You don't need to be an 'investor' to invest in Singletrack: 6 days left: 95% of target - Find out more
I'm looking for a new car £5/6k budget. Needs to be comfy on the motorway, reliable, decent size boot to shove bike into and decent fuel economy.
Now here's my problem. I wanted a petrol but there don't seem to be many around nowadays, 5 years ago you could pick up a decent 5yr old Mondeo 1.8LX easily. [u]It seems that most cars in my size & price range are ex-company cars and are nearly all diesel.[/u]
I don't want a diesel as most seem to have some kind of scare story with the DPF, clutch, DMF, cambelt, EGR, etc. etc.... but given there's not much choice I might have to get a diesel.
[i]Are there any diesel cars out there that don't have all of these problems? Or only have some of them? [/i]
You can get a Mondeo, Accord or Mazda6 2.0 petrol but there's not many around in good condition at sensible prices. There seems to be 2.4/2.5L petrol versions around but they're far too thirsty.
Any ideas?
Ignore the scare stories.
Drac - Moderator
Ignore the scare stories.
I had major DPF and EGR issues with my Mazda6. It got sorted eventually but only after I'd threw loads of money at it.
I sold it when I got a company car but a recent admin change means that I have no company car.
The "family sized" car these days tends to be in a MPV or SUV shape. What's left is company fleet fodder for sales reps to pound up and down the motorway and they want diesel for low CO2 (thus low co. car tax).
Any Vectra 2.2i's around - had one as a company car in 2006, plenty decent enough.
BMW 320i or 520i. Nice and cheap as they are not diesel, good engines and more importantly not a VX or ford etc
more importantly not a VX or ford etc
?
I had major DPF and EGR issues with my Mazda6. It got sorted eventually but only after I'd threw loads of money at it.
I sold it when I got a company car but a recent admin change means that I have no company car.
Yeah Mazda struggle with diesels.
Honda 2.2 no particulate filter nonesense. Accords are cheap and have a huge boot.
probably sounded a bit harsh, just find lots of 'cheaper' makes tend to be in worse condition due to being company/loan cars etc or having had families use them. Something like a 5 series will just have a more solid build in terms of suspension components too so they make great 2nd hand bargains, especially the petrol ones that are often hardly used and well looked after. I've also hated pretty much every VX I've driven.
cody - thanks, Focus driving position too cramped, I hate Vauxhalls but will take a close look at a Civic
Toyota of a size to suit?
My corolla 03 plate now on 278k miles.
Other than consumables only repairs have been heater matrix, clutch(I do a lot of stop/start) and two sets of droplinks
I've never once bought a diesel car. A carefully driven modern petrol car can be extremely efficient and when you don't want to drive it carefully its nice to have an engine with a high rev limit. My dad once had a Civic with a 1.5 vetec lump under the bonnet. Hugely efficient and it screamed like a banshee at full revs in top gear at 100 mph+. You don't get that with a car run on loser juice*
*My company van however is a diesel and for the mileage that does a diesel engine is crucial. It is very slow though and just won't rev.
"loser juice" sounds so very wrong!
Is the answer not Shirley an Octavia VRS?
. Hugely efficient and it screamed like a banshee at full revs in top gear at 100 mph+. You don't get that with a car run on loser juice
No, because they'll do that without screaming like a banshee.
No, because they'll do that without screaming like a banshee.
Maybe, but a diesel won't rev to 9000 rpm so you have far less fun getting to 100mph in the first place.
Besides, in all seriousness, a well maintained variable valve petrol engine car is what most people actually need for most of their driving, especially if it is mostly local with only the odd longer journey. Some of the small capacity turbo charged engines are astonishing. If I could afford a new Ford Courier van with the Ecoboost petrol engine I'd ditch my diesel fueled slug of a van in a heartbeat. Sadly most van makers are slow to switch to more novel engines and most people still believe that diesel is the holy grail for economical motoring.
And right now becoming even more economical.
I've had petrol cars and diesel cars, the diesel cars I've had have had bigger boots, therefore deisel cars are more betterer than petrol cars! Fact!
HTH.....
80% of my driving is on the M62/60 so in theory it's at motorway speeds apart from when it's crawling
We have a 2.4 Honda Accord and they are only a couple of MPG down on the 2.0. I wouldn't count them out. At £1.12 a gallon for petrol unless you are doing bigger miles (at which point you should be buying a diesel anyway) it won't make much of a difference in annual running costs.
