Petrol or Diesel

duckie78

Can anyone tell me which is cheaper to run Petrol or Diesel with no sign of the price of fuel coming down.????

arkonite_babe

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anewman

Depends very much on mileage I believe. Bear in mind purchase cost of diesels tends to be higher as people believe they are more efficient, and also bear in mind diesel costs more than petrol. If you have a petrol car currently sticking with that will probably be the cheapest option.

Conor_3

Diesel is cheaper to run, cheaper to service and lasts longer. Petrol cars are cheaper to buy.

Basically, if you do around 10,000 miles a year the break even point is about 12-14 months where the savings in fuel equal the difference in price. If you're planning on keeping it over a year, a diesel then begins to win.

vikingaero

Conor wrote: »

Diesel is , cheaper to service and lasts longer.

I read on Honest John that the servicing and maintenance costs of diesel are comparative with petrol models because of the failure of parts such as the dual mass flywheel (on Mondeos such as yours Conor) and other minor issues.

avantra

I would go for something with the VW PD TDI Engines.

Say no more.

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers!

vikingaero wrote: »

I read on Honest John that the servicing and maintenance costs of diesel are comparative with petrol models because of the failure of parts such as the dual mass flywheel (on Mondeos such as yours Conor) and other minor issues.

Modern diesels are quite complex. If you want reliability, buy an older turbodiesel.

Conor_3

vikingaero wrote: »

I read on Honest John that the servicing and maintenance costs of diesel are comparative with petrol models because of the failure of parts such as the dual mass flywheel (on Mondeos such as yours Conor) and other minor issues.

Mine is on over 100k and still OK although I don't know if it was done before. A DMF change only costs a few hundred quid more than a clutch change on a petrol Mondeo BUT a petrol Mondeo needs new plug leads every 40,000 miles and a new cambelt every 80,000 miles whereas the diesel runs on a timing chain which should last until the engine goes pop with regular oil changes so the plug leads and cambelt changes cancel out the extra cost of a DMF when it comes time to change it.

AdrianHi

anewman wrote: »

If you have a petrol car currently sticking with that will probably be the cheapest option.

Best bit of advice so far, you have to be doing a lot of miles on a very thirst petrol car before buying a newer diesel will save you money considering fuel costs alone. If you are changing anyway the break even point is dependant on which car you are buying.
I recently calculated that at todays fuel prices for a 140bhp TDCi Mondeo estate 12,000 miles a year is the break even point on costs (the difference is never huge). If fuel prices were 25% higher the petrol ends up being about £9 a month more. This takes into account difference in purchase price and the cost of "cash in car" which is higher for the diesel due to higher purchase price.
This calculation also assumed (in accordance with What Car projections) both cars had the same depreciation. I'd don't believe that at all, the diesel is sure to hold it's value better which then makes the diesel quite a bit cheaper.

movilogo

diesel runs on a timing chain

It's not a generalized statement - it depends on engine design. My car does have a cam chain but it is a petrol engine

Unless you do mega mileage (20k/year+), it is better to for petrol cars.

iolanthe07

A bit off topic, but does anyone know why manufacturers are fitting these dual mass flywheels, when they seem to cause so much trouble and expense?