Changing to a diesel...

Pookie Bear

Pookie Bear

Pookie Bear

Soldato
Joined
28 Jun 2006
Posts
5,248
Location
Newcastle upon Tyne
Looking for some advice :)

So I went for an interview today and it went well. If they offered me the job, I would take it. The only downside is the commute. Forty miles each way, with the occasional 60 mile trip between two offices every week. To my knowledge, we're now moving into diesel territory, right? I currently drive a 57 reg Ford Focus 2ltr petrol Ghia with a measly 13k miles on the clock - I generally used to use it for 20 mile trips once or twice a week. I have zero funds to go on top - I would need to fund a vehicle from my car alone.

Firstly, is my mileage going to make a diesel my best option?
Secondly, what do you think would be the best way to get a new vehicle?
- Sell this one privately and then get one from a dealer (this raises concerns about gaps where I can't drive)
- Go into a dealer and do some kind of trade-in effort (my first thought)
- Something I've not thought of?

I'm admittedly clueless on the car front, so I would very much appreciate any advice anyone might offer.

Thanks :)
 
If you're moving purely for cost reasons, you need to look at how much you're going to save and where the money to change will come from (eg a loan is probably going to come out your monthly income, so the same place as the petrol).

The calculations are pretty straight forward, just ask if you need help there though.

If you're funding the replacement entirely from your current car, I'd try selling and buying privately so the price differential is minimal. By trading and buying from a dealer, you're paying top whack for the new one and getting bottom dollar for the old one.

As for possible replacements, it's got to be a Mondeo :D
 
Well, I own the car outright and have no finance on it, so that makes my decision a little easier :)

Thanks for taking the time to respond!
 
The car should be worth enough to get a decent replacement, but you'll probably need to take a small step down in some way - either mileage, age or spec. Won't be a big jump though.

What sort of mpg are you getting on motorway runs with the current car?
 
I'd question the financial benefit to changing due to the cost of changing (lost money on your current car), If you have to change i'd swap for a diesel Mondeo, simply for the reason you will get more for your money and the fact its easy to shift a Focus, its harder to sell a Mondeo..
 
I would expect you to end up with a higher mileage diesel equivalent. Most people buy a diesel in the knowledge they're going to put miles on it.

If you're planning on doing mostly motorway miles, I'd be looking for a diesel with 6 gears. I don't get amazingly good mpg on my fiesta at 70.
 
Bug One said:
I don't get amazingly good mpg on my fiesta at 70.
Click to expand...

[TW]Fox;15328535 said:
Was getting amazing mpg not the entire reason you bought it?
Click to expand...

Oh this could get interesting. :D

Bug One said:
Ok, I know I'm going to get slated for this but I've just put the deposit down on a brand spanking new car.

One of the big selling points for me was the the 78mpg extra urban fuel economy, which, in my head means I can justify the extra expenditure.

Can anyone guess what it is? ;)
Click to expand...

Seems your right Fox.

I wonder what mpg his Fiesta is giving....
 
[TW]Fox;15328535 said:
Was getting amazing mpg not the entire reason you bought it?
Click to expand...
I get good mpg at motorway speed. Around 58mpg. I get very good mpg on my daily A road commute. Around 70mpg. Over my entire ownership of the car so far I'm currently averaging 62mpg.

Not too shabby. But thanks for spending the time searching my old posts to pick that up. Clearly your life is very empty at the moment.
 
Oh and just to drag back a very very old debate, good mpg and low tax was the reason I bought that specific model. Not the reason I bought a new car.
 
Bug One said:
I get good mpg at motorway speed. Around 58mpg.
Click to expand...

Thats actually 'rubbish MPG' for a diesel Fiesta. I got that - just - from a diesel BMW.

Estate.

Not too shabby. But thanks for spending the time searching my old posts to pick that up. Clearly your life is very empty at the moment.
Click to expand...

No searching required, I remember the thread well :D

One of the big selling points for me was the the 78mpg extra urban fuel economy, which, in my head means I can justify the extra expenditure.
Click to expand...

So the big selling point... you don't get. As everyone predicted :D
 
[TW]Fox;15328945 said:
So the big selling point... you don't get. As everyone predicted :D
Click to expand...
Its costing me very little on fuel, its been problem free, and I still enjoy driving it. If I take it easy and don't have to drive elsewhere, I can do my entire weeks commute for £36. Much better than the previous cars £100. Plus I still get the maximum rate for fuel allowance.

I'm still very happy with my purchase. But thank you for your kind support.
 
Dolph said:
Thanks for saving the good fuel for the rest of us :D
Click to expand...
Petrol = fun.
Diesel = commute.

Works for me.

I'm glad everyone is giving the OP such sound advice. Really helping the thread. I think what this clearly shows is that if you want some grown up, mature advice, look elsewhere.
 
With regards to the OP's question, the main suggestion I would make is to think about what car you want, and head down to the dealers, and find out what the best sort of change deal you can get will be.

You're looking at approx 1600-1800 business miles a month, which is fairly high (over 20k a year in business mileage alone), so you are going to want something comfortable, but the problem will be your future resale is going to suffer due to the above average mileage.

Unfortunately, I have no idea how much your focus is worth, which makes recommending something as a straight swap somewhat tricky. The idea of a diesel mondeo is a pretty good one. You could also try looking for something like a skoda octavia, or possibly something french...
 
I bought a 2.0 ghia TDCI focus ('05) plate for 7.2k about 18 months ago (24k mileage, 1 owner). Not sure if they will have dropped more since. Its as early 2nd generation focus and it hasnt given me any problems bar a leak in the AC system. Really comfortable for long drives, but i`m guessing it won't feel as sporty as your current car.

Average MPG for me is 49/50 - thats with lots of driving in London (also known as sitting in traffic) and i also dont make any attempt to drive conservatively to get it higher. If you kept to 70 with cruise control and minimal traffic you could probably get ~ 55-60 i'd guess.
 
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