Diesel or petrol??

[OneMoreWish]

Hello

I've decided I would like to get a seat Alhambra ( won't bother with reasons why in this thread) however I'm torn between diesel and petrol.

Ideally I would like petrol as I only drive local most of the time and I worry about the potential crackdown on diesel cars.

However I also want an automatic as I can get sciatica and not using my left leg has really benefits for me to stop a flare up.

So my problem is new seat Alhambra only do diesel automatic not petrol automatic.

There are 2016 models and older that are petrol automatic but only seen one so far while I have been looking.

So do I just wait for petrol automatic or do I try and find a diesel automatic that suits me?

I guess I worry about the low mileage I do and if it will cause problems with a diesel car and then whether government will make driving a diesel more expensive.

I'll probably spend about £10/12k on car so relatively new second hand car and intend on keeping it a while ( fingers crossed) as my children are very young at moment

I would welcome any thoughts/ advice x

Depends on what you mean by low mileage. 5,000 miles a year composed entirely of 200 mile motorway journeys would be fine for a diesel. If you never drive more than 10 miles in one go, or never have the engine at motorway speeds for 45 mins at a time then the particulate filter in a diesel is going to cause all manner of problems.

The government's demonisation of diesel is complicating matters unnecessarily, but we're never going to hit CO2 targets without them and I cannot foresee punitive retrospective taxation of them being politically viable for a long time. In any case, the sort of budget you have means that you'll be getting something compliant with most recent emissions standards. I'd be wary of buying a 15 year old diesel, but that's not what you're talking about.

If your heart is set on the Alhambra, have you thought about a VW Sharan? It's identical apart from the badge and equipment levels, and is available as a petrol automatic. There are probably more of them around on the second hand market too.

If you end up with a diesel automatic (which is what I'd go for personally) make sure you get it up to motorway speeds for a good hour or so at least once a month.

Bulk of the time driving on motorway/dual carriageway = diesel

More time inner city/town driving = petrol

Check any clean air schemes existing or planned locally as they tend to be more restrictive for diesels (for good reason). Diesel engines are workhorses that perform best chewing up motorway miles.

Thanks for your advice it is very welcomed.

It's mostly small journeys each day ( 5 mins to nursery, 10 mins to shop) I occasionally do motorway driving for about an hour for days out and occasionally drive for 40 mins to get my toddler asleep but on town roads at lower speeds. But I couldn't hand in heart know I will do this once a month ...

I'll have a look at very sharan, I've not looked at reviews seem to say Seat was same under bonnet but cheaper due to vw brand name

Really wish there were more petrol automatic seat around as I did like this car

As mentioned above modern diesels have a DPF filter which won't like short town journeys and will need a 20 min or so run on the motorway every month to keep it clean. We have a few cars in the family all diesel, we feel they drive so much better and the economy is much better.
One is a Diesel Auto too, in general a petrol auto does less MPG but when used on a diesel engine its better, My 2.5 Diesel Auto does 28MPG, the petrol version does 14 MPG!
Dont trust the quoted figures talk to owners.
From what you have said just work out the running cost but its looking like petrol would be better for you.
The Sharan is a VW with a Seat badge on it, it's the same car with different trim.

The best fit for your driving pattern is an electric car. Absolutely plenty of these available secondhand for £10K to £12K.

It will also be much cheaper to run and to service.

It's mostly small journeys each day ( 5 mins to nursery, 10 mins to shop) I occasionally do motorway driving for about an hour for days out and occasionally drive for 40 mins to get my toddler asleep but on town roads at lower speeds.

I would be questioning my choice of car. Nobody needs a huge motor to take one toddler out.

Personally I would buy a £500 petrol micra and either pay the rest of the mortgage or have a holiday

Three good used electric cars for £8,000

www.carbuyer.co.uk/tips-and-advice/169652/top-3-used-electric-cars-for-ps8000

For those who have questioned my choice of car I have a toddler and a baby. I am a single parent with long term chronic back issues so my parents both help me with the children and come In the car with me and when I am not out with them I tend to go out with various friends with their children again for the help as well as the company.

So although I said I wouldn't explain my reasons there you go -I hope that satisfies the people who have made assumptions and questioned my choice of car - I'm not an complete fool just buying a 7 seater for no reason...

Re electric cars - does anyone know if you can get 7 seater cars?