[simonb82]

I am looking for a G21 but can't decide between a 320i or a 320d. My commute is 80 miles of which half is motorway then the other half is a mix of dual carriageway and heavy traffic

In a year I'll be doing 15k miles

The extra economy of the diesel is tempting as it would save me money on fuel but is it a good idea to be buying a diesel now. Sales seem to be hugely declining will residual values be hit

Plus then there's the ULEZ that I drive into and what will happen with diesels and that

I can't decide

[paulockenden]

I loved my previous car which was a diesel, but I can't see me ever buying another one. Many cities seem to be penalising diesel cars. In brighton, for example, a traders parking permit costs twice as much for a diesel car, no matter now 'green' it is. And they perform badly in the second hand market now.

The choice should really be petrol or electric, rather than petrol or diesel.

All in my 'umble, of course!

[AP]

Yeh much as diesel makes sense for what you have described, the concern is the ever increasing environmental limitations
In min the ULEZ is expected to grow to essentially within the M25 I think next year(?) which is going to impact lots of people

So whilst you won't be banned, it's going to cost a lot potentially.

Your car should be ok with that but who is say that they won't ramp up the requirements and diesel despite how good they are these days is a dirty word so you could end up be inconvienced.

If it were me I'd go for petrol , they can still be economical if you drive gently .

Tough call I know and depends upon your budget

[simonb82]

Originally Posted by AP

Yeh much as diesel makes sense for what you have described, the concern is the ever increasing environmental limitations
In min the ULEZ is expected to grow to essentially within the M25 I think next year(?) which is going to impact lots of people

So whilst you won't be banned, it's going to cost a lot potentially.

Your car should be ok with that but who is say that they won't ramp up the requirements and diesel despite how good they are these days is a dirty word so you could end up be inconvienced.

If it were me I'd go for petrol , they can still be economical if you drive gently .

Tough call I know and depends upon your budget

Thanks for your replies. Yes I assume if I drive the 320i gently on my commute I could see 45mpg? Not bad but I guess the same with the diesel could get nearer 60mpg

I did consider the 330e but the electric range doesn't work for my commute and then that with the small fuel tank I don't think I'd save much and it would be inconvenient

Cheapest to run would definitely be electric like an i4 but they're so much more expensive to buy

[AP]

Yeh it's not easy to decide at the moment due to rapidly changing environment and where you live and where you expect to drive

[paulockenden]

Originally Posted by AP

Yeh it's not easy to decide at the moment due to rapidly changing environment and where you live and where you expect to drive

A lot of it also depends on how long you intend to keep the car. If it's just a couple of years then there's less of a worry, but for a long-termer you need to think about how the driving landscape will look in a few years time.

[Seaford]

Petrol.

Simply because I cannot stand diesels.

Sorry, I know that’s not overly helpful but there are reasons I don’t like diesels!

For what it’s worth I was usually around 35mpg per tank for my petrol 330i with a light right foot, well over 50mpg on long runs on empty motorways with cruise set at 70.

[marksandygill]

Between the petrol and diesel it has to be diesel

In the 20i/d guise I always missed the torque of the diesel, had to push the petrol to get any kind of performance out of it!

Oddly in the G20 there isn't as much difference between the two in economy on longer runs thanks to MHT etc

You're probably not too far off the e making more sense, I was doing 45 mile commutes and my combined mpg was always around 80 plus, I take it you cant plug it in at the other end?

Regards ULEZ the G20 won't be paying that, and I think any MHT is Euro 6d compliant so will probably be safe for a while!?

[simonb82]

Originally Posted by marksandygill

Between the petrol and diesel it has to be diesel

In the 20i/d guise I always missed the torque of the diesel, had to push the petrol to get any kind of performance out of it!

Oddly in the G20 there isn't as much difference between the two in economy on longer runs thanks to MHT etc

You're probably not too far off the e making more sense, I was doing 45 mile commutes and my combined mpg was always around 80 plus, I take it you cant plug it in at the other end?

Regards ULEZ the G20 won't be paying that, and I think any MHT is Euro 6d compliant so will probably be safe for a while!?

Unfortunately I can't plug in at the other end so it's a full 80 mile round trip. 80mpg would be great but the extra 35 miles above your trip with no electric would I assume make that drop significantly so might end up being maybe 60mpg which is good but the 330e is more expensive to buy initially

Interesting on your MHT comment and long runs. I thought the petrol 320/330 didn't have MHT?

[simonb82]

Originally Posted by paulockenden

A lot of it also depends on how long you intend to keep the car. If it's just a couple of years then there's less of a worry, but for a long-termer you need to think about how the driving landscape will look in a few years time.

I'll probably be looking at keeping it 4-5 years so it is hard to guess what the driving landscape will look like then

[marksandygill]

Haha only just realised only the M340i has MHT from the petrol side!

