1.6 tdi or 1.2 tsi? mainly short journeys

[cypher007]

recently gave up on buying an Audi A5 2012 2.0 TDI, due to the fact it had been updated by VW, I was told by some owners it wouldn't like my daily drive to work, and to get a working car id have to remap it and remove the dpf. well as it was £12k I haven't got anything left to spend on remaps. plus I recon the might make the dpf function part of the MOT.

so with this in mind what are my options for an economical and trouble free car?

my work run is about 2.5 miles highway speeds 2.5 town, with maybe one 30 mile round trip at weekends at mainly highway speeds.

I currently run an old 2003 1.9TDI its done 121k but its reliable. and with the black smoke map not bad. but its costing me £135 a year road tax and returns about 45mpg on my work run. on a highway run it will manage about 65mpg the way I drive eg slow 56-60 mph.

ive looked at both 108 1.2 tsi and 104 1.6 tdi which appear to offer advantages in lower tax and for the diesel better economy.

now I know we haven't got a crystal ball but whats the GOV likely to do to diesel's? I don't want to buy a TDI and then get whacked for higher road tax.

the TSI looks ok but economy seems very weak compared even to my old Leon.

on my daily drive would the TDI start giving grief due to the DPF? as I like the economy it offers when we go further afield.

has the VW update caused as many problems or could cause problems down the road, as it has done for the 2.0 TDI's?

I plan to keep this car for maybe 8 years+.

 

[camelspyyder]

The 1.6TDI is rough as rats. I have never driven a coarser diesel.

When I test drove one, I arrived at the garage in a 14 year old Proton Wira diesel (with a 22 year old design Mitsubishi diesel in it.). The Proton (worth £375) had the smoother engine, and rode just as badly as the £17000 2013 Toledo TDI.

The Toledo has a few different 1.2 motors available, but the 105TSi or 110TSi have stop start and therefore £20 annual tax. Of the 2 the 105 is silky smooth, I don't like the engine drone in the newer 16v 110.

The lower power 1.2TSi 86 does not get cheap tax, but does seem to get significantly better real world mpg (as does surprisingly the 1.4 TSI DSG according to owners on Briskoda)

On the Toledo's poor ride question, the suspension and steering were upgraded in late 2013 giving a big improvement. However the extra weight of the diesel still does make the ride, handling and tyre wear inferior to the petrol ones.

On the other side of the coin, the Proton equalled the mpg of the new TSI I bought, and only needed 3 or 4 gearchanges to get to work, as opposed to the dozens I now make with the manual 6 speed.

 

[camelspyyder]

You must find out how is the 1.6TDI for warm up. The TSi warms up in 2 miles but my last FIAT jtd would not have demisted the screen in your 5 mile commute it warmed up so slowly.

 

[camelspyyder]

Your 12k budget should be near enough for a brand new or pre-reg tsi.

Carwow just offered me the Style Advanced for 13k.

 

[cypher007]

Your 12k budget should be near enough for a brand new or pre-reg tsi.

Carwow just offered me the Style Advanced for 13k.

really? I phoned a dealer couple of months back about a TDI on a 16 reg that was £12890, asked for a deal he said nope that's the price. funny hes still got it, guess I was right about the price. anyway I'm finding some dealers are moving very little on there prices. is it because I'm not buying on finance?

 

[camelspyyder]

Just put in the details on carwow, and any dealers with what you want in stock will give you their best price.

I got several offers on the style advanced below 14k and the best was 13k.

Way easier than my internet trawl 3 years ago which took several days (but did get me a brand new TSi SE Nav for 12.7k)

 

[cypher007]

well,

ordered a 67 plate Toledo 1.0 3 cylinder TSI 110PS Excellence. got it for £12 OTR.

paid via DD for the 3 years servicing worked out to about £11.10 per month.

asked about 5 year warranty and it was about £500, so gave that a miss, as with the servicing would have been pricy for another 2 years. I normally sort the service items and have a local garage I know do it cheap.

