Diesel or Petrol?

[IR35 Avoider]

I've never owned a diesel before, mainly because I like something with a 0-60 of under 8 seconds.

This is in the wrong price range to be of help, but the 2.7L V6 diesel Jaguar XF is quicker to 60 the the 3L Petrol. The diesel is under 8 seconds.

[PAH]

Didn't top gear enter an old 330d into a 24 hr endurance race recently?

Yeah, against M3s and better. If they'd left the driving to the Stig they may have come close to winning.

Don't Audi win Lemons every year with a diesel? I'm sure I heard somewhere that they're concentrating on performance diesels at the moment purely on the back of that race.

[PAH]

This is in the wrong price range to be of help, but the 2.7L V6 diesel Jaguar XF is quicker to 60 the the 3L Petrol. The diesel is under 8 seconds.

Yeah I really liked the concept XF and the road-going one isn't too bad either, apart from the me-too headlight styling, and as long as you can delete all the wood.

I think I saw on Parkers that with depreciation they're expected to be under £20k in 3 years, so a contender for my next car come then. I'll be old enough by then to not worry too much about the jag's old man image either!

[2uk]

Yeah, against M3s and better. If they'd left the driving to the Stig they may have come close to winning.

Don't Audi win Lemons every year with a diesel? I'm sure I heard somewhere that they're concentrating on performance diesels at the moment purely on the back of that race.

Only Audi and BMW have diesels that deserve attention. ( from my research ).However I haven't seen anything like the - BMW 330D accelerates in 6.7 - ( that is better than most GTIs / Skoda RSes / etc ) and yet if you drive carefully you get incredible mpg . I know what my next car is.

I am only a bit concerned about buying a 2 -3 years old performance car. It might have been driven like hell.

[Peoplesoft bloke]

Only Audi and BMW have diesels that deserve attention. ( from my research )........

Keep on believing it - someone has to pay for the marketing :-)

[DimPrawn]

The most refined diesels (like their petrol counterparts) are 6 and 8 cylinder engines. 4 pot diesels are horrible rough things, even the new ones.

BMW, Jag, Audi and a few others make nice refined 6 and 8 cylinder diesels.

[2uk]

Keep on believing it - someone has to pay for the marketing :-)

If Germany is known for anything , this is its quality. I have driven a BMW 318I 11 years old. The car was blameless. I also had a 6 -7 years old Peugeot 405 - the only thing that was working was the Speed/Brake pedals and the gear box. Seriously.

There is nothing wrong with marketing - look where Microsoft has gotten.

[Peoplesoft bloke]

If Germany is known for anything , this is its quality......

Well, in the minds of some folks, yes, but the VWs I've had (and I have owned 4) weren't significantly better than the Citroens but they were significantly more expensive.

And I've have known a lot of BMW owners and not a single one has had a car without some faults. BMW is very good about mending stuff under warranty, but certain Japanese cars don't even need to go back..........

However, the sheep motoring hacks, the motor trade, consumers and owners want to pretend that their cars are vastly better, otherwise they'd have to accept the scandalous prices are only paying for clever marketing :-)

[miffy]

Well, in the minds of some folks, yes, but the VWs I've had (and I have owned 4) weren't significantly better than the Citroens but they were significantly more expensive.

And I've have known a lot of BMW owners and not a single one has had a car without some faults. BMW is very good about mending stuff under warranty, but certain Japanese cars don't even need to go back..........

However, the sheep motoring hacks, the motor trade, consumers and owners want to pretend that their cars are vastly better, otherwise they'd have to accept the scandalous prices are only paying for clever marketing :-)

You must have been very unlucky then. I've had two citroens (oh the shame), a VW Corrado and three golfs. Only one of the VW's had a problem with it blowing its turbo hose off the intercooler. Thats the only problem I ever had. Each of them 90-100k on the clock before I gave them back and still drove like new. As for the citroens... well. Problem after problem, the dealers are clowns and the cars are cheap carp end of. They aren't built for heavy use and cheap means low grade parts.

The Beemers, Audis and the one merc I ever had were faultless. The japs do have a good rep for reliability but theres no comparison to a beemer for example. The interiors are comparable to a council flat and the driving experience is carp.

Depends what you want from a car. I like handling, refinement, grunt, comfort, reliability and badge is near the end. Just so happens the germans tick all those boxes.

[Peoplesoft bloke]

I'm not arguing that BMs aren't refined and a decent drive - although the 3's and 5's I've driven were nothing to write home about - but it was a long time ago and they were basic models. My point is the quality angle is exaggerated.

Last year a mate bought a 330d tin roof thingy - brand new. The rear windows don't wind up every now and then. it's apparently a known fault and he's waiting for the parts to arrive so he can take it in and have the interior stripped out and both motors changed - quality?????