I bought a diesel now I need a petrol

[Troy Minton]

So I bought my 64 space back new from skoda in derby in 2015. 

 

1.6tdi cr 105hp pano roof and all the toys. 

 

My commute has been getting smaller and smaller going from 60 miles a day to what will be about 3-4

 

obviously I don't need a diesel for that - and it's going to do the car more harm than good. 

 

The car is perfect other than now being a diesel

 

what is my best course of action? Px against a petrol I'd guess? Feels like I'm going to loose out a lot. 

 

btw it's not on any kind of HP or PCP. I own it. 

[camelspyyder]

Well 2015 pano roofs start at 7990 for diesel and 9500 for petrol on Auto trader so you're looking close to a straight swap at a dealer I reckon.

[chrisgreen]

Tough call. You are absolutely right on the fact a petrol is more suitable for your travel needs now.

 

But, given the depressed price of diesels at the moment, I am concerned you'll take a hiding on a part-ex right now against a like-for-like petrol model.

 

Consider this: if you keep the diesel and give it a good run along a motorway once a month (10 miles at 40mph or more), that will keep it in good condition and give the DPF a chance to regenerate. You can then still use it for your short commute the rest of the time.

[amwphotos]

Bike?

[Troy Minton]

If it was me absolutely walk it of bike it. 

 

But unfortunately itll it'll be my wife and she is a teacher. She carries 60 books with her to school. Not going to work even if I could convince her to pedal power it. 

[Troy Minton]

5 hours ago, chrisgreen said:

Tough call. You are absolutely right on the fact a petrol is more suitable for your travel needs now.

 

But, given the depressed price of diesels at the moment, I am concerned you'll take a hiding on a part-ex right now against a like-for-like petrol model.

 

Consider this: if you keep the diesel and give it a good run along a motorway once a month (10 miles at 40mph or more), that will keep it in good condition and give the DPF a chance to regenerate. You can then still use it for your short commute the rest of the time.

Do you think that will be enough to keep her healthy??

[techie]

Cheaper option for you, get an app on your Phone called VAG Dpf and buy a cheap OBD2 adaptor and then you can keep an eye on when the DPF needs a regen and then give it a good spin.

 

[camelspyyder]

Even though it didn't have a DPF, our Fiat JTD always ran much better after an Italian tune-up on the A15 Humber bridge link.

10 miles each way at *** mph cleaned it out good and proper.

[eyegr]

17 hours ago, Troy Minton said:

Do you think that will be enough to keep her healthy??

Maybe. It depends on how hard you push the engine during your short trips, because this will affect how much soot wil accumulate over this time. In any case, an elevated idle engine speed should warn you when the long ride is necessary. From my own experience, this will be about once a week, if your short trips are about 10 miles each.

My advice is, unless you can find a deal that won't rip you off, to keep the car. Maybe in the future you will again commute a long distance, or maybe it will be a good excuse for weekend getaways

[chrisgreen]

19 hours ago, Troy Minton said:

Do you think that will be enough to keep her healthy??

Yes, it'll be fine, as long as you stick to it.

 

 

[RickTT]

Our 1.4tdi now has 8k on it. It gets a run out on the motorway maybe once a month MAX.

 

No DPF issues as yet..  (It does regen though on A roads no problem)

 

I would say keep it and just factor in a DPF cost in the years to come.. Thats going to be cheaper than the cost to change.

Edited 21 May, 2017 by RickTT

[Gerrycan]

On ‎19‎/‎05‎/‎2017 at 06:14, Troy Minton said:

Do you think that will be enough to keep her healthy??

The car? Possibly

The wife? No chance, she needs a bicycle and trailer for the books

[Troy Minton]

Thanks all. 

 

Looks like ill I'll be staying in the TDI club a bit longer then. 

 

Has anyone had their 1.6 TDI diesel gate fix yet? 

[SurreyJohn]

You have got 2 options as I see it.

 

1) Stick with the car, do a decent run every week or fortnight and accept you will pay more for maintenance going forward, but at least you aren't taken a depreciation loss at this stage.   Wouldn't bother with difference in fuel costs as they will be insignificant.