I test drove a 1.2 TSI Toledo they had and it seemed a bit of a slug compared to my old remapped Leon, but I guess ill have to get used to it as the GOV has diesels in there sights.

also the ride seemed very harsh, noisy on certain surfaces, and I put the seat on its lowest setting but still felt high up compared to our old Toledo mk2.

 

[camelspyyder]

Good price eh. I've driven​ the 1.0 in an ibiza and it's nippy. The poor ride is often down to the dealer.
Massively over pressurised tyre or leaving the packers in are 2 things missed on pdis. I hope you like the car when you get it.

 

[camelspyyder]

Poor ride also can depend on tyres. OEM Dunlop Sport Maxx are awful. OEM Conti Premium 2 much nicer.

 

[cypher007]

packers?

 

[camelspyyder]

Suspension packers restrict the suspension and stop the cars bouncing up and down on the back of the transporter. Like transit bolts on a washing machine.

At least one Rapid/Toledo driver on Briskoda reported that their awful ride was caused by these being left in place by the dealer.

 

[YorkshirePud]

A bit of perspective from a previous diesel owner...

I used to have a 1.6tdci ford focus, i bought it as my petrol version was becoming uneconomical given my daily communite. And for many years it was the perfect car, great MPG and decent to drive. Then i changed jobs and ended up working only 10 mins from home. Eventually the dreaded dpf problems caught up with me and it cost a fortune to put right. I swapped cars. It is a shame but honestly diesels i find are not suitable for short journeys, especially now they have stuck dpf filters in them.

Im seeing lots of people come in my work now looking for magic bullet fixes to diesel problems caused by them running them for short periods. I can see you have ordered a petrol which is probably the best move, but wanted to add my experience. hope it serves you well!

 

[camelspyyder]

What a deal! New car with 40% off RRP of £20070. The best I've done to date is 34%. Well done.

 

[camelspyyder]

Now I know which dealer you went to I,m not surprised the ride felt bad. Their test drive route on those awful roads through the industrial area does no car any favours. And then coming back along the noisiest dual carriageway surface in Britain - I amazed they sell anything.

I test drove the 1.0 3 cylinder in a Skoda Rapid, and it's a different kind of engine noise, but not tinny like a Suzuki or Hyundai triple. I don't like the sound as much as the 1.2TSi I've got, but hey at £11995 the Toledo was too good a deal to miss.

 

[camelspyyder]

Getting indicated 50 mpg overall in the 1.2 TSI since last November (so 48 in reality). That's a 25 mile B-road commute with about 10 junctions to stop at and then accelerate all the way back up to cruising speed. Expect the 1.0 to beat that quite comfortably, I'm hoping for 53-55 genuine mpg from it.

 

[YorkshirePud]

been away on holiday and the trip in my 1.2TSI involved driving from Liverpool to west yorkshire and then onto Bridling ton on the east coast so a mix of Motorways 70/60/50mph depending on restrictions and A Road driving.

when i arrived in Bridlington i was on 60mpg. I filled up right as i left and checked "from last refuel" when i got back to liverpool the MPG had gone down to 55mpg. unsure why BUT im still quiet pleased with that. currently its giving my old 1.6tdci focus stiff competition in the economy.

 

[camelspyyder]

been away on holiday and the trip in my 1.2TSI involved driving from Liverpool to west yorkshire and then onto Bridling ton on the east coast so a mix of Motorways 70/60/50mph depending on restrictions and A Road driving.

when i arrived in Bridlington i was on 60mpg. I filled up right as i left and checked "from last refuel" when i got back to liverpool the MPG had gone down to 55mpg. unsure why BUT im still quiet pleased with that. currently its giving my old 1.6tdci focus stiff competition in the economy.

Prevailing wind from the West. So your car does better mpg on the way than way back.


I don't think 55 mpg is ever likely with my 1.2/105 with the 17 option. I managed (indicated) 50 on our last 400 mile trip out and that was damn good; other owners with 15 or 16 inch wheels seem to do 3-5 mpg better, and the 1.2/86 can do a lot better than that.