Views on small engine economical cars? 1L-1.4L?
So guys,
I was looking on autotrader for cars with tax up to £30 a year and they're mostly small. Around 1L-1.4L. Are they good enough for motorways or will they struggle to build up speed when getting on at a junction?
Let me know your thoughts please!
I was looking on autotrader for cars with tax up to £30 a year and they're mostly small. Around 1L-1.4L. Are they good enough for motorways or will they struggle to build up speed when getting on at a junction?
Let me know your thoughts please!
Scroll to see replies
I drive a 1.4l car, and it's fine on the motorways. 1l cars are OK on the motorway, BUT not so good if you live in a hilly area (Im looking at you, Yorkshire! 
)
I had a Toyota Yaris, and it wasn't bad. It was pretty nippy, but it's just not very good on hills. I had to rev the engine almost fully to get up one hill
It also depends on how the car is built I guess. I mean my 1.4l (1339cc) has a hybrid battery in the back as well, and isn't a "hot hatchback" so that'll weigh it down BUT it's pretty damn light
)I had a Toyota Yaris, and it wasn't bad. It was pretty nippy, but it's just not very good on hills. I had to rev the engine almost fully to get up one hill
It also depends on how the car is built I guess. I mean my 1.4l (1339cc) has a hybrid battery in the back as well, and isn't a "hot hatchback" so that'll weigh it down BUT it's pretty damn light
It will depend on the size of the car that engine is in. 1l in a VW Up! is decent, 1.4l in a VW Polo is excellent but 1.4l in a VW Golf would be lethargic.
Also should check whether it is a turbo-charged or NA engine. It does make a difference though not always the most desirable for an everyday car.
Also should check whether it is a turbo-charged or NA engine. It does make a difference though not always the most desirable for an everyday car.
Regularly drive a 1.2l Corsa. Never had a single issue on motorways, and my principle drive is the M62 over the Pennines, can easily cruise at 80mph and still have a decent economy. Did 145 miles this morning, didn't even use a quarter of a tank.
Yeah, some snobs might sneer, but sod 'em. Save your money.
Yeah, some snobs might sneer, but sod 'em. Save your money.
Original post by Drewski
Regularly drive a 1.2l Corsa. Never had a single issue on motorways, and my principle drive is the M62 over the Pennines, can easily cruise at 80mph and still have a decent economy. Did 145 miles this morning, didn't even use a quarter of a tank.
Yeah, some snobs might sneer, but sod 'em. Save your money.
Yeah, some snobs might sneer, but sod 'em. Save your money.
Exact same experience with my 14 year old fiat Punto 1.2L!
I guess it depends on the size of the car too.
I drive a 1.2 Ford KA (mk2) and it's quite nippy acceleration wise at smaller speeds and copes perfectly fine on motorways. However, if I put the same engine in a large car, it wouldn't be as good power wise as it'd need to be shifting more weight.
Also, the new KA's come with a start stop system actually worth using
I drive a 1.2 Ford KA (mk2) and it's quite nippy acceleration wise at smaller speeds and copes perfectly fine on motorways. However, if I put the same engine in a large car, it wouldn't be as good power wise as it'd need to be shifting more weight.
Also, the new KA's come with a start stop system actually worth using
Get a small diesel like a ford fiesta 1.4 tdci or polo tdi, they can handle hills and motorways fine.
actually it's the other way around ...
It's not that much more real life MPG
and it's the dullest thing to drive
and it's the dullest thing to drive
Based on car reviews I've seen for 1.0l engines more fun to drive a petrol
Yes but IF you only had a choice of 1.0l Max sized engine
Unless you do between 15-20k miles per year there isn't any point in getting a diesel, the exception being the vehicle in question is a big and heavy one like a SUV or MPV.
There was a study done a few years ago, if you buy a VW Polo and only do 12k per year it would take you 14 years if you bought the 1.4TDI version over a 1.2l 12v petrol version. Takes into account the higher cost to buy the car and also the price difference between petrol and diesel.
