justification for getting a diesel for a private car

Forums › Transport (cars, bikes and boats) › justification for getting a diesel for a private car

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7782 posts

Uber Geek

#1675373 22-Nov-2016 09:37

sudo:

The turbo is something I would like to avoid ... too many bolt-ons end up becoming expensive servicing bills in the future

(especially as I like to keep my vehicle for a long time ... 10 years min)

Then you will need to buy an older diesel. Everything modern, even big units like a Landcruiser or Ram are turbo boosted.

Older diesels are still very economical (and very simple to maintain) they just lack performance and produce more soot.

Mike

MikeAqua

7782 posts

Uber Geek

#1675377 22-Nov-2016 09:47

If your want to tow 2T then in something like an Outlander, you are at the maximum of it's tow rating. That's hard on the vehicle.

Go up a size to something like a Pajero and the trailer is about two thirds of the towing capacity. It will eat a 2T trailer for breakfast.

Mike

Inphinity

2780 posts

Uber Geek

#1675379 22-Nov-2016 09:50

sudo:

The turbo is something I would like to avoid ... too many bolt-ons end up becoming expensive servicing bills in the future

(especially as I like to keep my vehicle for a long time ... 10 years min)

Good luck avoiding a turbo if you're going diesel. You will be looking for either something very old or from some sort of rubbishy developing-market manufacturer.

ratsun81

508 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1675385 22-Nov-2016 09:58

sudo:

The turbo is something I would like to avoid ... too many bolt-ons end up becoming expensive servicing bills in the future

(especially as I like to keep my vehicle for a long time ... 10 years min)

Then you are going to be very disappointed. You cannot get diesels anymore without the turbo and if you do then its going to be very old tech and very bad for the environment.

The Turbo is how they are getting the economy and the power, not to mention it is part of the package of reducing the emissions in Diesels these days.

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sudo

391 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1675422 22-Nov-2016 11:25

Yeah I am looking at the various models and the smaller ones all seem to have Turbochargers. Probably to give them higher rating, but it doesn't help if the motor hasn't built up the gases.

It also adds maintenance to the motor as they require more frequent service (those suckers spin >100k/sec and require top notch oil)

jonathan18

7413 posts

Uber Geek

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#1675423 22-Nov-2016 11:30

sudo:

Yeah I am looking at the various models and the smaller ones all seem to have Turbochargers. Probably to give them higher rating, but it doesn't help if the motor hasn't built up the gases.

It also adds maintenance to the motor as they require more frequent service (those suckers spin >100k/sec and require top notch oil)

So if you are saying you'll not touch a car with a turbo, then you've essentially ruled out diesels, yeah?

Or are you specifically ruling out smaller-engine petrol cars with turbos?

pbgben

261 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1675425 22-Nov-2016 11:42

sudo:

Yeah I am looking at the various models and the smaller ones all seem to have Turbochargers. Probably to give them higher rating, but it doesn't help if the motor hasn't built up the gases.

It also adds maintenance to the motor as they require more frequent service (those suckers spin >100k/sec and require top notch oil)

NO turbo? :O

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darylblake

1162 posts

Uber Geek

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#1675426 22-Nov-2016 11:45

I have a modern 2.2L Diesel Turbo Mazda 6 (2014). Good car, very nice to drive. Lots of Torque.

MikeAqua

7782 posts

Uber Geek

#1675430 22-Nov-2016 11:51

sudo:

Yeah I am looking at the various models and the smaller ones all seem to have Turbochargers. Probably to give them higher rating, but it doesn't help if the motor hasn't built up the gases.

It also adds maintenance to the motor as they require more frequent service (those suckers spin >100k/sec and require top notch oil)

Turbo charged common-rail injected diesels are quite spritely. They have reasonably high initial torque which increases as the turbo starts to work. They move off the line and overtake well. The oil/filter change interval for our diesel SUV is 10,000km - the same as for our petrol hatchback.

I do all my own oil and filter changes. I can crawl under the vehicle while it's in the driveway. Typically it costs less than $100 per change. Too easy. Every 20,000km I take it for a check up and I get the mechanics to do the trickier stuff - brakes, transmission etc.

Mike

jonathan18

7413 posts

Uber Geek

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#1675431 22-Nov-2016 11:52

darylblake:

I have a modern 2.2L Diesel Turbo Mazda 6 (2014). Good car, very nice to drive. Lots of Torque.

Yep, same car as mine, so with the same DPF burn-off 'feature' as per my earlier post.

NzBeagle

962 posts

Ultimate Geek

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#1675434 22-Nov-2016 11:59

jonathan18:

darylblake:

I have a modern 2.2L Diesel Turbo Mazda 6 (2014). Good car, very nice to drive. Lots of Torque.

Yep, same car as mine, so with the same DPF burn-off 'feature' as per my earlier post.

I think this is pretty important to consider, as you say, driving around town isn't really going to keep this running nicely, good open road commutes are more the thing. I can't really speak for sitting in Auckland gridlock as to whether this achieves the desired effect or not though. Ended up getting one a year a go, and it does a 30 minute commute, each way, with 20 minutes open road and it is no issue, always warms up and gets going. Found it can take some time to warm up, so shorter dairy runs aren't even getting it going.

darylblake

1162 posts

Uber Geek

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#1675435 22-Nov-2016 12:01

jonathan18:
darylblake:

I have a modern 2.2L Diesel Turbo Mazda 6 (2014). Good car, very nice to drive. Lots of Torque.

Yep, same car as mine, so with the same DPF burn-off 'feature' as per my earlier post.

Yes it's a pain. It needs about 2500 RPM + to start the process

djtOtago

1153 posts

Uber Geek

#1675513 22-Nov-2016 13:43

I currently have a 2011 Hyundai diesel, its service interval is 15,000km or 12 Months.

I've owned or been in charge of a few diesel vehicles over the last 15 years or so, some of which had done 250k plus kms. I have never had to get a turbo replaced or serviced. The closest I would have come was a $30 sensor on the turbo's wast gate and I've had an inter cooler pipe crack.

Turbos on diesel are not as stressed as they are on petrol vehicles. They spin slower and don't run as hot.

IMHO A diesel with out a turbo would not be very usable as a daily driver, even if you could fine one manufactured this side of 2000.

NzBeagle

962 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

#1675515 22-Nov-2016 13:46

djtOtago:

I currently have a 2011 Hyundai diesel, its service interval is 15,000km or 12 Months.

I've owned or been in charge of a few diesel vehicles over the last 15 years or so, some of which had done 250k plus kms. I have never had to get a turbo replaced or serviced. The closest I would have come was a $30 sensor on the turbo's wast gate and I've had an inter cooler pipe crack.

Turbos on diesel are not as stressed as they are on petrol vehicles. They spin slower and don't run as hot.

IMHO A diesel with out a turbo would not be very usable as a daily driver, even if you could fine one manufactured this side of 2000.

Had a plumbing issue on a Transit van a few years back (late 00's) without boost you were lucky to get to 80k's. Easy fix and back to no hassles.

sudo

391 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1675549 22-Nov-2016 15:41

I'm not specifically against Turbos, but I'd prefer a motor with less extras as in the long run there typically is less maintenance.

if you look at long term maintenance like a normal distribution (bell) curve, the people with performance tuned motors are typically the outliers who pay more than someone with a plain motor (and would probably see more so on the other end of the curve)

There are always exceptions, but overall the more complicated/kitted out the engine, the more change something will go wrong with it and accumulated service costs will be higher.

It's just another factor in the TCO calculator (as well as resale value after X years ... I see how much a 10 year old version of the car sells for and subtract that from the purchase value)

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