The Diesel Decade

[old.user4556]

@Bodhi please stop with this six cylinder chat anyway, you've got me all itchy:


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Y7ZWzEPZJg



View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uez3Eetta5A



View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aU-qaapm2Y8


That eight speed auto box is truly magnificent, look how fast those shifts are.

 

[Bodhi]

That sounds filthy. Definitely going to look at one of these next, or more probably an M235i. Heard many good things about the gearbox too, even from die hard manual lovers, so keen to try one.

Just can't get over the noise though. Why have a diesel when you can have something that sounds like that?

 

[old.user4556]

Simple - you can't have an M135i on company car schemes because it's over 160 g/km of CO2.

If you're doing 20,000 miles a year the M135i will be expensive to run in fuel and tyres. I know these modern blown petrols are reasonably economical for the power output, but my 120d does about 50-55mpg giving it serious right foot, my Z4 3.0si was probably somewhere around the 27mpg mark, maybe 30mpg if I was careful (so i'm getting twice the distance, and at 184 bhp it's no slouch). Sure, the 120d isn't fun or exciting to listen to, but it's sitting on the motorway most of the day doing ~60mph constantly.

Honestly, that's why I chucked the Z4 - all it really did was boring commutes, it was rare for me to take it from Òban to Críanlarich, but by Christ those were good times .

 

[Bodhi]

I do just over 20k a year, and running the 125i is proving a whole 20 pound a month more expensive than the old 330d. The diesel did just under 40 to the gallon, the petrol is doing about 32. In the grand scheme of things, this is bugger all. 5 pounds a week for a lovely straight six with power from 1500 rpm all the way to the redline. Bargain if you ask me.

Not that I pay that extra £5 mind, work pick that up. I do like car allowances

I could probably save a lot more by downsizing to a 120d, but honestly? Life is too short not to have 6 cylinders with you wherever you go. Plus the age of 120d's I was looking at they are likely to snap a timing chain...thanks but no thanks...

 

[old.user4556]

I don't think there's much economical benefit between a 330d and a 125i especially since the 3 is a larger, heavier car anyway. That makes sense.

 

[Moriath]

1 series way to small for me

 

[Job]

The diesel engine was invented for the 3rd world as a reliable engine that would run on anything from coconut oil to animal fat...how far it has come.

 

[Bodhi]

I don't think there's much economical benefit between a 330d and a 125i especially since the 3 is a larger, heavier car anyway. That makes sense.

There's less in the weight of the two cars than you think, the 330d was an E46, so the generation before the 1 series, and the 1 Coupe is a bit more portly than it really should be. I think the Efficient Dynamics stuff makes more of a difference, Co2 on the 125i is actually pretty good for a NA 6 Cylinder, think it's around 190, whereas the diesel was 177.

Best move I'veade though, insurance is slightly cheaper so it's actually cheaper to run than the diesel (including fuel) and much more pleasant to drive. I live the whole big engine small car thing too, deeply amusing, and means its rarely in the wrong gear for some schnell. If you ever get a chance to drive one try planting your foot at 30 in 3rd, bloody hilarious the way it picks up and goes all the way to about 90 in one gear (on a private road of course).

 

[old.user4556]

Well I did have a Z4 so yes, the torque is brilliant .

 

[Tilda]

Cannot wait for the affordable Tesla.

 

[Tom]

It is a very, very pretty car. I drive a Lexus RX400h, although the battery is really only an energy buffer, running on electricity only is a very nice feeling.

 

[old.user4556]

I like the sound of an electric car. Instant torque at every "rev".

Skip to 1:20.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DnW3tpQ57I

 

[Bodhi]

Thing about the Tesla is whilst the battery technology is very impressive (if you like that sort of thing) the cars themselves are not quality items. I was talking to one our customers in Norway who'd had one, said interior quality and general build was fairly awful for the price, nowhere near the league of the Germans or Lexus. I saw a few in stavanger and to be honest, half of them looked knackered.

That and the fact Elon Musk is a weapons grade cockend, means I wouldn't be in a hurry to get one. I'd be more inclined to look at an i8, but they are nearly 100k, which will get you a brand new M3 and a shitload of fuel.

 

[Job]

Electric cars are nowhere near being the solution for mass transport until we make an epic leap in battery technology.

 

[Tom]

Electric cars are nowhere near being the solution for mass transport until we make an epic leap in battery technology.

