Diesel v Petrol....

GuruJockStrap

GuruJockStrap

GuruJockStrap

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I'm looking to purchase a car soon and need help deciding whether to go petrol or diesel.

Firstly, the car would be a Mondeo. I'm old before my time and going for practicality over everything else.:p

I could get something like an 2002 petrol 2.0 LX/Zetec for around £3.5-4k or just under. If I went for a diesel, then I could get a TDCi for around £4.5-5k.

I'm going for 2 jobs at the moment and both have different annual mileage estimations.

Job 1 would mean around 9000 miles in the first year, 10,000 miles in the second and third.

Job 2 would mean less in the 1st year (around 6000 miles) but a whopping 25,000 in the second and third.

I know road tax would be cheaper with the diesel but I'm not sure on servicing intervals. Would the diesel model require a more frequent servicing interval than the petrol or is it vice versa?

The recent fuel price increase and expected increases over the next 2 years made me re-consider my original petrol choice. Just want to make sure I'm making the cheapest choice.

Would diesel or petrol be the best choice for me?
 
First job wouldnt mean enough miles to warrant a diesel for any reason other than prefering the driving style.

Second job isn't necesarrily that bad either, (averaging 18.5k a year) I manage around 22,000 a year in mine (petrol).

Petrol will give you more VFM.
 
You dont really do enough miles to justify buying a diesel

Service intervals will be about the same but maintainance and repairs costs will be a lot more expensive. I wouldnt buy a TDCi tbh

Unless you prefer driving diesels to petrols I wouldnt bother.
 
GuruJockStrap said:
Sorry, do you mean more expensive with the diesel?
Click to expand...

yeh maintainance, probably a lot more expensive in the long run

4x injectors £600-£700 they can fail whenever they feel like it
turbo charger - over £500
fuel pump - probably around a grand
clutch and dual mass flywheel - £600+

these are common things that CAN fail with TDCi/HDi's (same engines)
 
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don't forget though, even though you pay a premium for the diesel, it also holds it value more too so you'll get more back for it, then the price of petrol vs diesel is near enough the same now therefore IMO it's up to you what you would prefer, but i'd go for the TDCi over the 1.8 everytime, torque rocks, and i'll still get an estimated £1k more back for mine over the petrol variant as it's more in demand than the petrol version.
(for anyone who wants to try to pee on my parade, don't bother as i stated, this is MY opinion only and not the law so save your fingertips from wearing out and don't bother quoting me :))
 
No they are not THAT bad but a petrol mondeo will be more reliable then a diesel mondeo and after 100k theyre probably gonna need majour parts replacing to keep on going. Im not saying its gonna break down everyweek but when they do its very expensive to put right.
 
Thanks for all the info guys!

Will go with the petrol Mondeo to begin with. First year shouldn't be a problem. If it gets expensive in the second, I can always change car again I suppose.
 
Cruising with a diesel is much smoother than with a petrol (in my experience)

People have listed parts that need replacing on a diesel, well parts also need replacing on a petrol version too.
 
Commonrail turbodiesels are far from unreliable but it is true that they are not the bulletproof engines of old. High pressure injectors are complex and expensive to fix.
 
Really? I never knew the petrol engines were chain driven.

Is it only certain petrol engines/from a certain year? Or is it all of them?

That was one of the things that swayed me towards a diesel to be honest. I know cam belt changes can be a costly thing. My current crappy petrol Corsa has a chain and that's pretty low maintenance really.
 
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