Cupra TDI vs Cupra Petrol Realistic MPG differences

Hey folks,

So im still at the halfway house of deciding whether to change to a Cupra TDI, from a Cupra 1.8T.

The daily commute will be about 35 miles, and of course theres all the other usual driving trips outside of work etc.

It will generally be motorway miles, but with a bit of stop start driving through small village driving, neither car will be good for this, as they are both the same suspension so uncomfortable either way lol but im used to it now on these cars!

Anyway, reading past all the quoted figures... I claim to get about 32mpg average from my Cupra, I don't really drive it hard to be honest as at the moment I only do short journeys and never drive hard when the oil is cold.
Whether i'd get that on the drive I will be doing, who knows, maybe 30mpg average.

So if we use the same sums, and assume I had the Cupra TDI, let's say i'd get, 45mpg? Or more?

Ant made a very good point on another thread about the cost difference of BUYING the TDI on top of selling my car, for this exercise, we will assume it will cost me a few hundred pounds more.

Insurance not going to really be any different, tax will obviously be cheaper on TDI.

Would it be worth it? Would there be a realistic amount of fuel cost savings per month?

I get about 280-290 miles to a tank (although generally I never let it run near empty, and often never even let the light come on, I fill up before then).

TDI wins for less trips to the petrol station, but Petrol wins for the non-tractor engine noise...
 

andypandypoos

Rodeo Monkey
Feb 14, 2009
319
0
Cowley, Oxford
is that 35 miles each way? I do just over 100 (mostly motorway or dual carriageway) miles each day in my Cupra TDI and with my normal driving the computer (not exactly accurate, I know) tells me I average mid to high 40's but have seen in the mid 50's when I was only a teeny little bit mindful of fuel economy
 

Nath.

The Gentlemans Express
Jan 1, 2006
8,620
16
EASTLEIGH, HAMPSHIRE
Ant made a very good point on another thread about the cost difference of BUYING the TDI on top of selling my car, for this exercise, we will assume it will cost me a few hundred pounds more.QUOTE]

A few hundred quid more.....................dream on. Unles you are selling a late petrol one and buying an early diesel one.

As said above I used to be able to get low 40's in my old Petrol FR 150.
 
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pete34a

Active Member
Jan 9, 2009
58
0
It sounds like you're doing about 14000 miles a year? With that mileage I'd say you'd save quite a bit by buying a tdi. I do 12k a year and noticed a big drop in running costs since replacing my mk3 cupra (~32mpg) with a mk4 130 tdi (~51mpg).

Assuming 32mpg for the 1.8T and 51mpg for the tdi, at current fuel prices you'll be saving around £800 a year in fuel. So if tou're planning to keep the car a few years it's probably worth the extra cash. Also, the tdi will retain a higher value than the 1.8T when you come to sell it.

Of course the derv doesn't sound as good, and isn't as fun to drive IMO. The torque is good though!
 

broadbandings

Active Member
Sep 17, 2009
53
0
you may be able to achieve high 30's mpg in a 20VT driving carefully, but rememeber, us cupra tdi owners are doing 40mpg whilst clogging :) therefore having more fun lol.

i save an absolute bomb since swapping from the 182. the tdi takes several trips out to even take it off 'full' lol
 

broadbandings

Active Member
Sep 17, 2009
53
0
oh also the tdi does sound like a diseisel at lower speed but above 30mph you wouldn't know the difference, my dad commented on its quietness the other day. give it a test drive mate.
 
Thanks for the replies folks, definately worth some serious thinking about...

Right now I can sell it because I walk to work, so it's not a problem and not used daily, but if I wait a couple of months, I can't as i'll need it daily to get to the new workplace etc.

PS, love the name... Internet service providings cheaper broadbandings lol! :D
 

Ant FR

Full Member
Feb 15, 2005
2,861
0
Kent
the main difference is, the Tdi ill give you 40mpg and worst regardless of how you drive it. if you drive like a saint you will be up in the 50's.