Personally if I were to buy a smallish car it would almost always be a petrol version though not necessarily the smallest engine size available. In such size of a car it is unlikely you'd feel any difference as the torque on the smaller diesels aren't that fantastic. Recently there was a publication in Norway that compared the Ford Fiesta and whether the numbers actually added up in the real world, they used a 1.25 petrol 60ps, 1.0 EcoBoost 80ps and the 1.5tdci 75ps, the assumption was you did 20000km per year (average in Norway), they actually found out that it would take 13 years of motoring to break even when you buy the 1.5tdci over the 1.25l version and surprise surprise you would never break even with the 1.0l version as it actually consumed more fuel than the 1.25l.... not surprising then that Ford stopped selling the 1.25l in Norway soon after that article was published.
There was a study done a few years ago, if you buy a VW Polo and only do 12k per year it would take you 14 years if you bought the 1.4TDI version over a 1.2l 12v petrol version. Takes into account the higher cost to buy the car and also the price difference between petrol and diesel.
Personally if I were to buy a smallish car it would almost always be a petrol version though not necessarily the smallest engine size available. In such size of a car it is unlikely you'd feel any difference as the torque on the smaller diesels aren't that fantastic. Recently there was a publication in Norway that compared the Ford Fiesta and whether the numbers actually added up in the real world, they used a 1.25 petrol 60ps, 1.0 EcoBoost 80ps and the 1.5tdci 75ps, the assumption was you did 20000km per year (average in Norway), they actually found out that it would take 13 years of motoring to break even when you buy the 1.5tdci over the 1.25l version and surprise surprise you would never break even with the 1.0l version as it actually consumed more fuel than the 1.25l.... not surprising then that Ford stopped selling the 1.25l in Norway soon after that article was published.
Original post by Alfissti
There was a study done a few years ago, if you buy a VW Polo and only do 12k per year it would take you 14 years if you bought the 1.4TDI version over a 1.2l 12v petrol version. Takes into account the higher cost to buy the car and also the price difference between petrol and diesel.
There was a study done a few years ago, if you buy a VW Polo and only do 12k per year it would take you 14 years if you bought the 1.4TDI version over a 1.2l 12v petrol version. Takes into account the higher cost to buy the car and also the price difference between petrol and diesel.
It'd be interesting to know if that's still the case, as small diesel engines have had some big improvements recently and often are eligible for lower road tax. I can't be bothered to faff about looking for numbers on Ford's website, but this article gives some figures (though potentially out of date). On the basis of keeping the car for 3 years, £800 more to buy the diesel and £95 less road tax you'd only need to save £170 a year on fuel for the diesel to break even. With a supposed 20mpg economy advantage, that's not too hard to imagine (it's too late for me to think through what the calculation is in miles!). Diesels also tend to have a bit more residual value, so you may find you don't even need the economy savings to break even.
Original post by CurlyBen
It'd be interesting to know if that's still the case, as small diesel engines have had some big improvements recently and often are eligible for lower road tax. I can't be bothered to faff about looking for numbers on Ford's website, but this article gives some figures (though potentially out of date). On the basis of keeping the car for 3 years, £800 more to buy the diesel and £95 less road tax you'd only need to save £170 a year on fuel for the diesel to break even. With a supposed 20mpg economy advantage, that's not too hard to imagine (it's too late for me to think through what the calculation is in miles!). Diesels also tend to have a bit more residual value, so you may find you don't even need the economy savings to break even.
If the study used theoretical figures off a manufacturer then that study is worth less than the paper it is printed on.
Real world, in UK if you buy a petrol Fiesta there would be discounts, usually you do get some free kit, when I last walked into a Ford dealer in UK it was generally the case you could get a discount on the 1.25l model but not so on the 1.5tdci or 1.0l ecoboost models, therefore the prices could actually be even lower.