Problem with the 330e is that it shouldn't be compared to the 320i/d, performance wise it sits with the 330i/d! There are compromises like the smaller boot, but also plus points like you can set it to heat itself in the winter!

I'd suggest taking them for a test drive and make your mind up that way!

[simonb82]

Originally Posted by marksandygill

Haha only just realised only the M340i has MHT from the petrol side!

Problem with the 330e is that it shouldn't be compared to the 320i/d, performance wise it sits with the 330i/d! There are compromises like the smaller boot, but also plus points like you can set it to heat itself in the winter!

I'd suggest taking them for a test drive and make your mind up that way!

Yep I think my budget really is more in the 320i/d area but maybe I could stretch

The smaller boot though would be a pain with all the stuff I have for kids. Plus the reduced range with the small petrol tank could be annoying

If I could get 45mpg from the 320i on my commute I'd be happy but don't know if that's unrealistic

[sensible]

I have had an F30 320i B48 and now have a F36 420i GC B48. They are really good on fuel. My work commute is a 64 mile round trip of mixed driving. I use ECO on the motorway and average about 45 mpg. On a longer run you can get over 50 mpg.
My overall mpg over 22k miles is 38.3 mpg, and on my 320i over 36k it was 38.9 mpg. I would expect the G20 to deliver similar mpg given that it has the same engine.

I have only ever has one diesel car and didn't like it, and have always driven petrol since. Plus, the 320d has a bad reputation for being very noisey on start up.

This was a trip to Liverpool.

[simonb82]

Originally Posted by sensible

I have had an F30 320i B48 and now have a F36 420i GC B48. They are really good on fuel. My work commute is a 64 mile round trip of mixed driving. I use ECO on the motorway and average about 45 mpg. On a longer run you can get over 50 mpg.
My overall mpg over 22k miles is 38.3 mpg, and on my 320i over 36k it was 38.9 mpg. I would expect the G20 to deliver similar mpg given that it has the same engine.

I have only ever has one diesel car and didn't like it, and have always driven petrol since. Plus, the 320d has a bad reputation for being very noisey on start up.

This was a trip to Liverpool.

That is definitely a decent economy on a run so suggests on my commute I could get 45-50mpg

I guess your overall average was brought down by some town driving which I assume is more around the 30mpg

[sensible]

Originally Posted by simonb82

That is definitely a decent economy on a run so suggests on my commute I could get 45-50mpg

I guess your overall average was brought down by some town driving which I assume is more around the 30mpg

I only work part time and still work from home every other week, so most of my driving is short local trips. You should get 45 mpg on your commute. My work run is a couple of miles to the motorway, about 20 miles on M5 with some 50mph road works, then A and B roads with some bridge construction works that holds me up in traffic (been going on for 2 years), and then through a town. There are some country lanes where I use sport mode. I get about 45 mpg (32 miles each way). People slate the 2.0i but I have always found the B48 engine very good and quite punchy with its acceleration, whilst still returning good mpg. Don't get me wrong, it's no 340d or 340i, but generally more than most would need.

[simonb82]

Originally Posted by sensible

I only work part time and still work from home every other week, so most of my driving is short local trips. You should get 45 mpg on your commute. My work run is a couple of miles to the motorway, about 20 miles on M5 with some 50mph road works, then A and B roads with some bridge construction works that holds me up in traffic (been going on for 2 years), and then through a town. There are some country lanes where I use sport mode. I get about 45 mpg (32 miles each way). People slate the 2.0i but I have always found the B48 engine very good and quite punchy with its acceleration, whilst still returning good mpg. Don't get me wrong, it's no 340d or 340i, but generally more than most would need.

Yeah I'm not expecting a rocket ship from this. The previous E90 3 series I had was only a 318d so I think the G21 320i will still compare favourably to that in terms of performance

[simonb82]

Is it correct that while the 320i has no hybrid technology the same engine in the 520u has mild hybrid tech?

[sensible]

Originally Posted by simonb82

Is it correct that while the 320i has no hybrid technology the same engine in the 520u has mild hybrid tech?

The 320i doesn't have any hybrid tech, no. Not sure about the other one you mention.

[simonb82]

Originally Posted by sensible

The 320i doesn't have any hybrid tech, no. Not sure about the other one you mention.

My other post was supposed to read 520i which seems to have mild hybrid. So I'm surprised they did it for the 5 series and not the 3 but for the 20d engine they did it for both

[Charlie (Wessex)]

Are you buying or leasing? If the former, petrol. Leasing you can give it back if the politics of diesel turn worse than they are now.

[simonb82]

Originally Posted by Charlie (Wessex)

Are you buying or leasing? If the former, petrol. Leasing you can give it back if the politics of diesel turn worse than they are now.

I'll be buying so that's what is swaying me towards petrol

[Charlie (Wessex)]

Not sure how safe petrol is TBH, but prob more so for a wee while yet. I'd take the worse MPG as a sort of insurance policy.

I probably would prefer the M340d but went M340i for the same reason.