Now yes the Petrol will do 40 but by christ is it boring when you try to do that, drive it normally and you will back to 30mpg etc.

Also bear in mind, the bollocks you here about "oh you need to do 15000 miles a year to notice a benefit at the pumps" is bollocks, thats on new cars not second hand ones.

For me the cupra Tdi is really the best of both worlds, it looks good, it goes great, it smokes lovely and it cost me less and at night when i lay in bed worrying about mortgages, electricity bills and how much money i am spunking up the wall every week, i can take a little bit of comfort fromt he fact that my usual expense ( car 0 is actually rather frugal and good value.

Oh and if i hear one person say the petrol is better on track i'll say bring your petrol cupra to the ring and see if you can keep with me in the Tdi.

but end of day do what your happy with . and yeah i have owned two Tdi's and one petrol. done 42kn in 18 months in the petrol FR so know a bit about fuel economy...lol
 

Gaz44

Active Member
Aug 19, 2009
131
0
you may be able to achieve high 30's mpg in a 20VT driving carefully, but rememeber, us cupra tdi owners are doing 40mpg whilst clogging :) therefore having more fun lol.

i save an absolute bomb since swapping from the 182. the tdi takes several trips out to even take it off 'full' lol

Interesting...my 172 Cup wasn't that much different, maybe £10 per month more than my diesel.
 

broadbandings

Active Member
Sep 17, 2009
53
0
thats impressive for a 172, you should have kept it haha. i only sold mine due to it being so thirsty.
 

joesmad4it

Cupra TD-aight!
Mar 11, 2008
229
0
Wickford - Essex
Don't forget to take into account how much extra the TDI will cost and whether your going to make that back. I looked around and the TDI's seem to be about £1000 more. If your gonna be making a max profit of £10 a tank in the TDI (which is what I'm doing driving like a OAP) you will need 100 fill ups before you're making money over the petrol and believe me if I wasn't doing 25,000+ miles a year I'd have chosen the petrol!
 
May 6, 2009
3,500
0
Northallerton, N yorks
I've always hated diesels tbh, but needed one for the amount of miles i do, When i test drove my fr i was pleasantly surprised at how fun it was to drive compared to other diesels i had driven! Once they are re-mapped they are even more fun, just hold all the boost right up to the top of the rev range and drive more like a petrol. The noise is only bad if your sat there at idle, it sounds like a tractor, but once you are on the move they sound pretty good really. Cant hear the engine noise, just the turbo spooling up and that .

Not sure how old you are but if you are on a cost cutting exercise id go for an fr then get it re-mapped. Insurance for me was 2100 on the cupra :| only 950 on the fr, thats driving any other car third party, business use etc but i was only 19 back then. Saying that the money i have spent on mine could have almost have covered that 1100 but when a white fr popped up with 9500 on the clocks, i couldnt say no haha

But if your only going to be doing 35 miles a day on the work commute then i wouldnt say the extra cost of buying the diesel version and other bits and bats would be worth it if you like your petrol cupra! I do 25k a year, if i was doing 14-15k id be straight for the petrol cupra!
 

krussel

Active Member
Oct 31, 2008
1,713
2
Hertforshire
I travel only 7 miles to work each day so I am a good example why buying a tdi to save money is a dead loss. Yes it sounds just like a tractor in traffic and blipping the throttle does not bring any audio reward.

However I love the way the thing drives especially the pickup from any gear which is fantastic meaning I can whip past slower traffic which often catches people out who try to follow. This suits me as I am normally knackerd after work and just want to get home without having to tear through the gearbox so i get more fun out of mytdi FR than i would from a petrol.

MPG for me is prob around mid 40,s I can get 50 if I drive like a saint. Cheap road tax and only £243 a year to insure (iam 42) it’s the best of both worlds. ;)
 
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