Tdi V V6 Running Costs

[Guest apk1]

I would like to buy a Galaxy, mainly for work use. My company pays a milegae allowance, which I have worked out means I would need to average 40mpg for the TDI and 26mpg for the V6, which I guess driven sensibly both would achive ?

 

However my thoughts would be to convert the V6 to LPG, this would then give me the best of both worlds- roughly similar fuel costs, but an additional 5p per mile ( assuming I don't admit to the LPG !!) I would also benefit from greater performance, refinement and noise !

 

on looking around it would appear quite easy to pick up a low mileage 3 yr old V6 for less than

[Ivor_E_Tower]

....then stick to the diesel! The V6 will cost you loads in fuel (I know you think you will get it all back) and the diesel will retain more of its value at high mileage too. The diesel also has (IIRC) more torque than the V6 and unless you intend to spend loads of time at high speed, getting baulked by other drivers and then needing to speed up again rapidly, the diesel will be the better drive.

[Richmond]

Depends what you mean by 'driven sensibly'. I would struggle to acheive 26 mpg in my V6, over a mixture of town driving and motorway driving. If you stick to the legal limit on the m'way, you should get 26 mpg, but if not, and around town, fat chance. I got about 24.5 mpg (according to the trip computer) over about 400 miles of almost entirely m'way driving last w/e.

 

If you're going to drive the V6 sensibly enough to achieve 26 mpg, you might as well put up with the performance of the diesel, which seems perfectly respectable, and benefit from the higher residual value (if what Ivor says is correct, which it probably is). To enjoy the V6 you have to stop caring about mpg!

 

I can't compare running costs. In 18 months (and about 12 000 miles) with a now nearly 2.5 year old V6, I have paid about

[Guest nimrod]

The tax on lpg will increase by 2.4p in September this year and another 1p a year for the next three years, lpg will be taxed at 10.8p per litre and unleaded at around 50p per litre! and the tax increase on petrol/diesel over the next three years is not yet known!

the grant for the conversion has now been dropped to around

[Davetheref]

Thats not true about the TDI.

I have only had 3 heart attacks this last year when it went below 35mpg and the tic on my face is getting better and I only kick the dog and shout at the wife a couple of times a week now (or was that the other way round?).

My shrink says its nothing to do the mpg but what would he know as he ONLY HAS A BLOODY PETROL ENGINE!!!!!!

[Guest nimrod]

:lol:

[Guest neildicko]

I've heard a lot about the high MPG of the diesel, and on the one and only long distance run that i've done in mine i got 38mpg.

 

But, with my wife driving during the week - too and from school,doing the shopping etc - stop start short journeys the trip computer says 26.6 mpg.

Should i be contacting my dealer asking him to sort out a serious problem with the engine?

or is this normal?

 

Is anyone else getting similar figures but were too afraid to mention it what with all the 45-50-55 MPG's that are bandied about as consistent 'normal' figures?

[Ivor_E_Tower]

What - nearly 27mpg from an auto around town or on stop-start journeys??? Start rejoicing. Parents have a 1974 Volvo estate auto, 2.0petrol. Used to average about 27mpg on most journeys but when it got used for only a few miles at a time on shopping trips etc after mum and dad had both retired, and my brother and I left home, we're talking about 10mpg!

[johnb80]

Hi,

My TDi Auto was managing 35 MPG around town with fairly gentle driving and mid 40's on a longer run. I was a little disappointed but put it down to it only having 3500 miles on the clock. By pure chance I checked the tyre pressures to find them all at 25 psi, inflated to the correct pressure the next trip returned 56.8 mpg and around town 42.7....... now I'm impressed ! So far as noise goes once in 5th and cruising you wouldn't know it was a diesel unless you floor it at 70 in fifth and then you can definately tell it's diesel with it's far superior torque figures, no petrol engine would every accelerate like that :lol:

 

Regards - John

[Ivor_E_Tower]

Checked the torque figures and 115TDI puts out around 229 lb-ft whereas 2.8 24-valve is only around 176 lb-ft and at lower rpm, so the diesel wins hands-down.

[HJT]

I've heard a lot about the high MPG of the diesel, and on the one and only long distance run that i've done in mine i got 38mpg.

 

But, with my wife driving during the week - too and from school,doing the shopping etc - stop start short journeys the trip computer says 26.6 mpg.

That definately doesn't sound right. Round town, stop start cold journeys I average 37-38 long motorway journeys 57-58. I would check your fuel computer is accurate by doing your own sums at the pump. If it is correct you need to get that sorted, you should be getting better than that even from an auto.

