Looking for a sporty-ish Diesel, recommendations please

Dr. Kenneth Noisewater

The OH is currently driving a 05 Opel Astra 1.6 sxi. She loves the car but is doing a 70 mile round trip to and from work everyday and is being creased on petrol costs, so I'm looking into what else is out there.

She'd be relying on the proceeds of the car sale or trade in and not a whole lot more to put to it, so the budget is around 5k. Looking for something in a 3 door, and hoping not to go down in years if at all possible.

Any suggestions appreciated!

John928

Volkswagen passat tdi best car ever 20 euro a week on diesel drove everywhere in one week

Bpmull

A 05 ford focus 1.6tdci or 1.8tdci should be got for 5k euro.
Astra 1.7cdti 05 can be bought for 5k euro.

JohnFalstaff

John928 wrote: »

Volkswagen passat tdi best car ever 20 euro a week on diesel drove everywhere in one week

Everywhere??? I've heard Passat's were good but that's pretty impressive by any standards.

Supergurrier

Just buy an Octavia VRS already

Yawns

JohnFalstaff wrote: »

Everywhere??? I've heard Passat's were good but that's pretty impressive by any standards.

No man I saw it with my own eyes. He even flew to the moon and back. I heard a rumour that he found the lost city of Atlantis whilst washing his car, which of course had to be a proper wash at the car wash from Shark Tale.

bazz26

Alfa Romeo GT:


http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/cars/4573995

bazz26

A Passat TDi ain't sportish no matter how many red letters it has....:)

Matt Simis

bazz26 wrote: »

A Passat TDi ain't sportish no matter how many red letters it has....:)

Yes, this, sporty Diesels would be the Alfa GT, any 2.4JTD Alfa, 6pot BMW or Audi diesels depending on trim and possibly, at a big stretch, the TDI VRS's. The rest of the stuff mentioned are perfectly average cars??

Hal1

Focus 1.8 tdci sport:

dgt

A D-Turbo with T25/TD04 and hybrid pump. Sorted :cool:

colm_mcm

Lets say she kept this car 3 years, €5k is roughly €1700 a year, which is roughly €32 a week. Can you see her saving that much in fuel?

s14driftking

320d bmw sport or at a push could find a 330d sport. if it was me id look for a 330d

Cee-Jay-Cee

John928 wrote: »

Volkswagen passat tdi best car ever 20 euro a week on diesel drove everywhere in one week

Wow! Your car must be extra economical as my brother has a passat and he drives everywhere too, to work, to the shops, to the golf club, to football training, back home etc etc and he goes through 50-60euro a week in diesel....how can that be when he has the same car and drives everywhere too???

Sofiztikated

colm_mcm wrote: »

Lets say she kept this car 3 years, €5k is roughly €1700 a year, which is roughly €32 a week. Can you see her saving that much in fuel?

I think the €5k is including the car sale. So effectively it's the same value as the car they are driving.

dar83

Topic is an oxymoron. No such thing as a 'sporty' diesel.

No matter how much you try to convince yourselves otherwise.


:P

s14driftking

dar83 wrote: »

Topic is an oxymoron. No such thing as a 'sporty' diesel.

No matter how much you try to convince yourselves otherwise.


:P

my dirty dayzel would scare a few hot hatches :P

Zcott

06 2.2 Civic? Lot of power but most have some clutch slippage.

yop

I have a nice Mondeo st. Would suit her
19.99 a week gets me everywhere.

veetwin

dar83 wrote: »

Topic is an oxymoron. No such thing as a 'sporty' diesel.

No matter how much you try to convince yourselves otherwise.


:P

Jeremy Clarkson called. He wants his 1990's half baked misconception back:rolleyes:

HandsomeDan

Matt Simis wrote: »

Yes, this, sporty Diesels would be the Alfa GT, any 2.4JTD Alfa, 6pot BMW or Audi diesels depending on trim and possibly, at a big stretch, the TDI VRS's. The rest of the stuff mentioned are perfectly average cars??

nothing average about the current 320d - easily faster than the vast majority of stuff on the road

Matt Simis

veetwin wrote: »

Jeremy Clarkson called. He wants his 1990's half baked misconception back:rolleyes:

The beeping noise you hear is "reality" on the other line, for you.

HandsomeDan wrote: »

nothing average about the current 320d - easily faster than the vast majority of stuff on the road

Thats not much not of a claim considering the muck Irish people drive, but "faster than a Yaris" isnt sporty (or fast).. besides "fast" is not the only characteristic of a sporty car.

My V10TDI Phaeton was super fast, a lot faster than a lowly 320d, but it wasnt a sporty car either. Also, within the BMW family, the x20d's are the most popular, making them by definition "average".

