[durbin]

have a 2008 St, sucks to much fuel for me, so looking for a new motor that does good MPG.

obviously diesel is where to go, any suggestions? This bloke at my work has a VW polo 1.4 match tdi says he gets about 60 MPG. When compared to my average of 31 MPG thats a hell of alot.

cheers all

[thesilverfox]

Originally Posted by durbin

have a 2008 St, sucks to much fuel for me, so looking for a new motor that does good MPG.

obviously diesel is where to go, any suggestions? This bloke at my work has a VW polo 1.4 match tdi says he gets about 60 MPG. When compared to my average of 31 MPG thats a hell of alot.

cheers all

Comparing apples to oranges there really. Isn't the 1.4 TDI Polo a 3 cylinder engine? Assuming based on your other thread you mean Fiesta ST, well 31mpg is about average. I bet if you sat at a sensible speed constantly you'd get high thirties to low fourties.

My ST170 was able to do just over 40mpg at a push.

If you want mpg, you will usually have to sacrifice the acceleration. If you want best of both, look at something like the Skoda Fabia vRS or the Polo Sport TDI. Both pretty nippy (not the 7.9s sprint to 60 of the ST), but will still return 50mpg.

[qwerty321]

How many miles will you be doing and what sort of roads?

Smaller engines aren't always better. I get better economy in my 2.2 diesel than a mate who has a 1.2 Petrol on the motorways.

[clockworks]

The most economical car I've ever had was a '54 plate Vectra SRi 1.9 CDTi 150.
I had the car for 3 1/2 years, did over 110K miles. It was very easy to get over 50 mpg, mixed rural A roads and dual carriageway.
On a 700 mile round trip, mostly motorway, and sticking to a true 65mph, I got just over 60 mpg.
Worst I got on a tankful was about 45 mpg - short journeys.

My current car, '58 plate Mazda 6 diesel estate, gets around 46 mpg. Because I now have a fuel card, I tend to drive it a bit harder than the Vectra.

I'm redundant in 3 weeks, so the Mazda's going back (company car), and I'm getting a Fiat Qubo diesel. Hope to get at least 55 mpg out of it.

[durbin]

mainly motorways but then normal urban roads aswel.

from filling up with £25 im lucky to get 180 miles.

be honest not bothered with speed, have a motorbike for that :D but then crappy rain neeed a low mpg car.

so you reckon the VW polo 1.4 match would be a good choice? im just unsure what to do

[thesilverfox]

Originally Posted by durbin

mainly motorways but then normal urban roads aswel.

from filling up with £25 im lucky to get 180 miles.

be honest not bothered with speed, have a motorbike for that :D but then crappy rain neeed a low mpg car.

so you reckon the VW polo 1.4 match would be a good choice? im just unsure what to do

The 1.4 might be a bit strained at motorway speeds, but will be better suited for more town/urban driving.

If you want a motorway diesel, look for a 1.6 diesel at the minimum in my opinion. The smaller 1.4 Peugeot/Ford engines are okay - my GF's old 206 would get 70mpg.

I wouldn't have bothered with the ST if you have a bike - why not trade it in for the 1.6 TDCi Zetec-S? Looks very simliar, has a bit of poke, but the engine is capable of over 60mpg.

[qwerty321]

Originally Posted by durbin

mainly motorways but then normal urban roads aswel.

from filling up with £25 im lucky to get 180 miles.

be honest not bothered with speed, have a motorbike for that :D but then crappy rain neeed a low mpg car.

so you reckon the VW polo 1.4 match would be a good choice? im just unsure what to do

For town roads the Polo might be ok but come to Motorways and it will be a bit of a struggle.

Go for something a little more powered like a 2 litre diesel.

Bear in mind, to get something like the 60 MPG you do have to tone down your driving style!

How much do you want to spend?

[Ayub]

Buy a golf passat etc end of story

[chrisw]

Originally Posted by Ayub

Buy a golf passat etc end of story

Seconded... very easy to get 50+mpg out of the VAG diesel engines I've found, and you get reasonable performance from most of these.

[thesilverfox]

So logical step here: Fiesta ST > VW Passat?

Seems a bit of a jump in size ... what about the Polo TDI Sport? Same decent economy for the 1.9 130bhp TDI engine. Will get better mpg than the Passat too.

[qwerty321]

Originally Posted by thesilverfox

So logical step here: Fiesta ST > VW Passat?

Seems a bit of a jump in size ... what about the Polo TDI Sport? Same decent economy for the 1.9 130bhp TDI engine. Will get better mpg than the Passat too.

