Economical cars for PHers

[willmagrath]

With fuel prices going crazy, it got me thinking...what car could I get that does an 50mpg on a run yet won't bore you death. Petrol or diesel.

Doesn't need to be fast, maybe an interesting engine or rare in someway.

What we thinking?

I'm thinking this..

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202201161...

Always liked these. 180hp, easy 50mpg, rare and pretty good looking and for £5k, you cant complain.

[M.F.D]

How about a C30 D5?

200bhp, nice noise for an oil burner, looks decent, rare and will return 50mpg.

BMW 123d another option.

Many small warm hatches will do this too I imagine, depends how you drive them!

[Shnozz]

I keep looking at Twingo RS's and trying to decide if I would look a tt in one at 43 years old and 6'3".

[valiant]

Sorely tempted by a little Arbarth 595 when I changed a while back.

Brilliant little thing but the seats (you sit on them rather than in them if you see what I mean) and the overly harsh ride put me off. I’m tall and I fitted just fine and I’m older than you.

If you can live with the shortcomings then they’re a terrific motor.

[raspy]

Shnozz said:

I keep looking at Twingo RS's and trying to decide if I would look a tt in one at 43 years old and 6'3".

Who cares how you would look to others? Focus on how the car makes you feel. Live life on your terms.

[willmagrath]

M.F.D said:

How about a C30 D5?

200bhp, nice noise for an oil burner, looks decent, rare and will return 50mpg.

BMW 123d another option.

Many small warm hatches will do this too I imagine, depends how you drive them!

Great ideas! Didn't think of those.

[mickyh7]

Even 3.0 Dervs are great on a long run 40-50 mpg. Up to 90mph.
It's when you hit Town traffic it starts to hurt-
20ish.
Or short journeys fron cold-20ish
Or Dicking about-20ish.
It's your right foot, your money!

[andburg]

Shnozz said:

I keep looking at Twingo RS's and trying to decide if I would look a tt in one at 43 years old and 6'3".

they're not economical, old tech 1.6 VVT engine, driven moderately might see mid 30's mpg.

Not 50 mpg, but in my general day to day driving I'm averaging an indicated 41mpg in my Fiat 124, i reckon on an economy run 50 is doable.

[georgeyboy12345]

willmagrath said:

With fuel prices going crazy, it got me thinking...what car could I get that does an 50mpg on a run yet won't bore you death. Petrol or diesel.

Doesn't need to be fast, maybe an interesting engine or rare in someway.

What we thinking?

I'm thinking this..

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202201161...

Always liked these. 180hp, easy 50mpg, rare and pretty good looking and for £5k, you cant complain.

You can also remap them to 240 bhp and 330 lb ft. I’d probably want to fit a better clutch first though!

[Drew106]

Autotrader app.

Fuel type: Petrol
Fuel consumption 50+
Acceleration 0-8 secs
Gearbox: Manual
Tax: up to £130

Not loads of choice, but a few fun cars:
Mini Cooper would be a nice drive.
Peugeot 208 GTi - I forgot about these! I had a 106 back in the day, I'm sure this would be great fun.

[ITP]

Recent mx5 surely.
Bet it’s easy to get over 40mpg in one of those.
For me, diesels don’t count.

[Olivergt]

Original Skoda Fabia VRS?

[eldar]

Citigo/!up/mii. just about impossible to get less than 50mpg, and huge fun to drive.

[georgefreeman918]

Surely a motorcycle of some sort. My Triumph STR was quicker than 95% of cars on the road but returned 55mpg (or maybe I wasn't riding it properly!)

[giveitfish]

Mini Cooper for sure - the 1.5 3-pot turbo version. Fantastic to drive, up to 60mpg a possibility, high 40's mpg a certainty. We've just replaced an Abarth 595 with one and although the Abarth has plenty of character it's not a patch on the Mini as a car to actually drive.

[Trevor555]

eldar said:

Citigo/!up/mii. just about impossible to get less than 50mpg, and huge fun to drive.

And beautifully simple.

So many modern cars have too many menus, gadgets, safety aids, touch screens..

But if you want something fun/economical I used to get 51mpg out of Abarth 124 spider on a long run.

[Drezza]

Olivergt said:

Original Skoda Fabia VRS?

This... can be remapped to 180bhp+ and still return over 50mpg, it's getting quite hard to find unmolested ones now though...

[HustleRussell]

This thread stinks of diesel.

Fortunately the motorway is not a daily or even a weekly event for me. My idea of an economical car is a very light petrol powered car which will never fail to return 40mpg+ on my usual B-roads and rat runs.

A small French hatch... or a Mazda with the lightweight 'Skyactiv' approach.

Something Lotus perhaps? an Elise or a Caterham 7 will do 40mpg.

Dare I say MX-5 1.5 or the Fiat 124? Pity the Fiat has a turbo, but still...

Something with an interesting little two or three cylinder engine maybe. I was reading about Fiat's twin the other day- interesting innovation.

You know, cars which are actually fun to drive... Life is too short for a god-awful diesel four banger. That's a desperate measure.

[M.F.D]

giveitfish said:

Mini Cooper for sure - the 1.5 3-pot turbo version. Fantastic to drive, up to 60mpg a possibility, high 40's mpg a certainty. We've just replaced an Abarth 595 with one and although the Abarth has plenty of character it's not a patch on the Mini as a car to actually drive.

This actually. My wife had one of these and I remember it being really quite good. It went fairly well and ran on fresh air. F56 is a decent steer.

[willmagrath]

Drezza said:

This... can be remapped to 180bhp+ and still return over 50mpg, it's getting quite hard to find unmolested ones now though...

I had one of these for 4 years back in 2013. Amazing little car. I remember once driving to Leeds from Hertfordshire and the fuel needle barely moved off fuel, yet it was as fast as an EP3 Type r (yes, it was remapped)