Most economical 6yr old small car

EllieMarie

Hi, I would be really grateful for any advice.

I have recently purchased a 1.25, 2004 Ford Fiesta which I have calculated is performing 30-35mpg. The majority of my journeys are all short often in rush hour traffic which may be quite stop and start. The car has just been serviced and has done approximately 63000 miles.

My old car was a W reg ford Ka and TBH I was expecting about the same MPG from the Fiesta but my fuel consumption seems to have risen by approximately 50%.

Having looked on Autotrader at MPG figures this seems to be correct for the fiesta and I know sometimes there can be discrepencies with figures quoted. Basically I'd like some advise if anyone has any experience of other small cars and how economical or not they are or if anyone drives a similiar Fiesta. I'm kind of thinking of selling the Fiesta but is there going to be much of a difference in MPG for this age car - basically there is only £3500 in the car budget?

Any answers gratefully received.

newbie007_2

Well rush hour traffic sounds about right for what mpg the fiesta is getting. A diesel fiesta, yaris, jazz etc will give you a better mpg but diesel cost more to buy and a little more to maintain. If you do perhaps 10k miles or more then a diesel will benefit, if you do less than 5k miles a year then maybe better to stick to the current fiesta.

# I have a much older fiesta 1.25 1997 and it does similar mileage to yours in short trips and rush hour.

I will be doing 20k miles next year so have set my eye on an 06 yaris 1.4 diesel T spirit.

sassy_one

Makes to go for are Ford's as the first top one or a Honda, both good makes, Ford being a cheaper easier one to source parts for

property.advert

Assuming for ease of calculations that petrol/diesel is £6 a gallon, your current mpg is 35 and your prospective mpg is 45 and you do 10k per year, then the extra cost is (10000/35) - (10000/45) = 64 * £6 = £384 per year. You can adjust this for your real figures if you wish.

To be honest, to sell your car and buy another, you move from a car you know to one you do not and if you buy from a dealer you have to factor in their profit and at the end of the day, the annual saving is so small, at just over £7 per week, that it isn't worth it to be honest.

The decision is to research a more fuel efficient car before buying, not now, but when you need to sell this car. Any other decision will cost you more than the extra fuel cost, particularly as the Fiesta is now depreciating slowly.

LeeSouthEast

My 2003 diesel Ford Focus (115ps TDCi) averages 60mpg according to the trip computer, which averages over the last 400 miles of driving. My driving style is quite er, quick, and is a mixture of town and dual carriageway driving.

Can probably pick one up quite cheap these days!

Quinny_2

My 406 HDi does 40 min around the doors, and can do up to 60 on a stretch, and is a large family saloon.