How about a 2.0 TFSi Octavia VRS? http://www.motors.co.uk/car-38516964/sp
Everything you want, good handling car, huge boot, very comfy for long runs, petrol, VAG reliability.
What's not to like?
More here: http://www.motors.co.uk/used/cars/skoda/octavia/fuel/petrol
Switched from an Alfa 2.0 petrol to an Alfa 1.9 diesel here.
Both have excellent throttle response, both are pleasingly rorty mid-range and one engine is easy on oil consumption, returns over 39mpg on an enthusiastic outing and has plenty of low-down torque.
It's a good engine, period. The fact that it's a diesel is incidental.
Alfa 1.9 diesel here
Got 53mpg out of mine the other day along the A303/M3 I know, I was surprised too! A bit agricultural though.
39mpg out of a diesel? Is it broken??
Seriously, I was getting that average out of my 180bhp twin charged petrol Fabia VRS.
Rachel
Kryton - are you keeping the 159!?
Op
You don't say what kind of mileage you will do but if it's sub 10k I wouldn't personally give a rats bottom about getting 28mpg vs. 33mpg or whatever the difference is for the bigger engine. If you do 10k + maybe a bit more of an issue but you get the better performance.
I will be in this position in a year or two when my car gives up. I do 20k a year and with all the new stuff to go wrong on a new diesel I might still go petrol...I forsee an octy vrs estate or maybe a straight six beemer....
The debate also depends on what driving characteristics you want.
Drac - Moderator
Yeah Mazda struggle with diesels.
Yes my 2006 Mazda 6 diesel estate is just fine @ 125000 miles and despite being driven like my hair is on fire since I bought it with 14000 miles on the clock still seems to work perfectly.
People at work with Ford/BMW/Seat/VW/Nissan/Audi/Vauxhall & Renault's diesels have had major problems?
The only car I've owned in 33 years since I passed my test that was pants was a BX 1.9D mainly as it was fubar before I bought it.
I think a lot of problems are caused because people don't use the engine, I'm not talking about speeding but just changing up way to early.
I don't think I could go back to normal petrol car again, just got back from holiday where I rented a 1.2 petrol Seat and it was pants! my 10yr old Yaris Diesel (averaging 70mpg) piddles all over it much easier to drive especially up and down hills, I'm surprised how much I missed the torque of a diesel.
I do like my misses Hybrid Yaris though, she wanted a slush box and she likes Toyota it’s really easy to drive and 60+mpg isn’t bad from a Petrol Auto.
I wouldn’t bother with a standard petrol car again, had diesels since 2009 and not had an issue yet… touch wood….
I like the Honda and Toyota diesels my old mad (RAC) hardly see's them, apart from batteries or flats, chain cam is the way to go IMHO.
All these posts and only one asks what kind of mileage the OP does.
*sigh*
Diesel isn't always the answer you know, only when you're doing consistent long runs does it become worthwhile.
My dad once had a Civic with a 1.5 vetec lump under the bonnet. Hugely efficient and it screamed like a banshee at full revs in top gear at 100 mph+
Cool story bro. Given EG's have factory claimed top speeds between 112 and 118mph I'm not surprised it screamed. VTEC JUST KICKED IN YO!
everyone should own a V6 petrol once in their lives.
Mileage is about 12-15k depending on work
[i]39mpg out of a diesel? Is it broken??
Seriously, I was getting that average out of my 180bhp twin charged petrol Fabia VRS. [/i]
I've been getting just over 30mpg out of my 530D on mixed driving.
Still, 240bhp and 370lb/ft of torque at 2000rpm have to be found from somewhere, I guess, and the mid range acceleration is brilliant.
Maybe, but a diesel won't rev to 9000 rpm so you have far less fun getting to 100mph in the first place.
I'm sure that made sense in your head.
Drac nailed it. Ignore the scare stories.
I've had plenty of Fords in the past, none were problematic not withstanding that consumables are just that, tyres, brakes,etc.
I once bought an ex-co car, Mondeo Diesel 2 ltr, with FSH and 71k on the clock. Took it to 240k with no probs and could get 60mpg in summer, when theres higher ambients.
Sold it for £600 and as far as I know, it's still running.