HandsomeDan

Matt Simis wrote: »

The beeping noise you hear is "reality" on the other line, for you.

Thats not much not of a claim considering the muck Irish people drive, but "faster than a Yaris" isnt sporty (or fast).. besides "fast" is not the only characteristic of a sporty car.

My V10TDI Phaeton was super fast, a lot faster than a lowly 320d, but it wasnt a sporty car either. Also, within the BMW family, the x20d's are the most popular, making them by definition "average".

No you'll find the 316d account for most of the new 3 series sold, so the 320d aint average.

Tis faster than the alfa gt you referenced and considerably better to drive.

Your V10 phaeton di 0-60 in 7.0 to the 320d 7.5, so it's nothing like a lot faster...

Admint it the 320d an excellent car and would suit the OP well.

Matt Simis

HandsomeDan wrote: »

No you'll find the 316d account for most of the new 3 series sold, so the 320d aint average.

Tis faster than the alfa gt you referenced and considerably better to drive.

Your V10 phaeton di 0-60 in 7.0 to the 320d 7.5, so it's nothing like a lot faster...

Oh please just stop, you are embarrasing yourself. Enjoy your new 320d, as you point out its not the slowest in the line up. Thats an achievement right?

PS: I said x20d across the BMW range, not the 3 series in particular.

HandsomeDan

Matt Simis wrote: »

PS: I said x20d across the BMW range, not the 3 series in particular.

The 3 series is the biggest selling BMW by a country mile so I'd say across the rainge the x20 does not account for most sales.

You said your phaeton was fast, looking at its 0-60 times it's a surprisingly slow car.

Matt Simis

HandsomeDan wrote: »

The 3 series is the biggest selling BMW by a country mile so I'd say across the rainge the x20 does not account for most sales.

You said your phaeton was fast, looking at its 0-60 times it's a surprisingly slow car.

Adorable, do you just say random things or do you actually believe in them?


For instance:
http://www.irishtrucker.com/news/bmw-irish-sales-up-by-over-30%25-009819

Its best-selling model by far was the 5-Series, which made up 2,163 of its 2011 sales, followed by the 3-Series with 631 and the 1-Series with 203. 88% of the cars BMW Ireland sold last year fell into the two lowest bands.

gallag

HandsomeDan wrote: »

The 3 series is the biggest selling BMW by a country mile so I'd say across the rainge the x20 does not account for most sales.

You said your phaeton was fast, looking at its 0-60 times it's a surprisingly slow car.

0-60 is not everything, the v10 will destroy the 320 in 60-160. I have a 200bhp derv and I cry inside when I drive it, just a big fart of power then nothing, next car will be petrol turbo again.

Donnelly117

Just because a car is fast does not necessarily make it sporty. The Phaeton mentioned above is a fast car...but it not sporty. A 320d more of a cruiser then a sporty car. The alfa while slower (not that the OP mentioned anything about wanting a fast car) it looks sporty. A 320 just looks like every other boring BMW, Audi (insert any other German diesel saloon manufacturer you can think of).

HandsomeDan

Matt Simis wrote: »

Adorable, do you just say random things or do you actually believe in them?


For instance:
http://www.irishtrucker.com/news/bmw-irish-sales-up-by-over-30%25-009819

You are comparing a brand new 5 series model with an end of life 3 series - mislead much?

Over model cycle the average 3 sales are greater than the 5.

The 3 series worldwide is their biggest selling model and accounts for 1/3 cars sold.

Matt Simis

HandsomeDan wrote: »

You are comparing a brand new 5 series model with an end of life 3 series - mislead much?

Over model cycle the average 3 sales are greater than the 5.

The 3 series worldwide is their biggest selling model and accounts for 1/3 cars sold.

Whatever, its just a super car that gets 50mpg, sounds like an F1 car and delivers all the thrills a budding accountant needs.
Its my opinion is not a "sporty" car nor even a sporty diesel, when you can get everything it does well, but so much better in the 330d and 335d, you on the otherhand should hold onto your opinion as it sounds like a more wallet friendly view than mine.

pred racer

dar83 wrote: »

Topic is an oxymoron. No such thing as a 'sporty' diesel.

No matter how much you try to convince yourselves otherwise.




:P

I consider my 159 sporty (not fast) please dont be destroying my misconceptions, reality is over rated:pac:

HandsomeDan wrote: »

nothing average about the current 320d - easily faster than the vast majority of stuff on the road

Unless its alot faster than a 520D, this statement is bollocks.

seanyleary

If you don't do much mileage buy a petrol. You will be a long time save 1k on fuel. Petrol cars much cheaper to buy.

TestTransmission

HandsomeDan wrote: »

You are comparing a brand new 5 series model with an end of life 3 series - mislead much?

Over model cycle the average 3 sales are greater than the 5.

