2.0L Diesel recommendations

[jowwy]

They are described as boring, but dead reliable from what I've heard - I actually like the look of the Estate. Not changing my 20 year old boring Nissan either.

My mrs would change it tmrw if she could. But as i told her 1. She cant drive 2. It doesnt cost us anything other than tax 3. Its not hers to change lol

 

[Tight Git]

Add the Honda Civic diesel to your list - apparently no dpf problems and very reliable/well built.

 

[Electric_Andy]

Add the Honda Civic diesel to your list - apparently no dpf problems and very reliable/well built.

Yeah it's on my list but it seems quite low to get in, and not a lot more room than my fiesta. I need to sit in a few to be sure though

 

[tyred]

Do you like the wind in your hair?

How about a Fordson Dexta? 2.4 litres but only 3 cylinders!

Cheap runabout and instantly familiar to a cyclist who will be in tune with the open cockpit and with their surroundings.

View attachment 616536

Only £4150. Full advert here

Mine is the last of the line high performance model with the full 44.5 horse power

Been perfectly reliable for the 17 years I've owned it it and it is better in a field than any BMW

 

[Andy_R]

I've had the same Mk2 Occy 1.9PD for 11 years now. Bought 2 years old with 12k on the clock, it now has over 160k and is still going strong. Bags of room, and comfy on long journeys (Co. Durham to Dorset on a regular basis)

 

[Milzy]

Dirty diesel shame on you making more kids get asthma. You should be looking at E.V’s in this day & age. I hope they slam huge taxes on inconsiderate people like you.

 

[Jenkins]

Dirty diesel shame on you making more kids get asthma. You should be looking at E.V’s in this day & age. I hope they slam huge taxes on inconsiderate people like you.

And where would you propose he gets an electric vehicle for less than his £5,000 budget?

 

[Gunk]

Be cautuous with the BMW unit. It's a chain

I would add that any £5000 BMW is going to be troublesome and expensive to maintain. I’ve ran high mileage BMW’s and a lot goes wrong.

I would suggest you get away from European prestige brands and look for something Japanese or South Korean, they just very rarely go wrong.

 

[cougie uk]

And where would you propose he gets an electric vehicle for less than his £5,000 budget?

Make it 6k and if he's got somewhere to charge off peak and does enough miles he will make his £1000 back in fuel savings.

 

[Cerdic]

Can you get an EV for six grand? Maybe an old Leaf, but when will the (expensive) batteries need replacing?

The OP said he likes diesel torque, electric is even better at instant torque but EVs are still very pricey.

I drive hundreds of different cars at work. My recommendations...

Forget posh German stuff. You are paying for a badge. The days are long gone when they were better quality than other makers. Also, very expensive to fix.

You want reliable, buy Japanese.

You want comfy, buy French. But expect bits of the interior to come loose!

Skoda Octavias are brilliant if you can find one that hasn't been minicabbed.

I like the tractor...

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Buy on condition and history, not mileage. This wouldn't frighten me, for instance:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111059279895

 

[vickster]

Buy on condition and history, not mileage. This wouldn't frighten me, for instance:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111059279895

And you can do some mini cabbing on the side

 

[Bonefish Blues]

And you can do some mini cabbing on the side

There's a reason why they run them...

BTW I've had two, and wouldn't hesitate to have another. Excellent at that transport thing, if that's your criterion.

 

[Drago]

This is where asking is useful. We've had Nissans and Toyota's with cam chains, designed for the life of the car, never a known issue on the engines we've had - I'd pick a cam chain over a belt anyday, but that's from experience.

I'd check what it costs to replace a 'cam belt'. Dealer wanted £550 for my sons car, local garage, using OEM parts, £250

Personally id always prefer a belt. All you need to do is replace them in time and youre golden. When a chain causes issues - and theyre far from being universally hassle free - the expense usually massively outweighs a simple belt change. Were talking a factor or five or ten here.

In the BMW example I used above, assuming no further damage has been done the chain chainge is a 2 grand job on the BMW units...or a £200 belt on a comparable engine with belt drive.

...or something French for better value in a stinky diesel? Or a Nissan which is essentially a Renault?

My enoromous great 5 pot, 20 valve, twin cam, variable sequential dual turbo "stinky" diesel is so clean it does not even trigger the testing machine at MOT time. No measurable emissions.

Id like to see a petrol engined car that still has a pulse that is able to do the same.

 

[Richard A Thackeray]

Skoda Octavias are brilliant if you can find one that hasn't been minicabbed.

I agree
Mine was excellent over 9 years & 150.000 miles
55- 60MPG
£30 VED
1.6Tdi remapped (to the equivilant of the 2.0Tdi, or early vRS models)