When my local corner shop-cum-BP filling station last week upped the price of its fuel to £1.30 a litre, the calculator in my mobile phone quickly translated that into £5.90 a gallon. Let’s call it six quid, eh? Give it another few months and the £1.54 litre/£7 gallon will arrive, and with it the nauseating fact that a vehicle with a 15-gallon tank could cost over £100 to refuel. Ouch.
You know what you’ve got to do: massively cut your spending at the pumps. That doesn’t necessarily mean reducing your miles. But if only for the sake of your finances, it does involve being considerably more fuel efficient.
The gullible, green-in-every-sense mugs might be sucked into thinking that petrol/electric hybrid cars are the solution. But some hybrids have absurd prices (the Lexus LS600h L is £84,000!), and are surprisingly thirsty, dirty beasts, returning not much more than 20mpg in real-world conditions.
I’m not saying every hybrid is rubbish. Nor am I criticising all conventional, mass-market petrol cars. But I do suggest blanking most hybrids because they cost and drink too much. Also, I’m saying the days of big gasoline engines in family cars, 4x4s and people carriers are over… unless you have cash to burn.
The advantages that state-of-the-art diesels now have over their equivalent petrol/electric or straight-petrol alternatives are, in most cases, overwhelming. Admittedly, a new derv-sipping model often costs more than a gas-guzzler. Equally true is that a tankful of diesel is costlier than petrol.
But balance those negatives against these positives: a good diesel-engined car is about 50 per cent more fuel efficient than its petrol counterpart, will be cleaner, invariably more pleasant to drive, often cheaper to tax and insure, possibly less costly to service, usually longer-lasting and definitely worth more in the future used car market. So, the higher original purchase price is irrelevant.
I’m generalising, but unless you’re a purist who pilots only thoroughbred or ultra high-performace machines, or you’re a low-mileage driver who can live with a cheap, small petrol car, a diesel is preferable every time. Well, almost. One of the exceptions to that rule is the large (2.7-litre and above) diesel unit which can be expensive to buy and as thirsty as a petrol engine that’s not much smaller.
Even for a mid to large family saloon or estate, a 2.0-2.2 diesel lump usually provides ample power and 40-50mpg in typical everyday conditions. Diesel engines in the 1.6-1.9-litre bracket should return 50mpg-plus in the finest family hatchbacks and smaller saloons/estates. And those realistically seeking in excess of 60mpg require superminis with 1.4 or 1.6-litre diesels. Experience tells me that the right diesel-powered VWs/Audis/Skodas, BMWs/MINIs, Citroens/Peugeots, Kias/Hyundais, Fords and Mercs are particularly efficient.
The oil companies and Government won’t like you for running the most fuel-miserly mainstream cars because they’ll rake in less money. All the more reason then to buy such models. Even at today’s prices, which will inevitably increase massively, the annual fuel bill for a 25mpg car doing 12,000 miles a year is £2,880. Make that an eye-watering £28,800 during its first 10 years.
Alternatively, cover the same mileage in a 50mpg diesel for a full decade, and you’ll save a cool £14,400 at the pumps. It’s a no-brainer. If you’re Mr or Mrs Average doing average annual mileages, you can’t afford NOT to run a highly fuel-efficient diesel car.