12-15k on decent runs will be no bother for a diseasel, come to the dark side!
For £5k you will have plenty of choice from a mondeo down, if we didn't need the towing weight we'd be looking at a focus sized hatch as you get better for your money.
I think that you need to forget about petrol engines being 2.0L and up, most modern petrol engines are now small capacity with a turbo. There are plenty of Golfs and the like around with 1.4 turbocharged engines in.
[i]allthegear - Member
39mpg out of a diesel? Is it broken??
Seriously, I was getting that average out of my 180bhp twin charged petrol Fabia VRS.
Rachel[/i]
Its not really fair comparing the millage you get out of a tiny, light petrol car with 180bhp with a really quite heavy big diesel estate is it....
my 159 had an egr issue, so I had it blanked and is now at 170bhp, improved efficiency a bit, but like Kryton, when driven with spirit, its around 40pmg, when driven with care, i can get it up to nearly 60
also, I bet you drive like a girl 😉
39mpg out of a diesel? Is it broken??
That's with "enthusiastic" driving, making use of all of the rev range in low gears. My Alfa is very heavy, with air conditioning running and whatnot. I couldn't hope to get anywhere near 39mpg in my old 2 litre 147 without sticking to dual carriageways.
On a motorway run, I can get north of 55mpg at a steady 70mph without difficulty. The best I ever attained from my 147 was 45mpg, at a steady 55mph...the minute I left the dual carriageway and switched to urban roads would result in the economy plummeting.
@the 159 owners in the thread
I've heard about the EGR issue, which can apparently be fixed by a £10 piece of aluminium from eBay. The general consensus is that this mod actually improves MPG and power, but is there an issue with emissions and MOT?
My new beemer is shi.t on mileage, 520D Touring Msport. My older Saloon was so much more frugal. Still, it has many more toys and i only drive enthusiastically occasionally when on some "lanes", M'way (90% driving) is dull 60-70mph.
But for scare stories - i agree with diesel that do constant short low mileage journeys they suffer. If they've lived a life of motorway like my last car, everything will be fine for many miles.
Likewise, Petrol cars, good for small intermittent journeys, then when big ones are needed the offset on fuels costs (not at the moment mind) outway the engine type and potential short service intervals.
for those that are capping off EGR's and de-cating -please don't we are supposed to be improving air quality, not making it worse because we want a few more BHP/Mileage. Fine if you go and get a re-map done to off-set but i bet most don't.
I was informed, earlier this week, that DPF removal is now an MOT failure.
Yes, personally, I'd not remove as they are there for a reason. But it would seem the "option" has now been taken away.
Might be worth while ensuring any car one might buy, still has a DPF fitted.
yes been a failure for a few months now, though in practice the examiner will only look for the "can" and if present will pass it, most just have straight through "cans" now with the gubbins removed, same for CATS. Also most cars have undertrays which MOT testers wont touch, so you'll often get an "advisory" notice.
Fine if you go and get a re-map done to off-set
How would you do that? Retard injection timing? I'm sure no remaps do that...?
If I weren't towing a caravan occasionally I'd be looking for a petrol hybrid every time. Best of both worlds, and very reliable. Well the Toyota ones are at least.
39mpg out of a diesel? Is it broken??
Don't forget there are plenty of quick dervs out there these days - the 330d courtsey car I have did averaged 27 when driven enthusiastically. Best I managed was 46. Not bad given it had the same 0-60 as the E46 M3.
I think petrol cars are pretty unloved in this country because everyone is obsessed with CO2 and what they pay in VED. Even more so if it is petrol and a biggish engine. We picked our 330 up for buttons compared to the derv version...it does drink a bit of fuel round town but will return 30-odd on a run.
the 330d courtsey car I have did averaged 27 when driven enthusiastically. Best I managed was 46
Straight 6 innit - more cylinders = more drag in the engine.
I've a 3ltr, V6 diesel A8. On a warm day I can get 50mpg, cruising on the M-way.
molgrips - Member
Fine if you go and get a re-map done to off-set
How would you do that? Retard injection timing? I'm sure no remaps do that...?
it's possible to an extent to chnage the mapping which will ultimately change the burn characteristics, if you do this post EGR/Cat/DPF replacement it could help, but not completely. It would however affect your MPG figures.
potential short service intervals.
Yeah those 18k services are a real pain.