Stueyb

Hi peeps,

Im on a cost cutting exercise atm and need a little help.

I am currently driving a N reg Puegeot 306 2.0 Litre 8 valve, fuel injected model and it was never cheap to run but now in light of increased fuel prices im looking at changing models (that and it will fail its December MOT)

Based on my current usage, I estimate I use £30 a week on fuel at the minute, with insurance of £360 and tax at the higher rate. Also this car will fail its MOT for sure, needing a new drive shaft, exhaust and an oil leak sorting as a minimum.

So I was looking at getting a cheap run around ie J reg £500 fiesta 1.3 or similar. Now some things such as tax and insurance savings almost pay for the car outright. However what I cant quantify is the petrol. How much more efficient would the fiesta be in terms of fuel ?

Also to complement this, I just got my bike fixed so I can ride down the country lanes to work, as its only 5.5 Miles there and the same back. That should save me a tank of petrol a month alone.

What I am hoping to do is sell the Pug for just enough to cover the car and the insurance, because last time the insurance was paid a year in advance.

Any comments appreicated

TopBanana

Why don't you get a diesel?

dpb

a nice pair of running shoes......?

Stueyb

TopBanana, I thought about this but I cant find any diesels that dont attract the higher tax bracket. Also I dont expect to be doing more than 400 or so miles a month.

Tomos

I think theres a corsa diesel thats only 1.5, so thats in the lower tax group

TopBanana

Fair enough, but those old fester 1.3 engines are ancient and horrible. Try to go for something japanese if you can

Brendan Hughes

Old Nissan Micra?

lightning101

Yep - nissan micra or toyota corolla - they run for ever, and old folks own them

TopBanana

Good thinking lightning - you could probably con them and get the car for free

FirebirdUK

Hehe - Like the thinking

You could put a suit on and pop round to the said old persons house and make out you were from the DVLA - you could say something like "Under a new EU directive, cars over 3 years old must be impounded - I'm here to collect yours"

Only thing is, it might cost you a bit in air fresheners, especially if the car smells of PSLewis

kammy

lol but harsh

mgcvk

I've got a '97 1.25 Fiesta Zetec. Had it from new and done 120,000 miles plus. Never had any probs apart from 1 new clutch at around 60k. Perky engine and lively to drive with good mpg.

TopBanana

Yep the 1.25 engines are grrrreat... probably out of his price range though?

03-CTR

i've went through this myself a while back and ended up not bothering because it doesn't make a massive difference at all. i currently do 1200 miles a month in a 2.4l accord and spend £180 (98p/litre). surprisingly this equates to 30mpg which is very close to the official combined figure.

if i did the same mileage in a 1.6l civic the combined figure is 43mpg so for the same mileage i'd end up spending £125. sure i'd save £55pcm but i am happy to pay the extra for a much better car.

going from a 2.0l to a 1.3l will probably save you £10pcm on fuel but thats about it. most of the savings would probably come from insurance, tax, tyres etc but i wouldn't expect to save a lot on petrol.

hope this helps