Mazda 3 Vs Skoda Octavia

bazz26

witless_steve wrote: »

One idea did occur to me. Diesels are mentioned as giving great fuel economy. So my question is this. If i don't want to in bigger then a 1.6 and only have 10k for a newish car. What diesels should i be looking at?

I had a 2005 Focus 1.6 litre TDCi up to a few months ago and was getting around 1000km from a tank of diesel. You should be able to pick up a 05/06 on your budget. Just remember that there were 2 versions of the 1.6 TDCi, one was 90bhp and the other 110bhp. It's the same engine that is in the Mazda 3. The 90bhp is sluggish so try and find a 110bhp version. Most 110bhp version were high spec Ghia models with all the trimings like mine. The only thing is that a Focus Ghia diesel is not that common.

witless_steve

Thanks for that bazz26. Will check out if there are any diesel focus about. I.6 is probably small for a diesel engine so it might be tough to suggest more models. All suggestions are welcome.

EPM

Corolla 1.4d4d or an Astra 1.3 cdti might fit the bill also if you want a diesel

witless_steve

To sum up where we are:

Hybrids seem to be great if you do mostly urban driving but aren't very lively on the main road.

Diesels give great economy but I do seem to be severely limiting myself by not wanting to go over a 1.6 they also seem to be quite hard to find.
I'm hampered to the 1.6 engine size due to the huge cost of car tax for engines much bigger then that, maybe I'm being over cautious.

Petrol is more available then hybrid or diesel but you need to work the engines harder to get the performance out of them so you end up introducing loud engine roars into the cabin if you try to over take or drive at the speed limit on motorways or dual carriageways.

Am I correct?

EPM

witless_steve wrote: »

To sum up where we are:

Hybrids seem to be great if you do mostly urban driving but aren't very lively on the main road.

Diesels give great economy but I do seem to be severely limiting myself by not wanting to go over a 1.6 they also seem to be quite hard to find.
I'm hampered to the 1.6 engine size due to the huge cost of car tax for engines much bigger then that, maybe I'm being over cautious.

Petrol is more available then hybrid or diesel but you need to work the engines harder to get the performance out of them so you end up introducing loud engine roars into the cabin if you try to over take or drive at the speed limit on motorways or dual carriageways.

Am I correct?

You're maiking this way harder than it is OP.

Hybrids aren't all that great even in urban traffic. The Civic would be an ok compromise though IMHO.

The cost to taxing a 1.9 diesel compared to a 1.6 diesel per year is €582 compared to €445 - thats 38c per day. Not a lot really. But as you do low mileage a petrol would suit you just as well to be honest. You could buy a newer one for your money, maybe even with some warranty left. Petrol's rev higher than diesels and can sound strained when you rev the crap out of them but so can diesels. And the hybrids will be petrol engined also.

bazz26

Going up to a 1.8/1.9 litre will cost you €551/€582 per year in motor tax compared to €445 for a 1.6 litre. That is an extra €137 per year or under €3 extra per week.

Edit: EPM beat me to it.

witless_steve

After looking at the options it looks like the Kia ceed is the one I should be looking for. Thanks for all you help, suggestions and comments. I've learned a lot from reading them. Will post any further questions as they pop into my head.