Confused much! Diesel VS Petrol/Gas

[the_jem]

The more time I spend 'researching' on here, the more confused I get...............

Hubby's mates at work say 'diesel' mate - it's the only way.

I read on here both sides.............


In your opinion - diesel or petrol/gas and why?

Engine wear and tear.....................$$$$$ anything else???????????????????


We mainly do highway, local driving, occassional beach...........and have never done the real '4wd' stuff - not to say we wouldn't - just haven't yet. (Probably do approx. 250/300 ks a week on average)

[Bear]

There are a whole lot of reasons why we went petrol rather than diesel and would do so again. We are also on LPG which has its benefits but I don't think I'll bother with it next vehicle - unless its already installed.

Before we made the purchase I did up a spreadsheet on which I did a cost/benefit analysis for diesel v petrol. On balance, the cost of ownership came out pretty close but a bit in favour of the petrol. This is because the increased cost of servicing the diesel exceeded the increased cost of fuel consumption in the petrol. Its just that you notice the small added cost at the bowser each week while the inreased service costs of the diesel only hit every few months. This is the mistake a lot of people make, they look at just the cost of fuel without taking into consideration all the other costs of owning a diesel - not to mention that a petrol is quieter and much smoother and more powerful drive. I no longer have the speadsheet, but FYI, here are some of the factors we considered.

Benefits of Diesel over Petrol:

• less fuel consumption; a bit more torque in extreme off-road conditions and/or towing; expectation of long engine life; better resale value

Benefits of Petrol over Diesel:

• MUCH MUCH more get up and go - better around town, better for overtaking on the highway. Lower servicing costs: 120 series change oil every 10,000ks, diesel 5,000ks. NO timing belt to change on the 120 series petrol - petrol has a timing CHAIN diesel has a Belt. Diesel costs more to buy than petrol. More bang for your buck, you can buy a later model petrol (go for the 120 series if you possibly can) with lower ks. The better resale for a diesel is a myth. Sure you get more for a diesel when you sell, but you have to pay more for it in the first place - the resale price will be lower for the petrol but the buy/sell difference should be about the same. Engine life is probably a myth too - the petrol engine is renowned for its exceedingly long life so the this is not imho an issue.

On balance, with the petrol you get to drive a later model car with lower ks. You get a much better day to day drive. Your average running costs are about the same as the diesel.

Hope this is of some use.

Cheers

Bear

[ozwapet2]

Diesel costs more to buy than petrol.

On what basis do you make that statement ? I find here in Melbourne that it is often a fair bit cheaper per litre than petrol, but depends where you are in the petrol discount cycle. ( diesel is more stable in price so doesn't matter so much when you fill ).
And I guess you have driven a D4-D diesel to compare with the petrol ?
Otherwise your arguments are pretty sound.
But i still love my diesel. - you maybe forgot to mention in the diesel "pro" list : better range especially if you do long distance touring, and better availability of fuel in remote areas. If it's only going to be a "town" car there's probably a good argument for a petrol.
I may consider a petrol with LPG again on my next vehicle - it all depends on what fuel prices do.
Maybe none of us will be able to afford to run any fossil fuelled vehicles in the next 5-10 years.

[AJ120]

It really depends on what you are going to do with your Prado, If you are going to be travelling around in mostly built up areas with relatively short stops between fuel points then either would be fine. If you have plans on doing a lot of remote area long distance outback travel, you aren't going to find many places to buy gas in the outback so you will have a thirsty vehicle with a relativly small Petrol tank = not enough touring range.

Everyones situation is different, in my own circumstances diesel is the only option i would consider, and financially i believe that i am miles in front with the diesel. your circumstances are probably different.

Bear mentioned that diesels are dearer to buy, which may be true most of the time, however when i bought my first Prado in 2005 Toyota had a "special" and both Petrol and Diesel where $49,999 drive away, so make sure you double check prices before taking the plunge and dont just expect diesels to have a higher purchase price (although they most likely will)

Cheers Andrew

[Seththecursed]

I spent many hours researching the pros and cons of diesel vs petrol while waiting for a Prado to come up for sale. In the end I found a petrol at the right price and am very happy. If it had been a diesel I still would have bought it and I'm positive I would still be happy. So I think either one you cant go wrong, if buying secondhand look at both until you find the right one whether its petrol or diesel.

[Bear]

Diesel costs more to buy than petrol.

On what basis do you make that statement ? I find here in Melbourne that it is often a fair bit cheaper per litre than petrol, but depends where you are in the petrol discount cycle. ( diesel is more stable in price so doesn't matter so much when you fill ).
And I guess you have driven a D4-D diesel to compare with the petrol ?
Otherwise your arguments are pretty sound.
But i still love my diesel. - you maybe forgot to mention in the diesel "pro" list : better range especially if you do long distance touring, and better availability of fuel in remote areas. If it's only going to be a "town" car there's probably a good argument for a petrol.
I may consider a petrol with LPG again on my next vehicle - it all depends on what fuel prices do.
Maybe none of us will be able to afford to run any fossil fuelled vehicles in the next 5-10 years.

At the time we were making the purchase decision, diesel was (by my recollection) about 5% dearer than unleaded. My research was limited to Toowoomba prices. We just returned from a trip to Tassie. I noticed that in most areas unleaded is a bit cheaper than diesel, but at times the price is about the same. The price gap may have closed a bit too. But the real cost factors were, in my calculations, the service costs and the up-front purchase price.

Probably a whole lot of other "pros" for diesel too - I guess you would have to own one to know.

If one was planning extensive long distance and/or remote trips (or a lot of towing), I'd agree - go diesel. Petrol works well for 85% town and highway, 15% remote and/or off-road.

Cheers

Bear

[the_jem]

Thanks!

The look continues...........but probably not so narrow now..............

[tassie tiger]

If you are talking earlier 120 series with the 1kz ( not the d4d the toffs drive 8) ) then the gap in fuel costs is not huge between the petrol and diesel. If you look at the fuelly results in some of the members sig blocks it seems an average of around the 12.5 for the diesel and 14.5 to 15 for the petrol.

If you are happy with the relaxed pace of the diesel get one, if you want the grunt of that sweet V6 then hang the extra few bucks in fuel and get the petrol.

Whichever you go with, just do it!

Prados are great!

[Derb]

Hi Fellas. Here is one arguement not often used for running a diesel. It's a lot bloody safer in the event of a prang. With petrol, one flash and yer ash. Diesel takes a lot of getting burning. If you are going bush, diesel is less likely to evaporate due to the viscosity and hence no explosive fumes. Your prado will go further on a tank of diesel, it will run cooler when working hard and if (god forbid) you need to use fuel to light a fire, diesel won't blow your eyebrows off. BTW did I say I prefer diesels? Cheers, Derb.

[Talktheroo]

If you are going to do long hauls out west, buy the diesel. All diesels in 4wds are low rev engines, hence the wear and long life issue. Petrol engines will do more rpms for the same result. In most states of Australia the rego is more especially QLD. V6 : $900.00, 4 in line diesel : $680.00, yes we do get ripped off in QLD. From the cheapest to the most expensive in Australia in less than 3 years. How could you buy a Prado or any 4wd for that matter, and not take it out west or east in WA? Go bush go diesel. I think MickL did a post on this, always worth reading.