Lets havvit then.

Petrol ftw.

Jaimz

Deisel, more torque, more miliage, fun to surprise the boy racers in bodykitted 106GTWannabes

Diesel everytime providing you can get it to start.

petrol.


because its not a by product

Diesel every time

Diesel cause its funnier when you kick ass killing boy racers.
Have to change gear wayyyyy less so less clutch wear.
More MPG.
Can pull more weight without loss of power
Easier to service
last longer

Modern diesels are so much better than petrols now  

A few years ago Id have said, you put me in a diseasal and Ill smash your face in  

Now Ill sit on the fence I think; theres good and bad on both sides, certainly in the context of a 2.0 litre Mondeo, of which Ive driven both types a lot of miles.

The biggest surprise to me now is that the Euro IV compliant Ford diesel is better to drive on A B roads; you can get your foot down earlier at low revs in a corner and itll just pull and drag the car round. In the petrol car to do this youd have had to get right down the gears to get the same amount of torque at the same time and then youd have to change up once or twice on the way out which would be inconvenient and make for a fairly unsettled drive. On a twisty road you can just surf the turbo, without having to change at all.
To an extent the difference here is partly down to gearboxes - the petrol one has very long legs to try to increase fuel economy, which blunts the drivability in twisty roads. In my old Golf GTi which had very short ratios you could drive almost everywhere in 4th because of its flexibility.
The thing thing that makes the difference is the torque the turbo diesel produces - at 210 ftLb its as much as the 16v Integrale used to produce, albeit in a very different place. Id like to try the ST tdci version with 300 ftlb....

Another other good thing about the new diesels is their refinement, which one the move is as good as the petrols - at idle theyre still horribly noisy


The bad side is all the torque at low revs makes town driving a pain in the arse - the clutch is extra big to deal with the torque and hence fairly heavy. You have to let it up in a very controlled fashion, and then slip it slightly once just moving, to achieve a smooth start. Otherwise you either jerk forward in a lunge or stall. Doing this 5 times a minute in a traffic jam is very tiresome. The petrol one is much better here.
The other down side is the kerb weight. The diesel version of the Mondeo Zetec S is over 100kg heavier (nearly 10 %) than the petrol one - and its all in the engine, at the front, which means the car understeers quite a bit more. When you first swap from one to the other, this is very noticeable, although admittedly I seem to be used to it now - having 225 section tyres might help    But obviously its not gone away.

If I was paying for my own car and buying a family saloon, Id probably pick the diesel. Certainly its not down on overall performance, and 20-30% better economy would be a decider.

Depends what application its in tbh.

wouldnt want a petrol lorry or boat, but id never want a diesel sports car.

Im going to have to vote petrol really, you dont get as much MPG but servicing, and initial costs to buy a petrol car are lower - 5th gear worked out that a diesel is actually more expensive overall, unless you have the car a very long time.

Diesels are only amazing these days because the turbos cram in 30+ PSI of boost..  - run even 20psi on a petrol and youll be looking at REAL performance.

Gonna have to go for petrol - I live in a city & so dont need a car at the moment but if I did get one it would just be a small petrol car.

I guess if I lived in north wales, yorkshire dales or the scottish highlands & did loads of miles then Id prob be in need of a car & would prob go for a family sized diesel.

Sports cars have either bigger engines or lighter weight, so that the torque to weight balance matches the ordinary diesels, and cancels out their advantage. A mid-engined seven speed 4 litre turbo-diesel sports car might be interesting

Audi R10 anyone?

Quote from: brummieDiesel cause its funnier when you kick ass killing boy racers.
Have to change gear wayyyyy less so less clutch wear.
More MPG.
Can pull more weight without loss of power
Easier to service
last longer

Modern diesels are so much better than petrols now  

Modern (Turbo)Diesels are almost as good as (basic) petrol engines developed in the 80s that should read? A modern n/a diesel is hopeless in comparison with a petrol engine of same capacity.

And I disagree (a little) with the longer lasting comment - they will, depending on how they are treated.

I drive a diesel as a daily driver, but thats going to change. There is no point now - a petrol car converted to gas makes the most sense. Performance and cheap fuel.

Yeah, see plenty of diesels here chucking out a variety of smoke (smoke, not diesel fumes due to acceleration)

Most only a few years old, or so - usually found in these sporty diesel cars and have no doubt been revved to their governors far too many times.

Cant beat a simple petrol engine for ultimate durability as they are generally more relaxed engines.

I dont necessarily think sports cars have bigger engines or lighter weight.

The Honda S2000 weighs 1250KG, and has a 2.0 inline 4, and just look at the Golf GTi - a 2.0 and weighing in at 1336kgs for the 3dr manual (lightest!) its not exactly light.

and if you argue saying how good the R10 is well, thats fair enough - but how long do you think its engine will last, and I imagine it has one heck of a service schedule and I bet its not exactly economical either. its not a fair comparison even slightly. In fact, its no comparison at all - its not a normal diesel.

I like diesels becaus they just keep on going.... forever

tho I guess some of these newer high-reving ones might not be so reliable