Moving from Diesel to Petrol

C

chrisfrancis

Registered User
Joined
Dec 20, 2004
Messages
5
Reaction score
0
Points
1
Location
Wales
Hi all,
Had two diesel cars in a row now, VW Bora, 130 tdi and now own a a4 avant 130pd sport tdi(b6 ), may upgrade to a a4 2.0t fsi s line special edition (b7), would anyone recommend this move from a diesel to a petrol, and would there be a vast jump in performance? cheers. And does anyone know the fuel consumption figures for the 2,0t fsi, cheers.
 
performance will undoubtedly be better, and concumption will undoubtedly be worse.

Horses for courses, depends on your criteria for a car. If mpg is important then diesel, if you want a bit more fun then petrol.

Saying that, if you don't do many miles each year then the impact should be minimal (don't forget that servicing will also come round quicker.)

It's my experience that after you've had a car for a few months you soon get used to it's performance. So even though you'll get a kick out of the 2.0t for a while it will soon become the norm. Whereas getting a decent mpg will always reward you /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

With the 2.0tdi now capable of pushing out 185bhp @ stage1 and >200bhp in stage 2 format I think it would take a lot to make me go back to petrol, unless it was a second car...
 
[ QUOTE ]
On the other hand, a diesel will always sound like you've spent £20k on a canal-barge.

[/ QUOTE ]

This may have been true 10 years ago, these days a good diesel engine, and they are about (BMW 3.0, Audi 3.0) can be smooth.
 
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
On the other hand, a diesel will always sound like you've spent £20k on a canal-barge.

[/ QUOTE ]

This may have been true 10 years ago, these days a good diesel engine, and they are about (BMW 3.0, Audi 3.0) can be smooth.

[/ QUOTE ]

I agree the 6-cyls are pretty smooth once they're warm & running, but even the best 4-cyl diesels still clatter like hell on start-up & when idling. It's a point of preference obviously, but I know that's not a sound I want to hear when I turn the key.
 
yeah i'll give you that. My 2.0 does have similarities to a bucket of spanners when idling. However when driving it's pretty refined, anyhting over 20mph is quite bearable /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 
Ummm 24mpg or 48mpg? I think I can just about bear the slight clattering in preference for half price fuel
 
Exactly! One of my mates is likewise obsessed with engine noise when idling and I've never understood it. For me it's just not an issue.
 
I'm thinking of doing the reverse... switching from petrol to diesel!
 
[ QUOTE ]
I'm thinking of doing the reverse... switching from petrol to diesel!

[/ QUOTE ]

I did, just got fed up off filling up every 200 miles with my 3.2, now only feel up every 450 with my tdi 4-motion. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
Yes when it's starting to cost 20p per mile just for fuel (taxi's only charge 50p) and you're doing average or above mileage (12k+ pa) then there's really nothing else for it.
I'm more than delighted with my B6 tdi 130, 600 miles on a tank compared to 280 on my 2.8Q its just a no brainer. The car's actually making me money when used for business between £100 & £200 per month depending on time of year, whereas previously I was losing on every mile.
If you don't do many miles then obviously you'll go with petrol, but I don't know anyone who's moving away from diesel.
 
My MKIV GTI-T sounded like a diesel when it started up. My current TDI doesn't really sound that different.
 
At the moment, fuel consumption's not an issue, as I only do about 8k miles a year & commute to work by train. Also, whilst my current 2.8Q Tip may be getting on seven years old, it's in good nick, 100% reliable (why-oh-why did I say that?!) and has an excellent spec. It is exactly the car I want, and simply having a newer version of it isn't a good enough reason to spend a fortune.

Even if fuel consumption was getting to be a problem, unless I had another compelling reason to be rid of the car I have now, it still wouldn't make sense to buy a diesel just to "save" money on fuel. Any saving in fuel costs would be more than offset by the acquisition costs and heavy depreciation on a newer model.

Finally, however, if I did switch to diesel, it would have to be a 2.5TDi because, regardless of fuel type, I hate engines with anything fewer than six cylinders.
 
I don't think anyone was proposing changing vehicles for the sole purpose of saving money on fuel Jeff.
We changed from an old A3TS to a B6 Avant tdi primarily because we needed a bigger car, the diesel decision was secondary, but a no brainer once the need to change cars is established. As it turned out we got £6.5k for the A3 and got the Avant for £9k so it didn't actually cost anymore to go diesel as such.
Having said that there are people out there (& on here) who just have to have the latest model regardless of depreciation, poor residuals etc.
Personally I think anyone who buys a new car is just plain mad, but I've grown out of the whole "must have a new car" trap that a lot of people seem to get caught up in. Even if you're paying cash, the depreciation when you drive it off the forecourt is gonna far outweigh the saving on fuel, so never really understood that particular "logic" of buying a brand new diesel.
I'd much rather be mortgage free in 8 years than haemorrhage cash on a new car and then have to continue working for another 23 years, but then each to their own.
 
