High mpg cars (approx £5k)

girl_withno_name

Hi - I'm hoping someone could help me out, as I've tried googling for information but am unsure which websites to trust or which are most reliable, as well as getting some search results which are years old and those which relate to brand new cars only...

Anyway, my question is this - I'll soon be increasing my commute and will therefore be looking to buy a used car, maybe 3 years old ish, for around £5k with high mpg - would anyone have any suggestions please?

worried_jim

2004 Audi A4 1.9 TDI 130 Sport [6] 4dr Diesel Saloon £4,095

4 Door Saloon, Manual 6 Speed,. Metallic Blue, 2 owners from new, Alloy Wheels, Central locking, electric mirrors, front electric windows, ABS, Full size spare wheel, MOT April 2013, Climate control, Full service history with recent service. Cloth interior, Anti Theft system, PAS, Radio CD Player, fantastic car in excellent condition, very economical 700 miles plus from a full tank. Insurance group 13.


http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201223474664471/sort/default/usedcars/fuel-type/diesel/model/a4/make/audi/radius/40/postcode/bn424sn/page/3?logcode=p

I had one of these and never did less than 50mpg and it was brilliant. Whilst this is a bit older than you may have wanted, this one is £4k leaving you some money spare to give it a good service to make sure that it is in the best condition for the use and mileage you have intended for it. Plus it is a good looking car and I am sure that you will look extra smart driving it! Good luck.

ventureuk

girl_withno_name wrote: »

Hi - I'm hoping someone could help me out, as I've tried googling for information but am unsure which websites to trust or which are most reliable, as well as getting some search results which are years old and those which relate to brand new cars only...

Anyway, my question is this - I'll soon be increasing my commute and will therefore be looking to buy a used car, maybe 3 years old ish, for around £5k with high mpg - would anyone have any suggestions please?

Have you thought about spending less on a car which does fewer mpg and offsetting the fuel cost against the price paid ?

BlueC

What type of commute? A roads, B roads, motorways? Urban? What kind of speeds? What distance?

All these things matter a lot. Diesels are superb for long commutes on motorways and this is where they are most economical. On short journeys or on journeys with lots of accelerating and braking they are not so good, and many modern petrol engines can be more economical in these circumstances.

Also, do you need a large car? Modern small cars with small petrol engines can be even more economical than large diesels, depending on the journey.

mikey72

Citroen C3 1.4 diesel. No dpf, never does less than 65mpg, urban or motorway.

girl_withno_name

BlueC wrote: »

What type of commute? A roads, B roads, motorways? Urban? What kind of speeds? What distance?

All these things matter a lot. Diesels are superb for long commutes on motorways and this is where they are most economical. On short journeys or on journeys with lots of accelerating and braking they are not so good, and many modern petrol engines can be more economical in these circumstances.

Also, do you need a large car? Modern small cars with small petrol engines can be even more economical than large diesels, depending on the journey.

Sorry - more details would indeed be helpful!

The journey will be about 28 miles each way - about 3 miles from town to the motorway, then about 0.5 miles the other end of the motorway. (The first three miles is 1 mile on 30mph B roads, then 2 miles on a 50mph A road)

I don't need a large car as we already have a Ford Focus which we'll be keeping for times when we may need 4 or 5 people in the car (it's also comfortable for longer journeys!)

Thanks for all the advice given so far

attila_

Agree with worried jim. Any VAG with a 1.9 tdi 130bhp lump will deliver excellent mpg and is much lower than 5k mark.

A skoda fabia vrs or ibiza cupra tdi will be around 5k are lightning quick and get mid 50mpg...for example.

BlueC

girl_withno_name wrote: »

The journey will be about 28 miles each way - about 3 miles from town to the motorway, then about 0.5 miles the other end of the motorway. (The first three miles is 1 mile on 30mph B roads, then 2 miles on a 50mph A road)

This isn't massive mileage. Given 200 working days in a year it is about 12,000 miles which doesn't really put you in a range where a diesel will be beneficial (generally accepted at 20k+). As you have another car also, then I presume this car would mainly be used only for this journey?

Also, 28 miles is quite a short distance for a diesel.... they take a long time to warm up and get to an operating temperature where they are really efficient. You'd be half way to work before it started to get in the groove.

All things considered, I would suggest you may be better off with a smaller modern petrol engine car than a larger diesel.

As an example, our Skoda Fabia 2 (1.1 petrol engine, cost £4,800 at 3 years old with 1 year Skoda warranty) does 40+mpg on a combined run similar to yours. I had a diesel Saab 1.9 that would eat up motorway miles at 60+mpg but on a 20 mile trip or around town it would dip well below 40mpg. I've also been pleasantly surprised how nippy a small modern petrol engine can be.

Factor in the higher cost of buying a diesel and the higher cost of fuel, and you likely won't be making any saving with a diesel IMO.

Some cars to consider: Skoda Fabia, Ford Fiesta, Honda Jazz, VW Polo, Toyota Yaris?

girl_withno_name

mikey72 wrote: »

Citroen C3 1.4 diesel. No dpf, never does less than 65mpg, urban or motorway.

attila_ wrote: »

Agree with worried jim. Any VAG with a 1.9 tdi 130bhp lump will deliver excellent mpg and is much lower than 5k mark.

A skoda fabia vrs or ibiza cupra tdi will be around 5k are lightning quick and get mid 50mpg...for example.

Can I just ask what dpf and VAG stand for?

girl_withno_name

And yes - the car will mainly be used only for this journey and I think I'm looking at about 180 working days by the time I consider annual leave and study and exam days. So I can see your point about diesel not being particularly beneficial (although I wasn't aware that they took a while to warm up, probably why I only get about 37mpg out of my current car)

missile

Do you need two cars? Why not just use the Focus?

There is no way you will save enough on fuel to warrant the cost of running another vehicle.