 

2) Change it.  You are going to lose on selling, but the model is just about to be changed for a newer version so there are good deals out there.  Hefty finance deal on the old model (2.9% and £1800 contribution) before haggling.   There are a number of SE tech models with DSG under £11k on Skoda used site (about 9 months old, so probably ex rental cars).

 

My guess is if you have spec on current car that you want, I would tend to keep it for at least 2 more years

[Rustynuts]

8 hours ago, Troy Minton said:

Thanks all. 

 

Looks like ill I'll be staying in the TDI club a bit longer then. 

 

Has anyone had their 1.6 TDI diesel gate fix yet? 

Do Not Have The Fix! If you're unsure about what I just said then DO NOT HAVE THE FIX!!!

 

There are many stories of people suffering EGR problems and excessive regenerations etc. after having had the fix done, and once it's applied you're stuck with a car which could very easily be undriveable on the short runs you do. You're under no legal obligation whatsoever to have the fix applied, it's entirely voluntary, so if you don't have it fixed then you're not going to suffer any problems other than what might occur anyway.

 

If it goes back to the dealers for a service, tell them you do not want the fix applying under any circumstances, and get them to sign that they understand you.

[chrisgreen]

What is the 'fix' exactly? Is it an AdBlue retrofit (good thing) or just some tinkering with the tuning setup (definitely a bad thing)?

[Rustynuts]

It's an alteration of the EGR function, change of injection timings and duration and idle control speeds, and most likely some other stuff too. Basically, it knackers a good engine by making it more environmentally friendly and running like a bag of nails.

[camelspyyder]

Man, I thought The 1.6TDi was the roughest diesel I'd ever driven already.  (before dieselgate)

 

How much worse can it get?

 

 

Edited 22 May, 2017 by camelspyyder

[Troy Minton]

Oh wow. Glad I asked. 

[chrisgreen]

12 hours ago, Rustynuts said:

It's an alteration of the EGR function, change of injection timings and duration and idle control speeds, and most likely some other stuff too. Basically, it knackers a good engine by making it more environmentally friendly and running like a bag of nails.

Agreed - stuff that! Definitely pass on th fix, the environment can take one for the team!

 

Great fix there VW - hobble people's cars instead of spending the extra dosh on an Eloys or AdBlue retrofit. 

[RMurphy195]

On 18/05/2017 at 15:27, Troy Minton said:

So I bought my 64 space back new from skoda in derby in 2015. 

 

1.6tdi cr 105hp pano roof and all the toys. 

 

My commute has been getting smaller and smaller going from 60 miles a day to what will be about 3-4

 

obviously I don't need a diesel for that - and it's going to do the car more harm than good. 

 

The car is perfect other than now being a diesel

 

what is my best course of action? Px against a petrol I'd guess? Feels like I'm going to loose out a lot. 

 

btw it's not on any kind of HP or PCP. I own it. 

3 - 4 miles/day - try walking or cycling! You don't need a car for this kind of distance, diesel or petrol, ssuming you are in good health.

[chrisgreen]

Steady on - no need for extreme measures

[Troy Minton]

19 hours ago, RMurphy195 said:

3 - 4 miles/day - try walking or cycling! You don't need a car for this kind of distance, diesel or petrol, ssuming you are in good health.

Erm 22kg in books and learning materials is a lot to carry that far pal. But I appreciate your input. 

[Rooted]

Looks like the school needs to be paying towards her transport / insurance as it comes under business use.

Semi serious here, not Social, Domestic and Pleasure with commuting once you start carrying goods. (books)

[RMurphy195]

On 27/05/2017 at 17:13, Troy Minton said:

Erm 22kg in books and learning materials is a lot to carry that far pal. But I appreciate your input. 

 

This kind of commute is very bad for an internal combustion engine - it will rarely, if ever, each its proper operating temperature, will guzzle fuel like there's no tomorrow, the battery will not recover the energy used to start the car and engine life will be drastically shortened. Allof course exacerbated in Winter.

 

Perhaps something like this would suit https://www.nissan.co.uk/vehicles/new-vehicles/leaf.html?&cid=psmMDDDEFej_dc|D

 

Or alternatively stretch either your outward or return journey to 10, maybe 12, miles every day.