Spec me an economical car.. please..

Nitrojan · 15 Mar 2011 at 14:01

With the expected increase in fuel prices I am seriously considering switching to a diesel alternative!

What sort of cars would you recommend for a 19 year old with 1 year NCB, as I am looking to purchase in October time for in or around £3.5-4k? Something stylish and spacious, with reasonable acceleration (I know due to my age I am limited in this respect, and also the fact that I am choosing diesel) and decent mpg.

I know having good mpg and good acceleration is somewhat of a contradiction, however we can be optimistic can't we lol

I absolutely love VW Golf's however their price tag seems very high (I know it's German) and it's harder to find one with a low-ish mileage.

What can you recommend?

Nitrojan · 15 Mar 2011 at 14:06

Confused said:
What car do you currently have?

BMW 523i SE - yes, it's now getting too much to run..

Nitrojan · 15 Mar 2011 at 14:07

Peerzy said:
Get a nice small 1.2/1.4 hatchback for £2k and save the rest till you can insure something decent.

Seems sensible.. Any recommendations? I was looking at 1.5 dci Clios 100bhp - 60mpg and 10.3s acceleration.. seem quite rare though and not sure if I could pick one up for £2k.

Nitrojan · 15 Mar 2011 at 14:12

Mainly shorter journeys.. I hardly do motorway runs, and at the moment I am averaging 26-30mpg (this is on long journeys too.. not just the odd mile or two across town), on motorways I get around 30-31mpg which isn't good considering my wage lol

Nitrojan · 15 Mar 2011 at 14:12

Spunkey said:
Unless you're doing ~18k miles a year or more, step away from the diesels.

Why do you say this? :confused:

Nitrojan · 15 Mar 2011 at 14:15

I'm suprised by the amount of people telling me not to go down the diesel route! I always thought this was the best way to go

Nitrojan · 15 Mar 2011 at 14:18

hilly said:
You generally have to pay more for a diesel, over their petrol variant. You then have buy diesel (which costs more than petrol).

The difference in MPG and potential savings are only earnt upon doing many many miles.

If you check Parkers there is a good diesel v petrol comparison and how many miles you'd need to break even.

How many miles do you do a year?

I'm insured up to 10,000 at the moment. And thanks for the Parkers info, I shall check that out later

Nitrojan · 15 Mar 2011 at 14:28

Peerzy said:
It's not how many miles you are insured up to, it's how many you actually do on average each year.

Well with the new car I should be doing around 12,000-13,000 a year max.

Nitrojan · 15 Mar 2011 at 15:09

I have worked out that it's around a £400 saving per year in fuel alone for a diesel doing 12k miles using the following:

Petrol - £1.35 per litre
Diesel - £1.41 per litre

(The above are based on the highest prices in my area)

Petrol MPG - 38
Diesel MPG - 55

(The above are rough guesses?)

Yearly petrol - £1,939.74
Yearly diesel - £1,399.75

Hmm.. I guess depending on the repair costs/servicing costs etc (which I have no clue about regarding diesels) it wouldn't work out that much cheaper if at all.. suppose you are right