Just thought i would throw a spanner in the works here, Friend of mine has just bought himself an astra sri 1.9CDTI he had a new down pipe fitted and had it chipped and is now running just over 200bhp but most importantly 320lb ft of tourque i personally didnt believe the figures he was quoting untill we went out in the car and all i can say is its crazy!!! Ok its not 4wheel drive doesnt handle as well and aint got that lovely burble but what it does have is an on board computer reading 50mpg!!! How much longer will it be before we get an STI diesel or how long before more people start to switch for cheap fun its also very pleasing when we left a guy in his shiny new R32 golf at the lights and luckily enough we had more than enough tourque to make sure he saw the diesel badge on the back ha ha ha Think you can find his r32 in the nearest skip after that.

 

STI diesel is more than likely on its way and why not. With figures like those you quote, it should keep most people happy. The days of thirsty dirty cars for the mainstream are gone.....unfortunately

 

There is an unfortunate inevitability about diesel engines in road cars. You just can't ignore the lower running costs, well I can't anyway. The hot sellers for me at the moment are all low tax, high MPG diesel cars and I can't see it changing any time soon.

Diesel STI? Yes there will almost definitely be one. Will it be any good? I don't think it will matter for most of the potential buyers, so long as it does 45mpg and only costs £145 to tax. It only has to be better than the other sporty diesels available, not better than the petrol STI.

 

Will be interesting to see then how much power sti give the diesel cause i have no doubt in my mind that if they wanted to it could be roling out the showroom with more torque than its petrol brother, would they do it tho? would it be good or bad for the company out pulling the petrol version on the motorway as any of you out there who have been in a good chipped diesel you would know it could happen.

 

I just filled my hawkeye up with V Power and it cost me £60. i'll be lucky to get 250 miles from that, but hey, i suppose thats the price you pay for running a scoob.

 

A Scooby is a feel good car and the engine plays a huge part in that feeling. At the moment a lot of owners can just about justify the daft running costs because their car is a large part of their lives. They love the mods, the meets and the driving experience. However, I think a lot of people are in denial about how much they are really paying to feel good. As the price of petrol rockets ever higher a lot of people are going to have to look at cars like your friends Astra. Most of my 400-odd posts have been about reducing the cost of motoring so I'm not going to trot out my usual figures extolling the virtues of the black petrol pump. However, I would put good money on the forthcoming STI diesel wiping the floor with it's petrol brother in the sales charts.

 

I know dont get me wrong love my scoob but just makes you think what else you can do for such little running costs

 

Would imagine if they put there mind to it or an aftermarket company did with a little re map and you had a petrol sti and diesel sti both sitting there doing 60mph and both floored it my money would be firmly on diesel!!! Thats gonna make me unpopular but you know its true?

 

I'm just trying to sell my BMW 330d sport, so I can get my first scooby. I can get 55mpg driving sensibly out of it and it's fast enough for the roads aswell as handling well.

I suppose it depends on your circumstances, I want a scooby coz I only use the car at weekend for fun anyway, and you can't really modify a BMW diesel lol.

 

Guy i work with has a 330d chipped and trust me unless you buy a scoob that has been tweaked quite a bit you are not gonna get any more performance, Can see you back in the bmw dealer in 12 months lol

 

What you have to remember is that before too much longer diesel will probably cost twice what petrol costs.Diesel is already approaching £1.15/ltr which is a lot more than unleaded,it will soon be more expensive than super so its swings and roundabouts really

 

my mate has a fabia vrs diesel running 220bhp. my scoob is running 250, and as daft as it sounds, its neck and neck all the way! i would say its embarrassing, but it aint. he spends a 1/3 of the cost i do on fuel, yet can race a petrol car and near enuff win!

 

The flat four diesel is in showrooms in two weeks. It's in the Legacy, then the Forester and then lastly the Impreza. TG Mag gave it 16/20 and say it's the best diesel now on the market. 151 g/kms and 50+ in a 4WD estate or saloon. Company car anyone?

 

bump

 

The 330d was the fastest production diesel out when they first released it. I'm sure this is the one that Jenson Button got caught doing 150mph in Paris in.