 

Howard

[seatkid]

autos use a lot more diesels than manuals - nothing wrong - just crap technology

[Richmond]

Checked the torque figures and 115TDI puts out around 229 lb-ft whereas 2.8 24-valve is only around 176 lb-ft and at lower rpm, so the diesel wins hands-down.

True, but if you want to go quickly (and quietly?), rather than pull a caravan or a hot dog stand, the V6 wins hands down (and in wallet constantly). You may need to drive the V6 a bit more, but it does go quickly.

 

By the way, I think that the diesel develops max torque at lower rpm than the V6, not the other way around, and that the max torque of the V6 (according to Ford's website) is 196 ft lb, not 176 ft lb.

[Guest nimrod]

8V 2.3 140 bhp @ 5500 rpm 200 nm @ 2450 rpm

24V V6 204 bhp @ 6200 rpm 265 nm @ 3400 rpm

TDI 115 bhp @ 4000 rpm 310 nm @ 1900 rpm

TDI 130 bhp @ 4000 rpm 310 nm @ 1900 rpm

 

The TDI's do have a better bottom end grunt but they will never have the top end purr only the bottom end rattle! :lol:

[johnb80]

I reckon you V6 drivers get used to the noise of the fuel rushing down the pipe to the engine that you never hear the real engine noise :lol:

 

Diesel gets my vote every time, my car before this was a Cosworth Ultima which was fast and did accelerate extremely well BUT how much time do you spend accelerating ?..... Not much and when you're doing the legal limit I would wager that the diesel is quieter due to more soundproofing that is usually installed in oil burners.

 

Regards - JB

[Guest nimrod]

my car before this was a Cosworth Ultima

But wasnt that a car so ugly that you wore a balaclava in so no one knew it was you behind the wheel? :lol: you might try taking it off now, as it muffles the sound of that rattling taxi you now drive :(

 

 

http://www.mccarthycars.co.uk/honda/ford/Pic31_042.jpg

[johnb80]

Mine was an estate so the back end which most people saw was ok, the frontend wasn't too bad. It was a shame that the styling was so weird, inside the car was good, quiet, comfortable, well equipped and scared the baseball hat clad teenagers in their Nova's !!

[Richmond]

BUT how much time do you spend accelerating ?..... Not much and when you're doing the legal limit

I thought that you spent most of your time accelerating in a diesel, in an effort to reach the legal limit before journey's end.

 

(I know that this is not true, by the way.)

[MrT]

BUT how much time do you spend accelerating?

Not that much, but occaisionally I have had childish urges when boy racer in his clapped out Nova sits there at the lights in the next lane revving his engine. It must be the ultimate sense of failure to Nova boy to be beaten from the lights by a middle aged man in a people carrier.

[johnb80]

It's even better still when it's not a clapped out Nova and a diesel MPV takes em from the lights and I have absolutely no trouble in doing just that with either my Galaxy TDi OR my MCC Smart car :(

[seatkid]

Smart car :(

:( sorry :lol: :(

[Guest nimrod]

OR my MCC Smart car :(

And where do you keep that then John in the boot or in the glove box? :(

 

do you have any problems with the smart car? as I'm going to the local dealers at the weekend with my neice to stick a deposit down on a pure cabriolet for her first car!

we test drove a couple but not a cabby version :( I found them great fun! :lol: for the money they seem very well specced! but do they last and are they as cheap to keep as they say?

[Guest Tiggs]

not sure i'd want to stick a new driver in a smart? wouldnt a motorbike be safer!

[johnb80]

Mines a Passion Cabrolet, it's by far the most impressive car I have driven and certainly the most well thought out. Just to get you in the picture I'm 6'6" tall and weigh 18.5 stone so as you gather I'm not the smallest person around. To all of you that laugh at Smart's go and try one and then apologise ! There's more room in the Smart than the Galaxy / Granada / Scoprio etc etc it's incredible. People mention about crashes, there are photographs on the internet of the european crash tests which confirm is a tough little car, I have a picture of a head on with a Punto in one test. The whole Punto body was distorted all the way back to the rear wing and the door could not be opened, the Smart was still driveable. One of my engineers has just had a lorry reverse into his, the lorry didn't stop until it's rear wheels were in the air and no, it wasn't empty either. The tridion safety cell is brilliant. When you go to the dealer make sure he shows you how to fully retract the roof and store the roofbars in the boot lid, this alone should get a design award. Safer than a motorbike? how crazy, there's no way I'd let any of my loved ones out on a bike with all of the loonies on the road, consider also when it rains, snow, ice etc.

 

My Smart costs

[Richmond]

Is it possible to get 2 kids+driver in a Smart car (safely and legally)? I assume not.