Diesel v petrol - pivotal decision point

I've always felt, for long motorway runs, diesels make sense, for short commuting in town petrol is much more sensible (besides they heat up quicker in winter generally!).

If you're doing 600 miles a month I doubt a diesel will be much more economical than a good mid-range petrol - furthermore a petrol will just be that little bit more pleasant (IMO).
 
From my experience, diesel engines take longer to warm up.

For purely round town and the occasional long journey I'd favour petrol.

However I drive an hour each way every day and have found Diesel a better option for that. Plus I think I've grown out of the boy racer thing, and couldn't really care what my car sounds like.
 
I have a 2.5 mile each way commute and a 1 to 3 times a week I'll double that by going home for lunch. Problem is I also use my car for work and depending on where I am heading I can also shove an extra 30 to 70 miles a day on top a few times a week.

So depending on what I have on and where changes whether I'd be better off with a diesel. :(

At the moment I'm having the odd thought or two about getting shot of my car for something a bit more bread and butter, something like a mk2 Focus. So far both the petrol and diesel 1.6/1.8s make equal sense in my mind. In the end I think my budget will force my hand to go for the petrol.

That said I think a diesel suits my driving better these days when compared to an NA low power petrol. Our Punto with peak torque at 4500rpm and peak bhp at 6500rpm I find quite tiresome.
 
I work 18 miles from home and a good stretch of that is motorway and main A road with national speed limits.

I drive a diesel and it is more economical to do so as things stand.

For about town driving, Fox and WG have it spot on.
 
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