been driving a much newer car, with almost no chance of a huge bill, and indeed a car that's perfectly suited to the type of driving discussed.
Also, the £8k Leaf will still be worth £3k, maybe £4k after three years.
Don't get me wrong though, 80 miles is too much for a 24Kw/h Leaf in winter, but the "EV for a boring stop/start regular motorway trip" is worth mentioning in the thread I think.
Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight.
mindthegap said:
I did Guildford to Crawley (Just past Gatwick) for over 18 months and it was a surprisingly good journey as you are going the other way to most traffic. I would say there was less than 10 occasions in that time where the M23 or M25 was totally at a standstill and I had to use an alternative route.
My advice would be to always use Waze or Google maps and buy something with very comfy seats. Having just got a S60 lease the seats are amazing so my vote would also be for some form of old Volvo.
I am also Cralwey... I have toys at work so the boring commuter car isn't an issue so an old S60 may be the way. My advice would be to always use Waze or Google maps and buy something with very comfy seats. Having just got a S60 lease the seats are amazing so my vote would also be for some form of old Volvo.
I was doing a 100 mile round trip to Essex on the M25 a day and here are my thoughts.
You will struggle to go above 70 MPH, I would say most of my journeys were sitting between 60 and 70MPH.
Make sure you can do a whole week on one tank, nothing more annoying than having to fill up when all you want to do is get home or are running late.
You want as comfortable and relaxed a drive as possible with the car pulling as low revs as possible.
I ended up with a 07 Megane 1.5 DCI with £30 road tax and 65MPG all day (72MPG was my best). However I got the 5 speed and it is way too noisy so I tend to stick around 65MPH. If I was doing it again I would get something bigger, with a bigger diesel engine and either 6 speed or Automatic.
Luckily I don't do that mileage anymore so I can buy anything I like now.
You will struggle to go above 70 MPH, I would say most of my journeys were sitting between 60 and 70MPH.
Make sure you can do a whole week on one tank, nothing more annoying than having to fill up when all you want to do is get home or are running late.
You want as comfortable and relaxed a drive as possible with the car pulling as low revs as possible.
I ended up with a 07 Megane 1.5 DCI with £30 road tax and 65MPG all day (72MPG was my best). However I got the 5 speed and it is way too noisy so I tend to stick around 65MPH. If I was doing it again I would get something bigger, with a bigger diesel engine and either 6 speed or Automatic.
Luckily I don't do that mileage anymore so I can buy anything I like now.
I bought a Passat TDi PD engine model B5.5.
A good friend has had one running 170bhp (chipped 130 model) now for more than 250,000 miles. Total mileage 350k miles, he mapped it at 70k old.
I looked at that and thought.. pre DPF, very simple and sturdy engine, ~50mpg no matter how you drive it. A very quiet and comfortable interior (nice place to be), spacious and safe in an accident.
So I bought one, mot'd it, put new genuine brakes all round, tyres, full service & all fluids and the whole lot cost me less than £2,000. Bargain motoring. I would not bat an eyelid about having to drive it from here to Africa and back again tomorrow. Mileage is near irrelevant if cared for but mine is under 150k miles at the moment.
A good friend has had one running 170bhp (chipped 130 model) now for more than 250,000 miles. Total mileage 350k miles, he mapped it at 70k old.
I looked at that and thought.. pre DPF, very simple and sturdy engine, ~50mpg no matter how you drive it. A very quiet and comfortable interior (nice place to be), spacious and safe in an accident.
So I bought one, mot'd it, put new genuine brakes all round, tyres, full service & all fluids and the whole lot cost me less than £2,000. Bargain motoring. I would not bat an eyelid about having to drive it from here to Africa and back again tomorrow. Mileage is near irrelevant if cared for but mine is under 150k miles at the moment.
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