BMW 125i petrol vs 120d diesel

radar19 · 8 Jun 2014 at 13:52

I'm looking at getting a new BMW 1 series but I'm somewhat confused at which engine to put it in.

I have two to choose from, the 125i and the 120d. They are the same price give or take a £100 however the 125i has more BHP but the 120d has the better fuel mileage (estimated)

Since I'm not going to doing lots of motorway runs or long drives on a regular basis, I'm a bit skeptical about running a diesel especially that diesel is a lot higher in price than petrol. If any diesel owners can help me out here that would be smashing.

[TW]Fox · 8 Jun 2014 at 13:53

radar19 said:
I have two to choose from, the 125i and the 120d. They are the same price give or take a £100 however the 125i has more BHP but the 120d has the better fuel mileage (estimated)

Since I'm not going to doing lots of motorway runs or long drives on a regular basis, I'm a bit skeptical about running a diesel especially that diesel is a lot higher in price than petrol. If any diesel owners can help me out here that would be smashing.

The obvious choice is the 125i. It is quicker, smoother, more refined, quieter and just plain better. If you don't need the diesel and you don't have issues locating a 125i, then it is the clear choice.

radar19 · 8 Jun 2014 at 13:58

[TW]Fox;26420688 said:
The obvious choice is the 125i. It is quicker, smoother, more refined, quieter and just plain better. If you don't need the diesel and you don't have issues locating a 125i, then it is the clear choice.

The only other car I've owned is a 2002 1.4 Ford Fiesta petrol and the MPG is shocking on that. Will the 125i be more efficient?

[TW]Fox · 8 Jun 2014 at 14:04

What age of 125i are we talking about here?

There is, obviously, no way a 2.5 litre 6 cylinder 1 Series will be 'more efficient' than a 1.4 Ford Fiesta. But then frankly unless you are doing high mileage your fuel expenditure isn't exactly bank breaking anyway - especially against the backdrop of how much these cars will cost to purchase.

If you find the cost of putting fuel in a 1.4 Fiesta 'shocking' then I doubt any BMW is the correct choice for you. Motoring is expensive, pretty much. Fuelling a 1.4 Fiesta is one of the cheaper ways of doing it

radar19 · 8 Jun 2014 at 14:10

[TW]Fox;26420744 said:
What age of 125i are we talking about here?

There is, obviously, no way a 2.5 litre 6 cylinder 1 Series will be 'more efficient' than a 1.4 Ford Fiesta. But then frankly unless you are doing high mileage your fuel expenditure isn't exactly bank breaking anyway - especially against the backdrop of how much these cars will cost to purchase.

If you find the cost of putting fuel in a 1.4 Fiesta 'shocking' then I doubt any BMW is the correct choice for you. Motoring is expensive, pretty much. Fuelling a 1.4 Fiesta is one of the cheaper ways of doing it

Well, the last week or so I've done a lot of motorway driving up and down between Lincoln and Chesham. I seem to be using a whole tank of fuel on each trip.

[TW]Fox · 8 Jun 2014 at 14:39

Forget either of these cars if you are unhappy with what it costs to run a small Fiesta.

Muffin` · 8 Jun 2014 at 14:51

Could be a broken o2 causing excessive fuel consumption on the fezzer

Minstadave · 8 Jun 2014 at 15:18

It really doesn't sound like a 6 cylinder 1 series is what you're after.

mccarf · 8 Jun 2014 at 15:23

Do you mean a return trip or a tank of fuel used each way?

inogen · 8 Jun 2014 at 15:56

I quite often do Nottingham to Hertford in an e46 325 and do it about £25 each way. Mine averages (not on this particular trip) about 30mpg.

I'd expect a 125i to Lincoln to Chesham for roundabouts similar at efficient speeds.

radar19 · 8 Jun 2014 at 16:06

mccarf said:
Do you mean a return trip or a tank of fuel used each way?

I have one of those silly digital LCD fuel gauge so I can never really see how much fuel is left but I would normally use a tank of fuel on the whole trip. I don't normally do motorway driving so thats why its a bit odd for me as I've always had a tank last at least a week.

abbotsmike · 8 Jun 2014 at 16:30

300 miles to a tank from a fiesta isn't too terrible. What age of fiesta? Small shopping trolleys aren't geared to be efficient on the motorway...

Either way, the BMW will cost you more in every way, driving is expensive!

radar19 · 8 Jun 2014 at 16:32

abbotsmike said:
300 miles to a tank from a fiesta isn't too terrible. What age of fiesta? Small shopping trolleys aren't geared to be efficient on the motorway...

Either way, the BMW will cost you more in every way, driving is expensive!

2002 with almost 90K on the clock. i know that the Beamer is going to cost more to fill at the pump, I was hoping not to be at said pump so often.

Havana_UK · 8 Jun 2014 at 16:42

According to official figures, the 125i is more fuel efficient than a 2002 1.4 Fiesta. In real world terms, I wouldn't expect an enormous difference but I'd expect you'd see slightly better economy from the Fiesta (this assumes you're talking about the latest model 125i).

Alibaba99 · 8 Jun 2014 at 16:49

radar19 said:
The only other car I've owned is a 2002 1.4 Ford Fiesta petrol and the MPG is shocking on that. Will the 125i be more efficient?

What do you mean shocking? If the Fiesta isn't returning figures well into the 40s on a long run then something is wrong with the engine.

[TW]Fox · 8 Jun 2014 at 16:52

Havana_UK said:
According to official figures, the 125i is more fuel efficient than a 2002 1.4 Fiesta. In real world terms, I wouldn't expect an enormous difference but I'd expect you'd see slightly better economy from the Fiesta (this assumes you're talking about the latest model 125i).

I suspect he isnt, he's talking about the previous generation 125i Coupe.

If he really is talking about the current gen then all this talk of a thirsty 1.4 Fiesta is hilarious against the backdrop of buying a £20,000+ car!

radar19 · 8 Jun 2014 at 17:05

[TW]Fox;26421502 said:
I suspect he isnt, he's talking about the previous generation 125i Coupe.

If he really is talking about the current gen then all this talk of a thirsty 1.4 Fiesta is hilarious against the backdrop of buying a £20,000+ car!

I am talking about the new model.

Alibaba99 said:
What do you mean shocking? If the Fiesta isn't returning figures well into the 40s on a long run then something is wrong with the engine.

I have no idea what my car normally does as I have no means of tracking it. It just seemed odd to me that I use a tank of fuel on a 300 mile trip.

Anyway, this has go off topic slightly. I was comparing it to the diesel.

[TW]Fox · 8 Jun 2014 at 17:07

The answer is still the same if you are looking at the new model. Infact as the 125i is reasonably efficient its even more skewed in favour of the petrol. Buy the 125i.

And if you've got sufficient money to spend over £20,000 on a car stop fretting about how much it cost to drive a Ford Fiesta up the Motorway

hartgeh3 · 8 Jun 2014 at 17:23

How many miles are you going to be doing annually? over 12k go with a diesel

Steeps · 8 Jun 2014 at 17:24

radar19 said:
I have no idea what my car normally does as I have no means of tracking it. It just seemed odd to me that I use a tank of fuel on a 300 mile trip.

Simple way of tracking it: Reset your trip computer when you next fully fill the car and drive. When you next fully fill up note how much you put in, divide by 4.546 then divide your trip computer reading by that number. Reset your trip computer after each fill up.