I hope I dont regret this lol

 

Prob was think the vw V10 tdi is the most powerfull now tho either way petrol is dead move to the dark side and get bags more torque which at the end of the day is what counts and double your mileage at least. Gonna get some abuse for that one me thinks lol

 

and pay a lot more for diesel at the end of the day the government have tagged on to the fact that a vast majority of the motoring public are moving to diesels which is why the cost of diesel per litre is now as expensive if not more expensive than super unleaded and will continue to move way ahead on price than petrol.You pay your money and take your choice.Fortunately i have the best of both worlds an 06 Octavia diesel which does almost 700 miles to a tank and a company fuel card and my Spec C for weekends and shows

 

It mystifies me where all these telephone number MPG figures for diesels come from. I had a Vectra 1.9cdti as a loan car for a couple of months and the thing only averaged low to mid 30's while I had it and my Berlingo 2.0hdi only manages high 30's and that's a bloody van. Drive them hard and they aren't so clever and the performance is deceptive, a 2 litre turbodiesel has not got a hope of matching the outright performance of a 2 litre petrol turbo, the diesel just delivers its performance more easily.
Kevin

 

I can promise you my 3.0 litre beemer can manage 55mpg on the motorway and 38mpg kicking about the doors, with enough oomph to take on the majority of spotty faced boy racers.

 

Do you have a Scoob?

 

My 06 hawkeye will be gone in a few weeks, I have traded it in for a new lancer gs4 2.0td. The performance was great for a diesil, car looks great in my opinion and over 3 yrs it will have payed back what its cost me to trade to my new car in running cost savings alone !!
I have loved my scoobies, but whilst I can get performance and low running costs with a diesil why not !!
2 yrs ago I would never have considered a diesil, but how things have changed


Deano

 

on its way

Subaru Impreza | Auto Express News | News | Auto Express

 

Not yet, I'm trying to sell the Beemer so I can get my first 1.

 

How on earth do you get 55mpg out of a 330D?

I get around 35mpg to and from work, and approaching 40mpg on a run if I'm lucky. It's worse in winter.

It's still a heck of a lot better than a Subaru, mind. I have an STI 2 for fun - it's my third Impreza and, at 27mpg average, the most efficient by some margin.

 

It's fitted with one of those dragon performance chips, you know the digital module that plugs directly into the wiring harness. I'm not sure if this ups the mpg or not, they say that it does.

I had a golf GT TDI 130 before this and I could get about the same mpg with that, even though it's a 1.9.

 

Check out the stats, the 330i has 40hp more than the 330d and gets to 62 over half a second faster. And that's without a turbocharger. Factor in a turbocharger and it'd be in a different universe. All diesels have over petrols is more torque and better (but not that good ) MPG, but when directly compared to the equivalent petrol car they lack performance and are totally devoid of character. As a shopping trolley they have their uses but the type of person who would buy and USE something like an Impreza or an M3 is never going to be happy in an oil-burner.
Kevin

 

amen

 

That is where you are going wrong. If you drive them like you stole them then the mpg will be very average indeed. If you don't do many miles then the savings will be small enough to argue the case for petrol. My record for the 35 miles to work is 73mpg in my Civic diesel. Cruised in traffic at 58mph, green lights all the way and no braking. The best average for an entire tank is 67mpg. Driving economically is a skill in itself and requires thinking ahead to avoid unnecessary braking and acceleration.

 

Apart from the all-conquering Audi that wiped the floor with everything at Le Mans.

Pound for pound when you factor in all the running costs a diesel will slaughter the equivalent petrol. MPG is so much better, tax lower, residuals better and insurance lower that if you spent the savings on modifying a diesel it would utterly annihilate the petrol equivalent.

 

I think you took a wrong turn somewhere, this is definitely the wrong place if you're trying to drum up support for a 'Drive as far as you can on a gallon' challenge. Try the Hyundai owners club instead. I don't always drive it like I stole it, but who on earth buys an Impreza turbo to rub shoulders with Flatcap Fred over a game of dominoes discussing the merits of his Austin 7 over his mates Frog-eye Sprite?
Kevin