Considering the average UK commute is around 7 miles, that statement is demonstrably false.

 

[old.Tohtori]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BYD_electric_bus

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_gas_vehicle

Both operating in Finland(busses) to some degree. If they can get the buggers to work in our winter, they'll surely work inyour merry old parts

 

[Moriath]

Considering the average UK commute is around 7 miles, that statement is demonstrably false.

It's not the commute it's the other stuff. And all the charging points needed every where.

 

[old.user4556]

I was surprised to see a shitload of charging points in Glasgow and Edinburgh recently. Give it 10 years and they'll be pretty common i'd expect.

I think an A3 e-tron would be a sensible choice for me once I surrender to getting married and having kids. I'm a 30 mile roundtrip for work and all the relevant people I need to see (in-laws, parents, sister, most mates, Tesco etc.) are all within 20 mile roundtrips. I'd run it off the leccy for those occasions and have the backup of a petrol engine when required to go longer distances.

 

[Job]

Considering the average UK commute is around 7 miles, that statement is demonstrably false.

No one is going to buy a car that can only commute around 40 miles a day...firstly half the drivers in the uk would run out of juice on the way to work...they have crap heaters for the winter..the lights don't melt the snow...suddenly need to be somewhere at 10am...oh fuk it's still on charge...we need insta charge , lighweight batteries that aren't made by raping the earth.

 

[Ch3tan]

Job, hybrid.Not full eclectic.

 

[Scouse]

It's not the commute it's the other stuff. And all the charging points needed every where.

The other stuff I agree with you. Cars are not just for work.

The charging points thing is a doddle to fix tho...

 

[Tom]

No one is going to buy a car that can only commute around 40 miles a day...firstly half the drivers in the uk would run out of juice on the way to work...they have crap heaters for the winter..the lights don't melt the snow...suddenly need to be somewhere at 10am...oh fuk it's still on charge...we need insta charge , lighweight batteries that aren't made by raping the earth.

A Tesla S will easily do 250 miles on a full charge. The main barrier is cost, not functionality - which is why Tesla are releasing the Tesla 3, which will have a 200 mile range and a much more palatable price tag.

The vast majority of the driving public do not use their car's full range. Most of them have a fixed routine that they rarely change.

 

[ECA]

Tesla are rolling out battery hotswap stations as well, or are planning to, that let you drive in, it changes the battery for you and you drive out.

 

[Moriath]

The other stuff I agree with you. Cars are not just for work.

The charging points thing is a doddle to fix tho...

It's the time to charge. If you are stuck somewhere for twelve hours it's not practical. If you have charging points everywhere. You still have the time delay between long runs

 

[Moriath]

A Tesla S will easily do 250 miles on a full charge. The main barrier is cost, not functionality - which is why Tesla are releasing the Tesla 3, which will have a 200 mile range and a much more palatable price tag.

The vast majority of the driving public do not use their car's full range. Most of them have a fixed routine that they rarely change.

Please give research and details behind claims.

 

[DaGaffer]

Please give research and details behind claims.

There are plenty of roadtests that attest to the Tesla S' range, go and have a look at Autocar for example. The biggest problem with electric charging is that an awful lot of people don't have off-street parking (especially in London etc.) and running cables across the pavement for overnight charges isn't much of an option.

 

[Job]

Well it's not rocket science..the bigger the battery the further you go...but present battery technology is nowhere near good enough...in cold weather the performance drops off hugely ..I'd love to see electric cars mainstream but it just isn't going to happen until we have a huge leap because people aren't interested in the limitations of the batteries and if you conk out you can't walk to the charging station with the battery.
There's a thread on reddit atm.
http://vimeo.com/m/19863733

 

[Tom]

Please give research and details behind claims.

Which claims?

 

[Moriath]

Which claims?

The driving public bit. A lot of the people I know are customer facing so regularly have to travel to different places.

 

[Tom]

The driving public bit. A lot of the people I know are customer facing so regularly have to travel to different places.

http://data.gov.uk/dataset/distance_travelled_to_work

All persons - 23.6 million

Works from home - 2.2 million
Less than 2km - 4.7 million
2-5km - 4.7 million
5-10km - 4.3 million
10-20km - 3.6 million
20-30km - 1.3 million
30-40km - 0.6 million
40-60km - 0.5 million
60+ km - 0.6 million
No fixed location - 1 million
Outside UK - 62,550
Offshore - 14,528

Are those good enough for you?