Hi,

This has probably been done to death, but your opinion would be very much appreciated

I'm very seriously considering purchasing the Superb Combi in the near future but I'm undecided to go for the 1.8 petrol or the 2.0 diesel.

I do know it will be the Elegance and it will have the DSG.

I do 15 - 20k per year, and the current price difference via the configurator on the Skoda website is £1330.

Doing the maths Excel tells me it will take 4.3 years to cover the difference at 15k p.a. and 3.2 at 20k.

But it's not all about the price!!

Can anybody advise me on the reasons I should choose one or the other, other than the 20% saving offer on the petrol at the moment.

Delivery times are not a massive issue for me and I will probably keep the car for a minimum of 3 years.

Many thanks.

The problem with the calc exercise is you are reliant on the manufacturers mpg figures.

Personally, I've found diesels to be near their claimed figures whereas petrol's seem to be all over the place where many miss by some margin.

The fact is that over your planned 3 years the diesel will work out less expensive. Couple in better residuals of diesel at end of three years and financially it's a no-brainer.

So try both, and if you prefer the petrol that much, that it outweighs the financial argument, then buy it.

Steve

To add to Steve's post;

If you want a Superb in a realistic time scale (Sub 8 weeks or so) then order the Petrol. Some are waiting 20+ weeks now for the Diesel engines!

Al.

The torque from the diesel engine IMHO leads to a better drive which is what you really buy a car for.

I've driven Superb's with the 1.8T petrol, 140 ps diesel and 170ps diesel (which I own). In my opinion the 170 diesel is best suited to this car, i.e. a relaxed cruiser. There is nothing wrong with any of the engines but the petrol car obviously needs more revs to make progress than the diesel variants (as said above - torque characteristics).

Try to drive all three before deciding, you can see from the used car listings in SUK's site where the nearest dealers to you are who have specific models available. I did that and over and above the long term cost saving with diesel, I liked the way the 170 drove much more so than saving a few tenths of a second in acceleration with the 1.8T.

My car which was delivered two weeks ago took exactly 18 weeks from order to delivery, but note that 4x4's apparently get delivered quicker than fwd's. Petrol engined cars, which account for less sales, get a quicker delivery from what I've seen.

I doubt you'd be unhappy which ever variant you choose, just be careful when choosing options. Some are worth having, some are gimmicks. Ask if you need advice.

Mark.

The bottom line is that the car is heavy and the 170CR's torque is best suited for the Combi, IMO.

Phil

My experience mirrors what SteveHG alluded to.

I have done 25000 miles in my 1.8 TSI saloon, which I have had for 8 months. The average over that time has always hovered around 27mpg, which based on £1.20 a litre has cost £5044 in fuel so far. IIRC the claimed figure is 37mpg which I can get near only on a motorway at 70mph for long journeys.

Incidentally, a colleague has a 2008 Mazda 6 2.0 diesel which has averaged 47mpg consistently. If he had covered 25000 miles at 47mpg at £1.25 a litre he would have saved nearly £2000.00.

Other than for the fuel economy I really can't fault the 1.8 TSI engine. Personally, I preferred it to the 140 TDI I drove as I found it smoother and generally more refined. I didn't feel I sacrificed any pace whatsoever in going for the petrol - being turbocharged it has enough low down grunt but still pulls through the gears well.

The other downside to the petrol's economy is that it highlights the small fuel tank - 300 miles on a tank usually.

Justin.

on the MFD, i achieve 42MPG - 170 4x4 Estate.

I like the drive of the 170, and the 4x4 digs in well in all road conditions.

Personally, the Petrol isn't for me. - but ive never owned a petrol car...! (1.8 TD Mondeo - 2.2 CRDi Chrysler PT - 2.5 CRD Sorento - now the 2.0 TDi Superb)

Al.

ps. the Superb has the best Engine of the cars ive owned!

Edited 21 January, 201115 yr by ukcruiser

Since the difference is more like £5k in price with the VAT resduction it may take you a lot longer to make up the difference. However you need to factor in the difference in residuals when you trade in as you may recover a lot of the difference back. This could be difficult to predict as it wil depend on what Skoda do with the their VAT free offer.

Realistically ignoring the price the best thing to do is go and test drive both versions. Since you are going for a DSG then the low down torque of the diesel is less of an issue and the petrol will be a little more refined. However the range with the petrol would be a stumbling block for me - at 20k miles per year you will be filling up every week!

Edited 21 January, 201115 yr by testme27

Since the difference is more like £5k in price with the VAT resduction it may take you a lot longer to make up the difference.

This assumes that you can't get a decent discount on a diesel Superb estate. When I was in the process of deciding in late November I was offered ~10% discount from local dealer on a new order Superb Elegance 170 4x4 Estate. I ended up getting one in December through an Internet broker at a ~15% discount.

Cheers

Steve

The Diesel, you should be good for 40+ mpg on any day, (MFD Lies a bit) the 170 DSG is pretty nifty too in very effortless way. I'm in the 42mpg region and recently 45mpg, now its been a bit warmer (MFD says 48+ BTW)

It all depends on your mileage. I don't do more that 8K per year and I was told to steer clear of Diesel because Skoda won't bail you out of particulate filter problems under warranty.

During the 1st 1300 miles the maxidot shows 33.8 mpg.

PETROL

No DPF, lot less hassle.

