Best Car for short stop/start journeys

Lex Luthor

My missus has a 2.0D Verso..great car and has served us very well with no problems, but she does very little mileage and now the kids are older and I have an estate, we might downsize it to a small family sized car (eg. focus/golf).

Out of curiosity what is the best type car for this type of usage? Basically she does the school runs daily and then up/down the town to the shops, etc. My car gets used mostly on weekends. She's not getting great economy from the diesel as its only short, stop/start journeys.

Is a smaller diesel or petrol better or is a hybrid more economical for this type of usage?

h3000

Lex Luthor wrote: »

My missus has a 2.0D Verso..great car and has served us very well with no problems, but she does very little mileage and now the kids are older and I have an estate, we might downsize it to a small family sized car (eg. focus/golf).

Out of curiosity what is the best type car for this type of usage? Basically she does the school runs daily and then up/down the town to the shops, etc. My car gets used mostly on weekends. She's not getting great economy from the diesel as its only short, stop/start journeys.

Is a smaller diesel or petrol better or is a hybrid more economical for this type of usage?

I believe* short journeys are very bad for turbos in turbo charged engines, so a small petrol may be a better option for you.




*could be very wrong.

Atomic Pineapple

Small petrol car would be best

vectra

I drive a small diesel car
1.4tdi SEAT Cordoba
99% of my driving is stop start
No problems with my car.
Take it for a run once a week or so to "clear it out"

Getting around 650-700 kilometers to approx 40euro.
That is around 20 Kilometers per liter
Not bad for trotting about.
€104 road tax per year.

Great little car.

I am changing this year to another diesel car.

R.O.R

I'd say a hybrid would be pretty much perfect for that type of journey, or a small petrol.

JHMEG might be able to guide you better about the hybrid, but I drove one in heavy traffic over a short distance (Tom Canavan's to Georges Quay if you know Dublin) and it was more or less the perfect car for that journey. Smooth, quiet and auto.

alias no.9

Sounds like a job for a hybrid.

stimpson

+1 for hybrid. Me diesel is great on the motorway, but averages ~35mpg in town

Bigus

Prius is ideal and you'll get a good trade on on verso against one.

Little known Prius fact
Prius sends a few litres of hot coolant to a thermos flask about 5 mins after shut down and can keep this coolant hot for up tp ten days so that it preheats the cylinder head to aid economy on restart.

rebel.ranter

As much as it kills me to say it, buy a hybrid.

Leonard Hofstadter

Hybrids were made for that kind of driving, and offer superior reliability over diesels(especially ones used for short distance driving). I don't like the Prius but it's probably the best car for that kind of work, a Civic IMA would be better as it's more 'normal':).

af_thefragile

You could get a Civic Hybrid.
It'll easily give you upto 50mpg.

Its not as technologically advanced as the Prius, the prius has a more complex hybrid system where it has regenerative braking system and all while the Civic has a more simpler set up where the electric motor only assists the car and has the start-stop technology to save fuel but no regenerative braking systems.

Still the Civic is not a smug mobile as the Prius neither is it as ugly. Its got a really nice interior and being a automatic, its more relaxing to drive around the city.

So that's what I'ld advise you as well.
My uncle has one for about 2 years now and it has never gone wrong once and regularly gives him 50mpg. Really comfortable to sit in as well.

stimpson

If I was in the market for a hybrid I'd be saving me pennies for this:

http://www.honda.ie/contentv3/index.cfm?fuseaction=page&pageID=18066&parentID=4115

bladespin

Prius, that's exactly what it's made for.

Try to get one with the accelerator mod though.

robtri

i would suggest a REVA........:D:D:D

or alternative EV car

stimpson

robtri wrote: »

i would suggest a REVA........

or alternative EV car

REVA? small family sized car??? are you planning to strap the kids to the roof?

robtri

stimpson wrote: »

REVA? small family sized car??? are you planning to strap the kids to the roof?

ooops better edit in the smiley

stimpson

robtri wrote: »

ooops better edit in the smiley

Yer OK - I don't think anyone noticed

Lex Luthor

thanks for all the replies...I had thought the Prius or that type of car would be more suited to this type of usage.

Haven't seen the Civic...I'll take a look

The CR-Z is not practical as it has to be 4 doors

stimpson

Lex Luthor wrote: »

The CR-Z is not practical as it has to be 4 doors

Yeah I know, but it looks the business.

I've never really cared about people who sat in the back of the car anyway

Lex Luthor

stimpson wrote: »

Yeah I know, but it looks the business.

I've never really cared about people who sat in the back of the car anyway

you will when you have to listen to them whinging and moaning that they are crammed in and have to pull the front seat forward to get out

stimpson

Lex Luthor wrote: »

you will when you have to listen to them whinging and moaning that they are crammed in and have to pull the front seat forward to get out

Well I did drive this for 5 years.

http://www.adverts.ie/showproduct.php?product=183319&cat=500

Taking a few bends at full pelt usually put paid to any complaints - I used to refer to back seat passengers as ballast

af_thefragile

Lex Luthor wrote: »

you will when you have to listen to them whinging and moaning that they are crammed in and have to pull the front seat forward to get out

Haha, I've got a 2 door car as well and everytime I take my friends out, there's always a big fight as to who's gonna sit in the front. No one likes siting in the back of my car...

So I decided my next car is ideally gonna have 4 doors or atleast bigger back seats!

Lex Luthor

had a look at the Honda Ireland website and they have 2 different looking Civic Hybrids?

One is called the Insight. Will they cease prod on the Civic Hybrid once this is released?

colm_mcm

Insight is already out and is basically a Prius done on the cheap. (with a different type of hybrid system though - Prius can run on battery only)

JHMEG

colm_mcm wrote: »

Insight is already out and is basically a Prius done on the cheap.

It's actually pretty much nothing like the Prius, it's more of a Civic IMA with slightly smaller battery and motor packed into a hatchback.

Prius has gone up market, is a good bit more expensive, but has better poke and is more sophisticated.

Civic/Insight has regenerative deceleration, just like the Prius. Regenerative braking is bit of a misnomer.

Lex Luthor

Had a good look at the Insight and showed herself the pics...interior is very futuristic looking. Have to sit in it to see if it was too much in your face.

Noticed that the Jazz is getting "hybrid'ed" this year. She loved the petrol version of that we had out on demo a few yrs back. Very flexible rear seating and didn't feel too small to drive.

Definitely one to add to the list