Dave, if I were you I'd keep ringing dealers until you get one that can do both cars back to back, Colbournes of Guildford managed to do this for me, be advised though you'll need to make an appointment and listen to all ther speil afterwards but, that's their job after all and its only polite as they are doing something for you too.

 

I ended up buying through another dealer as they wouldn't match the best price I got from CARWOW but, that's just working the system to your own advantage.

 

Good luck with your search.

When I got my Primera GT the only one I could find to test quickly was at a dealer who was nowhere near the best price locally. When I said this, he got annoyed because "he had provided the test car."

 

I said it was obvious I 'd go for the best deal.

He said, "Oh, this is a Dutch auction, is it?" (As if I'd happily pay several hundred pounds more than necessary.)

 

What an idiot!

 

Going back to diesels vs. petrol, when I was on the Mk. 2 forum, it was suggested that to get value from a diesel you had to be a pretty high annual mileage driver, say over 30K.

So far I have found that the economy of the 1.4 TSi is very pleasing, as is its remarkable performance for its size.

Thanks again. My local dealer's quote is nearly 2k more than one 60 odd miles away who gave ,e a quote on car wow

to get value from a diesel you had to be a pretty high annual mileage driver, say over 30K.

 

It all depends on the cost difference to start with.  If the diesel is only a few hundred quid more (as it was when I bought my TDi vRS) than the petrol version, then you're going to start saving money a whole lot quicker (in fact, I think the road tax alone over a few years makes pretty much pays for the difference).  And it also depends on the price of fuel - as diesel is usually a fixed number of pence more than petrol, if the prices are higher then it is a lower percentage difference, and so pence per mile is far better on a diesel.  And finally, it's all about average journeys - if you do 2-3 urban miles at a time, then a diesel is never going to get to show off its efficiency... but if you do 20-30 motorway miles at a time, then it will.  Oh, and last but not least, size of the engine and car make a difference as well (obviously) - I only get about 4-5mpg better in my 2.0 TDi than my wife does in her 1.2 petrol (which, admittedly, is fitted to a Ford Ka!).

 

10 years ago, 30k/year might have been a good figure.  More recently, people have bandied about a figure of 15k/year.  But if you actually do the maths, and depending on the above, it can actually be a whole lot less mileage before diesels save you money.  And then there's the increased residuals on a diesel, which in the case of the vRS also cover the initial cost difference.

Agreed that it's very much down to use conditions, but if you want to make a financial comparison I'd argue it's total mileage rather miles/yr that matters. Even a low milage user can benefit from better mpg if they keep each car for 10yrs+. Nullifies the residuals argument though as there's not much left in any car by that stage.

Dave, if I were you I'd keep ringing dealers until you get one that can do both cars back to back, Colbournes of Guildford managed to do this for me, be advised though you'll need to make an appointment and listen to all ther speil afterwards but, that's their job after all and its only polite as they are doing something for you too.

 

I ended up buying through another dealer as they wouldn't match the best price I got from CARWOW but, that's just working the system to your own advantage.

 

Good luck with your search.

 

I wouldn't touch what was Colbornes (now Lookers) with a proverbial barge pole. They want their cake & eat it.

Sounds like their new name is more becoming to them then as they will only get "lookers" BTW.

 

Garland Motors in Aldershot are muppets too on price