Right, bear with me on this one.
I've sat down, looked at my money situation and decided there is only one way I can afford to get my new weekend plaything (VR6) on the road. I need to save money elsewhere.
The key way for me to do this, is to sell my daily Audi A4 Avant TDi, and buy a little car with dirt cheap insurance, running costs, and ideally tax, and which gives fantastic MPG. Then, and only then, can I afford to run the weekend toy.
Before anyone questions 'why sell the Audi?' I'll explain a little more. My workplace is 3/4 of a mile up the road, so the engine hardly warms up. However, I have to use the car for the journey, as I have to race back each lunchtime as I have to let the dog out for a quick stretch.
The Audi has served its purpose brilliantly, and has been a fantastic load lugger as we've renovated the house. However, the house is almost there now, so I don't need a bigger car. I'm also concerned I'm killing the engine rapidly!
I'm thinking either small n/a diesel, or small, poss 3 cylinder petrol car. I'm hoping for 50+ mpg.
My main 2 questions are:
- Which type small engine is better for short, town type journeys - petrol or diesel (bear in mind the engine won't have chance to get too hot that often)
- Can anyone recommend, from their own experiences, a good little car which would tick the fun/reliable/frugal boxes?
- I assume anything on LPG is pointless, as it only really kicks in when the engine's warmed up?
Any pros/cons of particular cars would be great too, be them ultra modern or old. I need something which is high in MPG's even when cold, or if not, something which warms up quickly!
The only 3 rules really, are I don't want a Matiz. After almost being rolled in the back of one a few years ago, I've never felt comfortable with them since. Also, can't be a 2 seater; I've got a greyhound which will need to fit in the back (I appreciate the seats will need to go down!). Finally, it needs to be reasonably easy to find for sale - something stupidly rare won't be easy to locate/maintain on a shoestring maintainance budget.
Mods, I'm hoping this post can stay - the new mile muncher will enable me to get the retro on the road and start playing with it! I'm already getting excited about what happens next.... Here's hoping that the car I need actually exists!
Have some little cars I can think off, off the top of my head.
Cheers.
I've sat down, looked at my money situation and decided there is only one way I can afford to get my new weekend plaything (VR6) on the road. I need to save money elsewhere.
The key way for me to do this, is to sell my daily Audi A4 Avant TDi, and buy a little car with dirt cheap insurance, running costs, and ideally tax, and which gives fantastic MPG. Then, and only then, can I afford to run the weekend toy.
Before anyone questions 'why sell the Audi?' I'll explain a little more. My workplace is 3/4 of a mile up the road, so the engine hardly warms up. However, I have to use the car for the journey, as I have to race back each lunchtime as I have to let the dog out for a quick stretch.
The Audi has served its purpose brilliantly, and has been a fantastic load lugger as we've renovated the house. However, the house is almost there now, so I don't need a bigger car. I'm also concerned I'm killing the engine rapidly!
I'm thinking either small n/a diesel, or small, poss 3 cylinder petrol car. I'm hoping for 50+ mpg.
My main 2 questions are:
- Which type small engine is better for short, town type journeys - petrol or diesel (bear in mind the engine won't have chance to get too hot that often)
- Can anyone recommend, from their own experiences, a good little car which would tick the fun/reliable/frugal boxes?
- I assume anything on LPG is pointless, as it only really kicks in when the engine's warmed up?
Any pros/cons of particular cars would be great too, be them ultra modern or old. I need something which is high in MPG's even when cold, or if not, something which warms up quickly!
The only 3 rules really, are I don't want a Matiz. After almost being rolled in the back of one a few years ago, I've never felt comfortable with them since. Also, can't be a 2 seater; I've got a greyhound which will need to fit in the back (I appreciate the seats will need to go down!). Finally, it needs to be reasonably easy to find for sale - something stupidly rare won't be easy to locate/maintain on a shoestring maintainance budget.
Mods, I'm hoping this post can stay - the new mile muncher will enable me to get the retro on the road and start playing with it! I'm already getting excited about what happens next.... Here's hoping that the car I need actually exists!
Have some little cars I can think off, off the top of my head.
Cheers.
