AIBU to tell DH not to get a Diesel car?

[Jedimum1]

DH needs a new car. Ours is hitting the 100k miles, is 11yo and the exhaust rattles. We've gone to see cars today with the intention to buy. I have no clue about cars and other than colour and space, I'm not too bothered. However, I heard that there is new research on diesel being cancerous, highly toxic and in general a lot worse than claimed years ago. I have also read (ok, Daily Mail and Express, nothing very reputable) that there will be tax charges for diesel cars pre-2015. See for example www.express.co.uk/life-style/cars/787133/diesel-tax-cars-fine-pollution-toxic-charge-UK

DH's favourite cars were all diesel from 2014. Very nice and I agree with all choices other than the fact that they are diesel. AIBU to say we cannot get that one and to try to find a petrol one? It seems that there are no petrol ones in our area (second hand, with reasonable mileage and good condition) for those specific models (Ford C-Max is the top choice). DH says out current car is due to break and needs a car asap, as we are only getting £500 for car exchange and fixing the exhaust is a lot more. AIB paranoid about the real first hand consequences of having a diesel car for the next 4-7 years?

I wouldn't get a diesel unless I was doing loads of miles in it.

Modern diesels have lots of complicated gadgetry to make them comply with emission regs. All of this stuff is hugely expensive to fix when it goes wrong, and savings from fuel economy can easily be lost when you take into account the cost of repairing things like diesel particulate filters etc. Seven years ago I paid £1,500 on new injectors for a diesel Mondeo and £1,300 for a new dual mass flywheel in about 7 months. Then less than a year later, something else expensive was on its way out.

Luckily, a bloke in pick-up pulled out without looking and stoved the wing in and it was written off. I took the money and bought a petrol car.

Diesel makes no sense if the person is not traveling long distances regularly, IMO.

It's a popular choice here in Aus because it's standard for people to have long commutes and it takes an age to get anywhere, but if I lived in an urban area and didn't do much driving? Useless. It's no more efficient when used in that sort of setting.

I agree with the posters saying to stick with your current car. Why fork out for a much newer car when you could fix the rattly exhaust and get another few years out of it? Our Ford has 130k on the clock and is still going strong.

Only buy a diesel if you're going to be commuting a lot at higher speeds. The diesel particulate filter only works properly if you regularly use it at higher (dual carriageway) speeds.

We're really struggling to sell our diesel car. Will be replacing it with an estate, no fuel preference.
Old cars can still be good, I'm picking up my 'new' car next week. It's 16 years old, but it has only done 67,000 miles. I'll probably run it until it gives up. Then I'll get another old one :)

What other pp, particularly eyehalve, have said. Unless you do regular long journeys at a decent speed, there's no economical sense to a diesel - the dpf self cleans but only at higher speeds (70mph), and for at least 15 miles in one go.

I've always had diesels but I can easily do 300-400 miles in under a week, motorway journeys. I like autos too so whilst mpg isn't a massive concern for me, I do get better mileage than the equivalent car would get with a petrol engine.

He's driving 15 minutes to schools, then 15 minutes to work. From the outskirts of a big city into the city centre. Same journey back. Occasionally, maybe once a week at most, he needs to do a longer journey to visit clients but this is usually to some nearby town / city no more than an hour away. Once a month or so, he might need to go to a major city, with a 2-3h drive.

I had not realised that fixing a diesel could be more expensive. Thank you so much for your input. There were many things I did not know or had considered.

He's thinking of changing his current car because his previous car started going to the garage almost on a monthly basis once it hit the 100k. Same brand as the one he has now. Both second hand. I guess he's worried it will break down every now and then as the other one did at similar mileage and age.

The sooner renewable hydrocarbons are readily available for petrol and diesel the better!

For those journeys then definitely petrol for your DH's car, ask him to look into the peculiarities of diesel engines himself and hopefully he'll come to the same realisation.

I dont think those journeys are right for a diesel. Do some research on a reliable petrol model.

But the greenest thing is to fix what you have.

he's worried it will break down every now and then

He's being silly IMO. Of course older cars need more repairs from time to time, but it's still cheaper than buying new (money down the drain) or 2nd hand (lottery).

It's inconvenient to have a car in the garage... Some have courtesy cars though, so disruption is quite easily managed with some thought.

Thank you for all the replies. He looked into it and asked the dealer if they had that same model in petrol. They are bringing one from some other branch and will call him when it's here. Thank you for making me aware about the filters / distance needed, I wasn't aware at all. Mumsnet is a mine of knowledge/advice! Thanks again

Sorry, just to add, his company has a car allowance, so this is what he'll be putting towards the (second hand) car purchase. It's a new job so he hadn't received all the information until now. He is required to have a car under 10 years old, apparently, or the allowance is not paid. We've only found out today about the small print, which means he'll be definitely getting one.