I have a 170 with DSG and performance is excellent, had it since end of November & now done 6,000 miles in it. Fuel consumption is a steady 44.3/7. My wife has the Octacia with the 1.8Tsi &DSG and shes getting around 30 to 35MPG the Octy goes like stink but it doesnt have the lowdown grunt that the diesel has. The DPF only normally causes problems if its only used on short runs as the DPF requires heat to clean itself

resale on a diesel is always better as they go on to become taxis

Edited 22 January, 201115 yr by kensym

but the petrol car obviously needs more revs to make progress than the diesel variants (as said above - torque characteristics).

Mark.

1.8 TSI already has max torque with 1500 U/min.

2.0 TDI needs 1750 revs.

So tell me about characteristics. And the TDI loses the torque after 2500 where TSI just stays for + 3000 U/min. No doubt the torque of the Diesel is higher but most of the torque advantage is being ate by the long transmission. Resulting in worse acceleration even though more kW.

Petrol definitely for a family car. Silent run, decent to good 35.5 MPG in urban traffic now with the 1.8TSi that delivers excellent torque at low rpm range. By the contrary, outside the city going beyond 2800 rpm the engine will deliver a good and efficient weight / power ratio. 5th gear (not the TV show ) is the most economic one for speed beyond 70 km/h showing 43 MPG fuel efficiency. And this is only a 135 kg engine delivering 160 HP stock .

Note : UK gallon : 4.546 liters

Edited 22 January, 201115 yr by safari hunter

Yes,I also advice you to go for the Superb 1.8 TSI . I have clocked almost 5000 km(both city and traffic) and found it be adequate. The torque might be only 250 Nm as compared to the TDI CR's 320 Nm, but the torque range of the petrol is totally amazing (1500 - 3750/4000 rpm). So , you get that sustained hair-raising wave of torque.More,imporantly,being a family car, you will also like the super-silent,super-smooth engine.The 1.8 TSI is actually the 3rd best engine in that category(1.4L-1.8L).

So, i advice you to go for the Petrol version,with no doubt.

So tell me about characteristics.

Certainly. The point I was making is that, in my opinion, the low reving high torque nature of the 170 diesel suits the Superb better. The 170 diesel produces 40% more torque within it's quoted range (1750 - 2500 rpm) than the 1.8T does within it's (1500 - 4500rpm)

So to follow your line of reasoning if you drive the 1.8T in it's torque band then yes, you could drive it like a diesel and change up at low rpm. Don't forget though, that to achieve it's maximum power (160ps) you need to rev the 1.8T to at least 4500rpm. The 170 diesel produces over 6% more power with 300rpm less.

So remember this is about personal preference and I bought the 170 diesel Superb (when I could have had the 1.8T) because I preferred it and felt it suited the Superb better (and also not forgetting better fuel consumption plus better resale value for the diesel)

Mark.

Yes,I also advice you to go for the Superb 1.8 TSI

Skoda Superb @ I own the car from the signature since June 2010, and now the ODO shows 21000km in 7 months. It's like a diesel 1.9 TDi up to 2800 rpm and runs like a petrol turbocharged after that. This is why I loved this engine. Initially I considered theToyota Avensis 1.8 V-matic, but there are major improvements to Skoda 1.8 TSi. Not to mention that you get more good quality gadgets with less money on Superb than on Avensis. AFL headlights being one.

2 slo @

and also not forgetting better fuel consumption plus better resale value for the diesel

We the petrol owners didn't forget the difference in MPG and better resale value. The issue is a personal taste as you mention. If the car suits me I will not consider a big issue to resell it with some money less. Moreover to consider the fuel economy you need to drive more than 80 k miles to balance the fuel savings with the higher price for diesel engine car. Not to mention higher insurance costs, DPF problems, injectors and battery replacement for a good start, more in winter conditions. I do not mention here the cabin heating comfort offered by a petrol engine. Finally I can't stand the rumble of diesel noise overlapping my conversation and music.

Shakespeare - As you like.

Edited 22 January, 201115 yr by safari hunter

I'm in a similar situation at present. Pretty sure that I want a Superb as the family car, but do I go for petrol or diesel?

We only really do 12-15k miles per year so not a huge amount and not really enough to take advantage of the better mpg. Yes, the diesel car will have a better residual value, but, it also costs significantly more. With the current prices of new cars the difference is in the region of £5000. That's a lot of money to recoup with ~15 more miles to the gallon.

I can see the point that the diesel suits the Superb. Finding a 1.8Tsi to test drive isn't going to be easy I fear.

I can see the point that the diesel suits the Superb. Finding a 1.8Tsi to test drive isn't going to be easy I fear.

Check the SUK website for used cars. You can run a search on petrol Superbs and see which dealer is nearest you with one in stock. That's how I did it.

Mark.

I wonder which engine Babs would have picked if he had any input?

Check the SUK website for used cars. You can run a search on petrol Superbs and see which dealer is nearest you with one in stock. That's how I did it.

Mark.

Good idea Mark. Will do that.

Still can't get past the very high prices on used cars at the moment. I know it beats the wait but a lot are more than new equivalents still.

With the current prices of new cars the difference is in the region of £5000. That's a lot of money to recoup with ~15 more miles to the gallon.

As said before the difference is not £5000. I bought my new 170 4x4 Elegance Estate for £22,750 last month, so as you can see this is not the case.

As said before the difference is not £5000. I bought my new 170 4x4 Elegance Estate for £22,750 last month, so as you can see this is not the case.

I stand to be corrected, but the prices for diesels are not as heavily discounted now are they not? Petrol models are still VAT free.

DTD prices are showing as £24151 for the 170 4x4 and £20770 for the Tsi 4x4. So just under £3400. Around £3600 difference on the fwd DSG models.