The 3 series worldwide is their biggest selling model and accounts for 1/3 cars sold.

A 320d isn't a "sporty" car, whatever way you look at it.

HandsomeDan

Matt Simis wrote: »

Whatever, its just a super car that gets 50mpg, sounds like an F1 car and delivers all the thrills a budding accountant needs.
Its my opinion is not a "sporty" car nor even a sporty diesel, when you can get everything it does well, but so much better in the 330d and 335d, you on the otherhand should hold onto your opinion as it sounds like a more wallet friendly view than mine.

330d and 335d are massively more expensive and are considered by many to be nose heavy. The 320d is the sweet spot.

HandsomeDan

TestTransmission wrote: »

A 320d isn't a "sporty" car, whatever way you look at it.

The hell it isn't.

TestTransmission

HandsomeDan wrote: »

The hell it isn't.

Ok, you win.Your argument is too convincing. :pac:

bazz26

H3llR4iser

This thread will win the "facepalm of the month" prize.

User comes in, asks for a diesel to replace a 1.6 Opel Astra because they spend too much on fuel and...ta-da, he gets recommended a BMW 330d!

OP, none of the cars recommended so far is even remotely suitable for your needs. You want to save money on fuel, you need a car that is more efficient than the current one and has an engine of similar if not lower capacity, in order not to offset the savings on fuel with higher tax and insurance.

I guess that, by "sporty-ish", you actually mean hatchback. In all fairness, your best bet would be a Diesel Astra. It would be the very same car your partner knows and likes, only a bit less thirsty for fuel.
Alternatively, you might want to have a look at a Focus 1.6TDCI or a Peugeot 307 1.6 HDI. These are the ones that come off the top of my mind.

I don't know how much she is into her car, if she'd notice minimal differences in performances etc., but it might be worth to have her test a 1.3CDTI Astra - it has got a bit less power than the 1.6 she has now but it would allow for even further savings.

vectra

Matt Simis wrote: »

Yes, this, sporty Diesels would be the Alfa GT, any 2.4JTD Alfa, 6pot BMW or Audi diesels depending on trim and possibly, at a big stretch, the TDI VRS's. The rest of the stuff mentioned are perfectly average cars??

I think the question was "Sporty-ish" Not "Sporty"

so in theory the vRS fits in there perfectly well.

thecomedian

vectra wrote: »

I think the question was "Sporty-ish" Not "Sporty"

so in theory the vRS fits in there perfectly well.

Problem with them is that they are out if the price range.

thecomedian

deccurley wrote: »

The OH is currently driving a 05 Opel Astra 1.6 sxi. She loves the car but is doing a 70 mile round trip to and from work everyday and is being creased on petrol costs, so I'm looking into what else is out there.

She'd be relying on the proceeds of the car sale or trade in and not a whole lot more to put to it, so the budget is around 5k. Looking for something in a 3 door, and hoping not to go down in years if at all possible.

Any suggestions appreciated!

Op if you can find an BMW 320 cd e46, that would probably suit you the best. The 330 would be great but it would be less mpg than the 320 also about 600 euro more a year to tax.

This won't be that sporty but what about a Volvo s40 2.0d? Not that big and look good, spec is decent. They should be around the 5000 mark

Sofiztikated

Seems like sporty(ish) has a completely different meaning in my dictionary to a lot of people here.

tossy

I'm hearing a lot of use of the terms "fast" "faster" "fastest" here,fast nor faster do not a sports car make.

sean1141

Im guessing what the op is looking for is a car that looks sporty more so than a car that will handle like a track car..
For that kind of driving i personally would be looking for a car with a bit of comfort

The Bishop Basher

HandsomeDan wrote: »

330d and 335d are massively more expensive and are considered by many to be nose heavy. The 320d is the sweet spot.

OK. I'll bite.

tossy

HandsomeDan wrote: »

330d and 335d are massively more expensive and are considered by many to be nose heavy. The 320d is the sweet spot.

Google translate:

I bought a 320D so it's the best.

Alpha Dog 1

Kia pro_ceed if it hasn't already been mentioned.
Fantastic car end of.
Close the thread now.

tossy

Alpha Dog 1 wrote: »

Kia pro_ceed if it hasn't already been mentioned.
Fantastic car end of.
Close the thread now.

Yeah close it up before you get lifted out of it

H3llR4iser

sean1141 wrote: »

Im guessing what the op is looking for is a car that looks sporty more so than a car that will handle like a track car..
For that kind of driving i personally would be looking for a car with a bit of comfort

Yep, that's my impression too. He's looking for a "C Segment", the likes of the Astra they have, a Golf, a 308, a Focus and so on. He actually specifies 3 doors. To the average motorist, the "bigger hatchback" style is what is "sporty".