From: Steve Firth on
JackH <jackhackettuk(a)yahoo.co.uk> wrote:

> > *swallows nerd bait* 100k miles will cost about �15k to fuel a typical
> > 1.8-2.0 petrol car, and about �10k for an equivalent diesel. The
> > difference in purchase price is typically <�1k, when new.
> > Break-even mileage is closer to 20k than 100k. [1]
>
> There are other financial factors as well.

Yes, like diesels tending to be closer to 2K more expensive than petrol
engines.
From: Tim S Kemp on

"AstraVanMann" <peter(a)swerveweb.com> wrote in message
news:P6KdncDBYNyChxXWnZ2dnUVZ8qudnZ2d(a)bt.com...
> "Tim S Kemp" <news(a)timkemp.karoo.co.uk> wrote:
>>> 80k for a DMF/Clutch that costs about �600 to replace. Works out at
>>> 0.75p per mile, assuming it needs to be done that early.
>>
>> And VAG have there share of DMF / Clutch problems.
>
> I don't think Merc DMFs are entirely problem free either - I'm sure people
> have said that getting a Sprinter clutch done involves replacing the DMF
> as a matter of course. Just a sad fact of modern stuff that it's another
> part that can be considered a service item, that happens to be expensive
> to do. I've got no idea if my petrol powered Sprinter has got a DMF
> (probably not), but it's not something I overly worry about as the clutch
> is still absolutely fine at 226k miles, and on the original (and the last
> 77k or those have been with me driving it, stopping and starting the
> engine 80-odd times a day, and using it for multidrop work).

The DMF is supposed to smooth the vibrations at low RPM so clutch take up is
smooth, not juddery. Petrol motors don't have them, diesels don't need them
but in order to sell people expect them to be smooth.

Transits seem to be my garage's favourite DMF pet hate - "why even bother
having one in a van". Most of the time replaced with a solid flywheel.




--
And remember kids, RAID is safe and the UPS never fails, and Cisco routers
never develop intermittent faults, and external hard drives never fail with
only a month's use, and the DNS is reliable and resilient, and the
mailserver is protected from all forms of attack, and the replacement UPS
will be reliable as the first one was an unusual failure. No one will ever
guess /that/ password, the aircon can't fail 285V is close enough to 230,
and the QoS on the PWan won't obstruct the tagged traffic.

From: Tim S Kemp on

"Steve Firth" <%steve%@malloc.co.uk> wrote in message
news:1jejn18.pi77zu141ta4gN%%steve%@malloc.co.uk...
> JackH <jackhackettuk(a)yahoo.co.uk> wrote:
>
>> > *swallows nerd bait* 100k miles will cost about �15k to fuel a typical
>> > 1.8-2.0 petrol car, and about �10k for an equivalent diesel. The
>> > difference in purchase price is typically <�1k, when new.
>> > Break-even mileage is closer to 20k than 100k. [1]
>>
>> There are other financial factors as well.
>
> Yes, like diesels tending to be closer to 2K more expensive than petrol
> engines.


It's hard to quantify. Let me put it this way - my example:

Volvo S60. Nice comfy car, manual 24mpg with my right foot. At 30k miles p/a
that's 6500 quid per year in fuel at todays prices
E270CDi,. Nice comfy car, auto, 32mpg with my right foot. �4800 per year, a
saving of �1700 quid.

Anyone doing <15k miles/yr is unlikely to break even on an equivalent diesel
car. I'd love to be running around in a petrol car again, drove the Volvo
yesterday and even though it's underpowered the immediacy of the engine
reminded me what I miss, but 1700 quid can be spent on other stuffs.





--
And remember kids, RAID is safe and the UPS never fails, and Cisco routers
never develop intermittent faults, and external hard drives never fail with
only a month's use, and the DNS is reliable and resilient, and the
mailserver is protected from all forms of attack, and the replacement UPS
will be reliable as the first one was an unusual failure. No one will ever
guess /that/ password, the aircon can't fail 285V is close enough to 230,
and the QoS on the PWan won't obstruct the tagged traffic.

From: Clive George on
On 27/02/2010 01:01, Tim S Kemp wrote:

> Anyone doing <15k miles/yr is unlikely to break even on an equivalent
> diesel car.

<waves> Me sir, I beat it.

But since the car cost 500 quid 4 years ago, this isn't hard. Equivalent
petrol might have been 100-200 quid less?
From: Conor on
On 27/02/2010 01:47, Clive George wrote:
> On 27/02/2010 01:01, Tim S Kemp wrote:
>
>> Anyone doing <15k miles/yr is unlikely to break even on an equivalent
>> diesel car.
>
> <waves> Me sir, I beat it.

Likewise. I get 20MPG more with my diesel Mondeo than a petrol one. The
car cost �1k more than its petrol equivalent (3yr old used).

--
Conor
I'm not prejudiced. I hate everyone equally.