[ QUOTE ]

I'd much rather be mortgage free in 8 years than haemorrhage cash on a new car and then have to continue working for another 23 years, but then each to their own.

[/ QUOTE ]

You're not wrong there, Andy. I can't believe I borrowed money on my mortgage in the 80s & early 90s to buy cars. The cars have long gone, but the debt is still there. carried forward in the mortgage on my current house.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Having said that there are people out there (& on here) who just have to have the latest model regardless of depreciation, poor residuals etc.
Personally I think anyone who buys a new car is just plain mad, but I've grown out of the whole "must have a new car" trap that a lot of people seem to get caught up in.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm right with you on this as well. Of course, in turning our backs on new cars, you and I are missing out on key advances in automotive technology, such as auto-dipping headlights (because we're too stupid to notice a car coming towards us), auto-dimming mirror (because we're too dumb to notice when we're being dazzled from behind) and auto-sensing wipers (because we're too thick to notice it's raining outside). /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif
 
Yes but we don't want to be too involved in the whole driving experience do we? Once they've got auto-steering & auto-braking sorted then just type in the post code and away you go.
I have complete faith in computers looking after my safety, what could possibly go wrong?

Judging from a lot of the comments on here about deteriorating build quality it would seem that a 5 year old Audi is a better prospect than the brand new ones.
 
There's a house three door up for me, where the owner has a diesel Shogun. He starts it up at about the same time that I walk past each morning on the way to the station. The cloud of black smoke that comes out the of the exhaust as he starts that baby up is akin to Three Mile Island and Chernobyl combined!

I have to hold my breath until I'm a good 100 yards further up the road. Just as I breath out, he clatters past as he runs his other half to the station (& the b@$tard has never once offered me a lift).
 
[ QUOTE ]
Good point Jeff, the JCB they use at my local tip is also very noisy.

[/ QUOTE ]

That's where diesel engines belong! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 
I am a "petrol head" (no pun intended) - and am anxious for a diesel to be pleasurable to drive.

Sure they have great power (For about a split second then you change gear) and great on economy! I too had the 2.8q and sufferend the 280Miles per tank.

I have always been anxious to drive the latest diesels... and recently had a spankers A4 B7 2.0TDI... and yet again... totally disappointed! Not the noise... just the feel of the car. I can feel it vibrating through pedals, steering etc... its un-avoiidable. Guy I work with had the 2.5 v6 A6 - that was quite nice - long gearing - and so nice long power band... a lot smoother... but as soon as I look at a 6 cyl diesel - you are paying S3/top spec A4 1.8T money... and insurance for me as an under 25 does not vary enough to justify the move!

Petrol for me till I have a family and am doing large amounts of miles.

Till then... nice long power bands, silky smooth driving and the joys of high reving - sadly wtih a bit of a bigger fuel bill.
 
Oh I see, we're back with the fascinating "I hate diesels - I love diesels" debate.
As already stated a million times, if you don't do the mileage then of course you'd pick a petrol engine. It's not a case of personal preference or taste. Petrol engined cars are smoother, less noisy and less smelly and usually faster, diesels are far more economical and get much better tax breaks if used as a company car.
It's as simple as that!
There's no debate about which ones better
If you have the luxury of either low mileage driving or enough cash as not to care then it's petrol all the way.
If you do 12k miles or more per year and are fed up with p1ssing money down the drain then diesel is something to consider but it is obviously a compromise. I do a lot of motorway driving for business and actually prefer the diesel for cruising at 85mph, but the trade off is that around town it's obviously a diesel and you're forever changing gear.
I'm not a big diesel fan but when it can make me at least £150 per month tax free it kind of gets my interest.
Simple enough for everyone?
 
audi upgrades
Agreed Andy,

No miles or Petrol card or shed loads of desposable cash go petrol.

40% tax 12k a year diesal.

Just remap it /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif youll only be 15bhp from a stand 2.0T not enough for him to pull away /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

D
Moving back to Petrol!
Replies
15
Views
2K
TorqueTerrorist
TorqueTerrorist
D
Looking to swap from diesel to petrol...good choice?
Replies
4
Views
4K
Molnboman
Molnboman
R
Moving to an Audi from a Subaru
Replies
14
Views
2K
ric355
R
Audi-Rog
Moving away from Audi....
Replies
8
Views
817
Audi-Rog
Audi-Rog
Shaun Osborne
Engine Torque specs PETROL and Diesel
Replies
18
Views
2K
Shaun Osborne
Shaun Osborne
Top
Back