The fuel and his money

I would be grateful for your opinion on petrol verses diesel fuelled cars. I notice that most manufacturers of cars now produce more diesel-engined models than petrol. In my youth I always thought that if you are doing less than 15,000 miles pa one should stick to petrol. Are diesels now far more efficient and less polluting?

Asked on 7 March 2009 by

Answered by Honest John

This is answered in a FAQ answer at hjuk. But basically the extra equipment added to diesel engines to reduce their harmful emissions seems to have made them considerably less reliable than petrol engines and considerably more expensive to run long-term because of the cost of repairs and replacements. So unless you do a really big mileage you are probably better of with a petrol engine.

Tags: buying petrol or diesel? new cars

Dear Honest John,

Please help me choose my next car. I would like it to have:

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