MY13 125TDI or MY12 v6

[drad81]

Drove the diesel today. Can't say it excited me. The car itself is excellent very comfortable to drive and quiet but I found the engine a little boring. Reaches the speed limit quickly its but it didnt excite me. That got me thinking. Do I go for the v6 demo or the new diesel? Insurance quotes have the same price for the two engine so that brings me down to fuel economy. How many kms should I expect out of a tank in the V6. My C180 currently goes through 60 L in 480kms city driving. Am I expecting a lot less kms out of the V6?

[wind]

I can only speak about the economy of the diesel engine.

Yes, it can be a little 'boring' as it does the job without too much fuss - mine pulls to the redline willingly and without any problems on a regular basis.


The benefit of the diesel - to quote another dubber: "stupidly good economy".

Around town (mixed freeway/local driving/stop-start traffic) I get at least 800 km from a tank without trying.

On the freeways/interstate drives, I can easily get 1,100+ km from a tank cruising at the legal limit (with air-con running).


The V6 would be more fun and you would be pushing it a lot harder than the diesel (why else get the V6 with AWD?) but the economy is high performance petrol engine (not diesel) and if you (like me) enjoy getting it to work (i.e. putting it in the upper end of the rev range regularly), economy will reflect that driving style.

Re economy for the V6. I think that you will probably get something similar (or slightly higher l/100km) to what you get from your C180 (driving style being roughly the same). Will let the V6 guys post their experience.

[Riker]

drad, no contest mate V6 every day.....

The only question you need to ask yourself is this, 'am I concerned about economy'? Obviously we all are to varying degress but would you be that bothered that if you noticed regular fuel economy figures of between 12-14L per 100Km's? would that be enough to force you into buying a diesel? Out of a tank I average about 400-450km's, 90% city driving.

A little on the V6 engine, some have said if you are a V6 driver you will likely enjoy playing with it's power & push it a bit harder than normal (only occassionaly..) however, the opposite is more common & that is the V6 has so much power & it's power spread is so good that you do not need to push it to get up to speed quickly. What gives it less than stellar economy figures is the combination of V6 & AWD.

You know how it is, the choice is very subjective. You will get varied opinions & different claims. From me you have a personal opinion & it is a very simple one, V6 any day. If I saw economy as a serious point of concern (a concern that send me mental on a daily basis) then that would be the only reason I would buy the diesel.

My advice, get the V6, provided you are happy with the car in question & it ticks all the boxes. Drive it with the knowledge that even though it is a bit heavy on fuel it is a beautiful engine & drives very well. Oh, if you like a great sounding soundtrack from under the bonnet then you are in for a real treat.

[MJW]

I agree with Riker.

To be blunt, if you are worried about fuel economy over power/performance then you have made your decision already. You need to realise that you are comparing a TDI that is similar in performance & economy to many other manufacturers. The V6 on the other hand is like no other, unless you want to spend a lot more money. For mine, it is the ultimate sleeper & I regularly have other drivers job smacked at the acceleration (particaulrly from standstill).

If you can get the V6 to drive around for at least a couple of hours I think you will see for yourself.

As an FYI, mine has done 18,000 klms & I do combination of city/highway (65/35 split) & regualrly get around 11-11.5 l/100 klms. hope this helps.

[Diesel_vert]

How many kms should I expect out of a tank in the V6. My C180 currently goes through 60 L in 480kms city driving. Am I expecting a lot less kms out of the V6?

Official figures for the European urban cycle:
2005 Merc C180 (auto) = 11.7 l/100km
2012 VW Passat V6 = 12.4 l/100km
That is an increase of 6%.

According to your driving style & conditions, you achieve:
480 km out of a 60 L tank in your C180, which equates to 12.5 l/100km.

Taking into consideration the 6% increase, expect to achieve:
530 km out of a 70 L tank in a Passat V6, which equates to 13.3 l/100km.

Therefore, you should expect to travel further in a Passat, because it has a bigger fuel tank.

Do I go for the v6 demo or the new diesel?

Financially, you stand to make significant savings if you go with the TDI.

However, if the financial side isn't a problem & you can properly afford the V6 (purchase price, insurance, running costs, maintenance, depreciation, etc) and you find the TDI does nothing for you subjectively, then get the V6.

[cru22z]

I drive the TDI and like it but honestly because of DPF
This will be my last TDI. If I can take it back I would have gone for the V6.
Remember if you use the car frequently on start stop traffic then V6 petrol will be better.
As for my next car I'm hoping to get a V6 turbo petrol car

[Diesel_vert]

if you use the car frequently on start stop traffic then V6 petrol will be better.

That's true, but the differential in purchase price between the TDI and V6 is such that, even with a DPF replacement every 180 000 km, you'll still be far ahead financially.

Having said that, I'm not sure what we're dealing with in terms of price. If the OP can get the V6 at a greatly reduced price or at least much closer to a TDI, then that obviously changes things.

[Amalgam]

We had the identical dilema recently.

In July, we replaced our Gen 4 Outback H6 3.0L with a 125TDI estate. We tested the Gen 5 Outback H6, and both the V6 and 125 TDI estates. Both petrols were certainly more engaging and fun to drive, but the 125TDI was more than capable and brisk. We were lucky enough to spend last April in Italy driving through the country side and AutoStrada in a Focus estate 1.6L TDI and this sold us on the merits of diesel.

As a family wagon, the 125TDI is perfect. We are very happy with the 125TDI and have not had any problems with the DPF, but if you want a little more zing and a smile on your dial, every time you are in the driver's seat and the Passat is your daily driver / only car, then the V6 is definitely the way to go.

In terms of fuel economy, we were achieving high 12L/100km in the Outback and are now getting low 6s in the TDI for the identical suburban school run type of driving.

To put my comments into perpective, my daily driver is an Evo 10.

Happy choosing.

[FSI 220]

V6 is a dead set jet... But it is so smooth and the box is so quick that to feel like you are going fast you have to mash it....
So around town you will be lucky to get into the 13's... If your right boot is feeling randy you'll be in the 15 litres per hundred...

[booba]

my right boot is always randy.

V6 is a dead set jet... But it is so smooth and the box is so quick that to feel like you are going fast you have to mash it....
So around town you will be lucky to get into the 13's... If your right boot is feeling randy you'll be in the 15 litres per hundred...