Confused using Parkers cost of motoring

soupdragon10

I have been using the cost of motoring section of the Parkers website and am really confused.


I current run a 2006 1.6 ford focus LX diesel which is showing a monthly running cost of £163.


I was hoping to trade this in for something more up to date that would hopefully give me lower monthly running costs (I have a budget up to £8000).
I have been looking at a variety of cars the Nissan Note, Qashqai and Juke as well as Toyotas, but can't find anything that approaches my focus.
This I find really confusing as I would have thought modern engines being more efficient would offer better, not worse mpg etc.
I hasten to add that I am looking at 1.5 or 1.6 engines nothing bigger. Any suggestions?

Car_54

Do Parkers costs include depreciation? That would explain a big difference between your 8-year-old car and a new one.

soupdragon10

I discounted the depreciation which is shown separately, and was looking purely at the monthly running cost.

forgotmyname

The focus will be light and have fairly basic equipment compared to the other cars your looking at.

So although the newer engines maybe more efficient. They added weight and silly big wheels which actually uses more fuel.

They may claim to be super efficient and have very low tax groupings but thats all rubbish. In everyday life i bet they produce more pollution than your focus.

bowlhead99

If you take a 1.6dci Qashqai for example against the 2006 1.6dci Focus, Parkers says it's >100mm taller, >100mm wider, >100kg heavier.

So, without trying to be very scientific and looking at how wind tunnel aerodynamics really works, the Focus is trying to push a block of metal 1991mm wide by 1497mm high through the air, while the Quasqai is doing it with 2120 x 1615mm. Thats 443,000 square millimetres extra (over 0.4 square metres, or almost 5 square feet) of extra metal trying to carve through the air down the motorway at 70mph or whatever. With an immovable 17stone bloke permanently in your passenger seat.

If you're trying to go fast down a motorway without using much fuel you want light weight and low wind resistance, so you probably get further on a gallon of diesel on a sportsbike than a bus, even if the 1.6 litre bus engine was introduced to the model range in 2007 vs an 'ancient' 2005 for the bike.

marlot

Before making a choice, I recommend looking at the real mpg figures (as opposed to the official ones). Cars which look good on paper can be poor and vice versa.

What car do some, as does http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/realmpg/

arcon5

you wanna spend £8k to lower your monthly maintenance costs of £163? You may wanna go back to the drawing board my friend.

soupdragon10

Thanks for all your input - hadn't taken into account the wind resistance / drag effect, purely the engine size. On this basis I will have to rethink my strategy and look at modern hatchback that I can fit my 6ft 2in husband and two dogs into.

bigjl

Parkers is not very good at much.

The reviews by owners are handy.

But their used values are rarely correct.

Want to find out trade value of your car then ask WBAC for a valuation.

British Car Auctions have forgotten more than Parkers ever knew about car values.

I have looked at the 3yr values for my work car and other similar cars.

This was in a respected Trade Publication and the figures are widely used by companies to assess running costs permile.

But the predicted residual value for a Jag XJL with high miles, 70/90k after 3 yrs was under £10k.

You try and find one for less than £20k even with more miles.

Case in point

A 11plate Jag XJL with 70k on clock. Sold within a week of going online for £24999.

Seen it being fueled up in Hornchurch near my house which was a surprise as i was going to check it out for a mate when it was shown on the website.

So where does this £10k come from?

Even WBAC offer nearly £14k.

Work your costs out for yourself.

Buy from a Car Supermarket to reduce cost as much as possible.

I would buy another Focus.

Though probably not the 1.6 diesel.

2.0 diesel is a peach though rarer than the 1.6 and 1.8

bigjl

Should have added.

The little 1.5dci engine is a solid little engine. I assume it is available in the Note as it is in the Juke.

Though small capacity petrol engines are fast approaching the economy of diesels without the complexities of dpfs etc.

I think the EU is going to get ever stricter on diesel Nox emissions.

So good time to jump ship back to petrol.

Perhaps wait and increase your budget and get the 1.0 Ecoboos Focus.

I have driven the current Fiesta and am 6ft plus and was very comfortable.

Though the dogs could be a squeeze unless you let them in the backseat.

Iceweasel

Is there any specific reason you are limiting your search to engine capacity under 1600cc?

Often a larger engine not working so hard will be as or even more economical than a smaller engine which has to work hard to fulfill it's role.

This is even more obvious nowadays with the extra load brought about by AC/Climate control and all the other electrical things we take for granted in a modern car.

I would look at 2 litre engined cars too.