Your top 5 frugal motors

[Akron]

Rather unsuprising for me but-

 

Skoda Octavia any 1.9 diseasel, my 1.9 Tdi PD averages 52 - 55 mpg day to day, 50 mpg towing a 1ton trailer tent 60+ on a run

part prices are reasonable for genuine on a modern.

 

Skoda Felicia genuine parts are dirt cheap,£16 for a windscreen seal, £36 for front pads and disks, less than £100 for a complete exhaust excl cat this is all my wife's car has needed doing in 4 years and 50,000 miles. Servicing from an indie Skoda Tech never more than £110 for all fluids, filters plugs and leads. Fuel consumption for the 1.6 my missus drives averages 35 - 40 mpg mixed driving.

[catsinthewelder]

I've not long since replaced a wonderfully frugal 205 D with a Citroen BX 19D which is nearly as good on fuel, somewhat better in reality as I can put my 3 kids in and the stuff rather than having to make 2 trips Both are from freecycle for extra mingebag points.

 

Neither beat my old work hack though, I'm sure I made it to Brum and back (110 miles according to google) in very battered 1995 Hi-Jet pickup on a fivers worth of unleaded. I tanked it on the company account before I left and again at my own expense when I got back

 

Its replacement is shit however, Stroud and back, which is only 10 miles further cost me about 40 quid as I was yet to notice that it was a duel fuel jobbie and is set up more for full LPG use. Even on gas it costs more to run than the old un though

[gurnsimps]

I once owned a Granada 2000 twin can on lpg that was really comfy and seemed to go on forever on a tank of gas. My everyday car get well over 40mpg and its fun to drive,cheap insurance etc etc.

[messerschmitt owner]

smart fortwo cdi - once managed 110mpg in it

Messerschmitt kr200 - 75mpg

BX 17RD

BX19TGD - both did in the region of 50+

Fiat 126 - 50+mpg

[Cavcraft]

BX17 dizzler: Went to Great Yarmouth on holiday in it fully loaded up and it used hardly any fuel at all.

 

206 1.4 HDi van: absolutely amazing on juice, 60mpg was very easy to achieve.

 

Rubbarsh cruddy Passat: 50mpg dead easy to get.

 

Sharan TDi: despite having 412,000 miles on the clock it could do late forties no danger.

 

Calibra 2.0 (XE) petrol. Late thirties easy enough. I've seen some in the past converted to Isuzu dizzler engines. Must be pretty slow but economy will be GR8 as they're quite aerodynamic

[Lukas]

Considered that a very frugal car is not useful if it is likely to brake down and cause expensive repairs, a really frugal car has to get a very good mileage PLUS it has to be reliable and cheap to own. So I would say the early VAG 1.9 TDI with 90hp would make a good car.

 

My father bought an Audi 80 Estate 1.9TDI new in 1995 (one of the very last ones) and this one did easily between 50 and 55 mpg with 4 people inside (my parents, my brother and me). And this was a very comfortable and quiet car with AC. The fuel-consumption should be better in the UK than in, mostly, mountainous Austria too. So I bet a horrible VW Golf III or IV with 1.9TDI should be the best bet. They are fast enough to keep up with traffic easily, the engines will last almost forever and parts are very cheap and easy to get at almost every garage. The same for the Skoda Octavia.

 

I wouldn´t buy such a miserable thing, but if you like VWs or at least if you don´t dislike VWs, this should do.

[Cavcraft]

Considered that a very frugal car is not useful if it is likely to brake down and cause expensive repairs, a really frugal car has to get a very good mileage PLUS it has to be reliable and cheap to own. So I would say the early VAG 1.9 TDI with 90hp would make the most rational person on earth break down and cry and want to find whoever designed these hatefuls lumps of crud, tie them up in a shed in Delamere Forest, and perform some kind of water torture on them before breaking their will to live. Just so they know how bad it feels to spend one miserable sodding day in their God awful heap of sh1t cars.

.

 

EFA.

[M'coli]

Considered that a very frugal car is not useful if it is likely to brake down and cause expensive repairs, a really frugal car has to get a very good mileage PLUS it has to be reliable and cheap to own. So I would say the early VAG 1.9 TDI with 90hp would make the most rational person on earth break down and cry and want to find whoever designed these hatefuls lumps of crud, tie them up in a shed in Delamere Forest, and perform some kind of water torture on them before breaking their will to live. Just so they know how bad it feels to spend one miserable sodding day in their God awful heap of sh1t cars.

.

 

EFA.

For added pain, you could make them drive it with the windows down around the Leeds inner ring road on a wet Friday afternoon.

[Guest Leonard Hatred]

Mechanically controlled diesels, FTW.

[scooters]

Considered that a very frugal car is not useful if it is likely to brake down and cause expensive repairs, a really frugal car has to get a very good mileage PLUS it has to be reliable and cheap to own. So I would say the early VAG 1.9 TDI with 90hp would make the most rational person on earth break down and cry and want to find whoever designed these hatefuls lumps of crud, tie them up in a shed in Delamere Forest, and perform some kind of water torture on them before breaking their will to live. Just so they know how bad it feels to spend one miserable sodding day in their God awful heap of sh1t cars.

.

 

EFA.

For added pain, you could make them drive it with the windows down around the Leeds inner ring road on a wet Friday afternoon.

 

 

LOL - reminds me of this time last year - rural Lincs in my suit on the way to visit a factory - pissing sleet and rain - really nasty day - I'm driving a 1994 Citroen XM VSX 2.0lt Turbo hatch - wonderful car - but....its and XM so I hit a pothole at 50mph and the driver's window drops open! - came straight off its runners.

 

I spend the next 2 hours getting soaked - obviously I don't have my tool box with me so am able to blag a spline drive off a filling station which allows me to remove the door trim - some trapped fingers and a stick of wood later and i have propped the window closed again - and wedged it shut with bits of folded card board....

 

wonderful!