petrol or diesel ?

[MALC1976]

im going to be buying a newish car within the next couple of weeks and ive always had a petrol one, a few of my friends are saying go for a diesel this time , what are the benefits, all i can tell is there noisier.

thanks

[newquizzer]

They usually cost about �1k more and I believe they still need more frequent oil changes by the dealer than petrol vehicles.

Fuel is slightly dearer in this country, but not in France, Belgium or Spain, about 30% cheaper than lead free.

The initilal larger outlay will not be coverd by the better fuel economy unless you do very heavy mileage.

[stanleyman]

Servicing time is the same as a petrol but deisels are more reliable apart from the electronics that both have these days. Fuel economy is far better than petrol and is more than offset by the slightly higher cost, if you are buying secondhand this will be a real saving. Tank range is usually fantastic 700 - 800 miles or more between fill ups.

Modern deisels are no more noisier apart from maybe when cold than a petrol engine. Engines and exhausts last much longer and deisels often have better performance and are safer in a collision with fuel fires being virtually unheard of.

I wouldn't have anything else.

[furrycheeky]

I am agreeing with newquizzer on this. Unless you do higher than average mileage, the increase miles per gallon against higher price of fuel is not worth it. It would take ages to make up the extra cost of the car.

[Mrs_Pegasus]

I have read recently that there are savings of �250-�300 every 10,000 miles. I have both a petrol and diesel and I dont mind either, I spend less time at the fuel station with the diesel. Its on a 51 plate and to be honest the noisy argument is wearing thin on the newer models, especially the new Honda engine which is amazingly quiet.

Other plus points for the petrol are it will react and accelerate quickly but once the diesel has reached the same speed there isnt a lot of difference.

Horses for courses.

[crgb14]

I bought a new Golf 2.0 tdi not so long back and decided on this model over the 2.0 petrol equivelant for several reasons.

a) its no louder than the petrol, b) it goes like stink, c) diesels will ALWAYS hold their money better than a petrol. There are more factors but find the right car and you'll fond that diesels are the only ones to go for. All the german manufacturers tend do do better with their diesels (Audi, VW, BMW). Many dealers will tell you that for it to be worth while you need to do 15000 miles a year....this is rubbish as you'll always benefit when its time to change car.

[Paul22118]

I found myself in your position recently. I needed a decent sized car, ideally a hatch. I needed it to tow and I wanted an automatic. I also wanted the car to be a diesel but couldn't afford the high prices of Mercs etc.

I now run a Mondeo 130 auto diesel hatch.

Advantages are goes like the wind with huge power surges and a 125mph top end. Tows a treat and is reasonable to insure and service (Ford). Add to that 49mpg and I made a good change.

Towed to Luxembourg last year - diesel equiv. 45p per gallon.

[charlesbow]

Agree with previous ABr's, the only other disadvantage is diesel's usually have VERY poor heaters. Both my last two cars, (Mondeo & Picasso 2Ltrs) took around 8 miles to get slightly warm!! My current (petrol) car gets warm within a mile.

[stanleyman]

Charlesbow, I can't agree with you that all deisels have poor heaters, they are the same as the petrol version. The reason why some but not all deisels are a bit slow to warm up is that they are much more fuel efficient and less fuel is wasted as heat loss. However, eight miles to warm up slightly is quite excessive and you must have had a thermostat problem. My deisel Merc and Escort warm up fully in two miles and the Discovery in three.

[Electrochem]

I have 2 diesel cars. A Rover 218SLD Turbo and a Meriva 1.7 CDTI. The Rover has done 154 000 and still pulls as good as new. I would always go for diesel, but I wouldn't recommend it if you do <12 000 a year.

I would never leave the oil change on ANY car more than 7500 miles, despite what the service record says. Most diesel engined cars can be bought for the same price as the petrol engined eqivalents.

[Alltorque]

Diesel is the way to go for all the reasons given. I run a Skoda Fabia vRS, (that's the 130bhp TDi jobby), and it's pretty damned quick and super-economical. We're about to buy a new Octavia 2.0TDi Estate with the DSG g/box. After years of petrol I'm now convereted to diesel.

[MALC1976]

ok guys thanks for all your imput im sure your all be pleased to hear i have just brought myself a

peugeot 2.0 hdi