What car does the OP have. A Focus or a Fiesta? Its not entirely clear.

[thesilverfox]

Originally Posted by qwerty321

What car does the OP have. A Focus or a Fiesta? Its not entirely clear.

A Fiesta - it's mentioned in another thread.

[durbin]

right well I was ment to be heading up to a garage to look at a polo 1.4 today but have decided not to in the end.

thinking about keeping the fiesta ST until christmas and in the meen time look to find another motor which will suit my needs.

as of how much Im looking to spend, nothing if I can help it, possibly do a straight up swap for my fiesta or private sale my fiesta as its virtually brand new and wit hthe money from that put it towards another car.

[thesilverfox]

Originally Posted by durbin

right well I was ment to be heading up to a garage to look at a polo 1.4 today but have decided not to in the end.

thinking about keeping the fiesta ST until christmas and in the meen time look to find another motor which will suit my needs.

as of how much Im looking to spend, nothing if I can help it, possibly do a straight up swap for my fiesta or private sale my fiesta as its virtually brand new and wit hthe money from that put it towards another car.

Depending on age/miles/condition of the ST, I would imagine you could do a straight swap for the Zetec-S TDCi no problem. It'll be more or less exactly the same car (if you like what you have), but less poke (of course) and far better efficiency.

[markymark34]

Originally Posted by durbin

right well I was ment to be heading up to a garage to look at a polo 1.4 today but have decided not to in the end.

thinking about keeping the fiesta ST until christmas and in the meen time look to find another motor which will suit my needs.

as of how much Im looking to spend, nothing if I can help it, possibly do a straight up swap for my fiesta or private sale my fiesta as its virtually brand new and wit hthe money from that put it towards another car.

keep the fiesta! a 1.4 polo will feel awful compared to the ST. If you do go diesel find a 1.9 TDI VAG engine eg Golf, Leon etc. i got 50mpg out of my 130bhp bora, the 6th gear really helped on the motorway and it will give your ST a run for the money.

[FZR400RRSP]

I would also agree that the OP should try a 1.6tdci Fiesta.
Great little engine, capable of motorway driving no problem.
The very first journey my wife's 1.6tdci Fiesta undertook was Birmingham to Aberdeen.
No problem cruising at 85mph-90mph at all.
According to the trip computer, it was getting 47mpg at those speeds too.
It can also be 'chipped' from 90bhp to around 115-120bhp easily.
And many people report they get even better mpg in the process.
Win/win.

We've had at least 4 x Polo tdi's on the fleet over the years.
Very reliable, very economical.
But not a very nice engine and I wouldn't like a motorway journey in one.

Ford (1.4 or 1.6 tdci) and Renault (1.5 dci) both make better small diesels, IMO.

[Decadence]

Mazda3 Diesel would be my choice...lot of car for the money and very economical.

[inkafone]

LPG conversion??

[markymark34]

Originally Posted by inkafone

LPG conversion??

an LPG conversion on a fiesta?! Our survey says X

[Inked]

Originally Posted by FZR400RRSP

I would also agree that the OP should try a 1.6tdci Fiesta.
Great little engine, capable of motorway driving no problem.
The very first journey my wife's 1.6tdci Fiesta undertook was Birmingham to Aberdeen.
No problem cruising at 85mph-90mph at all.
According to the trip computer, it was getting 47mpg at those speeds too.
It can also be 'chipped' from 90bhp to around 115-120bhp easily.
And many people report they get even better mpg in the process.
Win/win.

I'd have to agree with this, I love my 1.6TDCI Fiesta.

My average consumption across the last 12 months has been 50.5mpg, the highest I have achieved across a tankfull is 56mpg, and the lowest (when I've been giving it some) across a tankfull is 45mpg.

[inkafone]

Originally Posted by markymark34

an LPG conversion on a fiesta?! Our survey says X

Nah - multipoint LPG conversion on ST,should give 50mpg equivalent

[Ayub]

I dont knowabout new passat my passat 1.9 tdi PD115 with 150k on the clock w reg ( 2000 )

10 mile journey on city road 50mpg WIFE DRIVING !
Motorway 57.4 @ average of 70mph ( summer )

[markymark34]

Originally Posted by inkafone

Nah - multipoint LPG conversion on ST,should give 50mpg equivalent

Yeah but your throwing money away. never get it back who woud want to buy a Fiesta with an LPG conversion. a 4.4i X5 yes but not a fiesta.