Fuel economy numbers, anything posted by the manufacturer are done within a lab and takes near zero account into whether or not it is realistic which most of it isn't. Real world fuel economy tend to be quite significantly different.
Also the article you posted also noted on the DPF issues on diesel engines and the downside of using a diesel for shorter journeys. What you save in tax might just be spent fixing DPF related issues.
Personally if it is a small car best to stick to a smaller petrol engine as that 1.5tdci doesn't actually have any more torque or bhp than the 1.25l engine in a Fiesta.
Original post by Drewski
Regularly drive a 1.2l Corsa. Never had a single issue on motorways, and my principle drive is the M62 over the Pennines, can easily cruise at 80mph and still have a decent economy. Did 145 miles this morning, didn't even use a quarter of a tank.
Yeah, some snobs might sneer, but sod 'em. Save your money.
Yeah, some snobs might sneer, but sod 'em. Save your money.
so why does my 1.2 corsa (2011) shudder over 75 mph?! Honestly can't do more than 70 in that car
Original post by Alfissti
If the study used theoretical figures off a manufacturer then that study is worth less than the paper it is printed on.
Real world, in UK if you buy a petrol Fiesta there would be discounts, usually you do get some free kit, when I last walked into a Ford dealer in UK it was generally the case you could get a discount on the 1.25l model but not so on the 1.5tdci or 1.0l ecoboost models, therefore the prices could actually be even lower.
Fuel economy numbers, anything posted by the manufacturer are done within a lab and takes near zero account into whether or not it is realistic which most of it isn't. Real world fuel economy tend to be quite significantly different.
Also the article you posted also noted on the DPF issues on diesel engines and the downside of using a diesel for shorter journeys. What you save in tax might just be spent fixing DPF related issues.
Personally if it is a small car best to stick to a smaller petrol engine as that 1.5tdci doesn't actually have any more torque or bhp than the 1.25l engine in a Fiesta.
Real world, in UK if you buy a petrol Fiesta there would be discounts, usually you do get some free kit, when I last walked into a Ford dealer in UK it was generally the case you could get a discount on the 1.25l model but not so on the 1.5tdci or 1.0l ecoboost models, therefore the prices could actually be even lower.
Fuel economy numbers, anything posted by the manufacturer are done within a lab and takes near zero account into whether or not it is realistic which most of it isn't. Real world fuel economy tend to be quite significantly different.
Also the article you posted also noted on the DPF issues on diesel engines and the downside of using a diesel for shorter journeys. What you save in tax might just be spent fixing DPF related issues.
Personally if it is a small car best to stick to a smaller petrol engine as that 1.5tdci doesn't actually have any more torque or bhp than the 1.25l engine in a Fiesta.
I didn't post a link to a study? Just a newspaper article with prices as they weren't obvious on the Ford website.
I'm well aware how economy figures are arrived at, but it's a useful comparison between different models, and the diesel returns nearly 50% better fuel economy on the same route profile. It's a fair assumption it will outperform the petrol, even if neither meets the published figures.
DPFs aren't a problem as long as you do a reasonable motorway journey every few hundred miles to give them a chance to regen. Frankly if you're only making sub-10 mile journeys you're probably better off getting a bike!
The point is your comment on diesels having an excessively long payoff time isn't necessarily valid anymore. With the road tax £95 a year cheaper and an £800 difference in purchase price the diesel will have saved money after 9 years even if it's just parked on the road!
Original post by naman
so why does my 1.2 corsa (2011) shudder over 75 mph?! Honestly can't do more than 70 in that car
Tracking might be out. If your wheels aren't fully matched up you'll feel it wobbling. I've had mine a bit
faster than that and it's been perfectly smooth.Original post by Drewski
Tracking might be out. If your wheels aren't fully matched up you'll feel it wobbling. I've had mine a bit faster than that and it's been perfectly smooth.
faster than that and it's been perfectly smooth.how can I get this checked? Does it have to be taken to vauxhall and would this be under warranty? thanks.
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