Information 1.4 & 1.6 petrol ownership?

D

Darren C

A2OC Donor
Hi Folks,

Mrs C is seriously contemplating parting company with her first generation A Class Merc and replacing it with... ...er, an A2.

Being a TDI owner, I know as much as I need to about the 3 cylinder oil burner, but I am a little less knowledgeable about the petrol variants. I am not trying to re-invent the wheel here, i.e. TDI or petrol; I genuinely am looking for some 1.4 and 1.6FSI ownership experiences.

With what will no doubt be a fairly low budget, the prospect of our second A2 being petrol is at the higher percentage end of the scale.

I have not driven any of the petrol cars either so I am really looking for feedback on such things as:-

  1. Fuel economy, (predominantly in town - £ per mile comparison, fill up cost at the pump - roughly)
  2. Is the 1.4 as lack lustre as some make out? (judging by Humps display at Castle Combe, I have serious doubts!)
  3. Achilles heel – 1.6 coil packs, other common issues?
  4. What are the road tax costs for each?
  5. General thoughts on newer car, higher miles or older car with less miles?
Again, I realise that some of the above will have been covered in detail in other threads throughout the years, but ownership experiences can change on the flip of a coin; hence the fresh ask today.

Many, many thanks in advance on behalf of us both.

Darren
 
Hi Darren road tax for both 1.4 and 1.6 £120 for the year not like the TDI £35 you just can't nock it i would go for the oil burner in the A2 every time

Cheers Phil
 
the grim reeper said:
Hi Darren road tax for both 1.4 and 1.6 £120 for the year not like the TDI £35 you just can't nock it i would go for the oil burner in the A2 every time

Cheers Phil
Click to expand...

Thanks Phil.

TDI is my preference too, but then it will most likely be an older car and higher mileage - petrol then becomes more attractive. Additionally, the petrol offers greater vehicle selection with the majority seeking to own an oil burner.

Cheers,

Darren
 
Yes i know what you mean and with the fuel prices, it will be shop around and find the right car with the right spec. Good luck

Cheers Phil
 
ULP said:
Good call matey

You know my thoughts on the 1.4's engine response, but as a replacement for the A-klasse it makes sense; have you got an idea of budget or are you looking for a like-for-like replacement cost-wise? I suspect you'll struggle to get much more than £4,500-ish for the A-klasse; $64,000 question; are you able to sell the A-klasse privately, living with the one car for a few weeks? If so, you'll open your options as you might get £5,250 private, but at a push.

I guess the track performance at Castle Coombe was a combination of drivers and the low nose-weight - having driven both the diesel is way, way, way quicker in a straight line!

At the moment it is £120 for the petrol models:

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/OwningAVehicle/HowToTaxYourVehicle/DG_10012524

As for whether to go for 1.6FSI or 1.4 you'll clearly be playing performance v age/ condition/ equipment. A friend of mine changed his wife's 1.4 petrol for a 1.6FSI and was quite disappointed with the performance increase unless giving it maximum-beans, but does prefer it overall. If this is Di's daily driver in and around MK then I suspect a newer 1.4 would fit the bill better than an FSI that is 18 months older or with higher miles.

As always, when looking to sell/ buy I'm here to help you. Time we had you over soon...
Click to expand...

Cheers mate.

The private option would offer us maximum revenue generation, but... the A Class is due new boots, a service, tax and MOT soon. All of these will hinder a px return and I am not expecting to get a great deal, but to sell privately in this condition will prove equally challenging and I don't fancy shelling out and risking not getting the return anyway.

We might be able lay our mits on a few K, at a very, very extreme push; every penny of which will be needed too no doubt.

Di's love hate relationship with the A Class has just about reached term. The car itself is a sound workhorse, but as I have said before, the quality, fit 'n' finish and driving pleasure leave too much to be desired. The A2 on the other hand ticks just too many boxes... ;)

It would be good to see you and Marie again v.soon chap.

Darren
 
His and Hers i like it who gets pole position on the drive then ,
If i was you id get Di a Petrol you dont want her beating
you away from the lights now do you LOL .....
 
hi darren c as an fsi owner i would like to say i'm very pleased with the fuel economy. the worst i have seen is dead on 50mpg the best is 54.7mpg. this is an average over the whole tank 40 litres.although my work trip is quite fast flowing. even fully laden with my holiday stuff and our tent for the camping trip in somerset it was doing 52mpg. i have had my one for 9 months but have covered 12k miles i have had to have a new cat (suposedly due to previous owner only very short trips) and one service at an independent £128. the tax is £120 per year as already stated, i think i'm right in saying the 1.4 petrol is more due to it having very slightly higher emisions.i would say that you really need to have a drive of a 1.4 and a 1.6 and compare them to your tdi.
as chris has said tdi is quikest in a straight line-but is that after a remap? +extra cost? on paper that is not the case. but i have never driven a tdi version. we all like a bit of performance out of our cars but is having a rocket ship what we have our a2's for i certainly dont. its the economy, quality and rarety that keeps me smilling. please feel free to ask to have a drive of my one we are not that far away from each other or at the curry night? my dad has a a160 lwb merc and he loves it, i think it is nice but the handling is no way as good as the a2 and the trim inside the car is very " creaky" but the space in the back is huge being a long wheel base version. hope your both keeping well and see you soon mike
 
Hi Mike,

Thanks for such a comprehensive reply and for your generous offer to try your FSI; I may well take you up on that if we haven't bought before curry night.

You make many valid points about the performance criteria - for me I have a modding bug, but everything that you say about uniqueness, rarity, quality, innovation and economy are reasons to buy the A2 alone. Di isn't a girl racer by any means, but is unimpressed with the 1.4 petrol A Class - a much heavier car than the A2 though. On the other hand she loves the torque of the TDI, (as most of us TDI owners do), but for her, the A2 ownership and driveabiliy is more important than out right pace. Hence the open mind to all engine variants.

I also agree that the boot space of the A Class is very competent; though ours is the SWB model.

We are both keeping well buddy thanks, as I hope are you and yours.

Thanks.

Darren
 
Darren, I think you have to consider the TCO. Given the diesel A2s carry a premium over the 1.4 petrol, you need to see how much petrol + car tax are you going to save over, say 3 years? (120-35) * 3 = £255 difference in road tax over 3 years... not a lot really. I do <4k miles a year and hardly use 5th gear, so the diesel mpg advantage is minimum for me, also knowing diesel is slightly more expensive so for low milage, it doesn't make much difference. What seems to be obvious over the years is that 1.4 petrol is the simplest unit with the least reported engine problems.

low down, 1.4 petrol hasn't got much torque, but it does all things in a very civilised way. The official figure says 0-60 and top speed are even stevens of both 1.4 variants so I do believe (without re-map, which obviously changes the argument) diesel's turbo is a feel good factor.

As to my speed at CC :) I would say the sticky 195 section toyo had as much to do with it! Because I saw Carl catching up fast every time on the straights, he does have over 100bhp against my stock 75bhp!
 
Yo Dude!

If the mileage is low as people have said, maybe the TCO debate is a close call. So, I'd be looking for the best spec, big time! You know all the wrinkles now.

I love the speed of the 90TDI, i think mine is v. quick (much more so now with the flat bottomed TT wheel ;) ), but there are times when I hanker for the quietness of petrol.

I did drive a 1.4 when I was having the dual mass flywheel done. It needed serious encouragement to get it going, but it was quiet compared to the TDI.

I'd go for the spec that delivers the fun - OpenSky would be my pick, you already have a TDI workhorse. How cool to have a stable of A2s. Horses for courses and all that!

ATB

A
 
Thanks Humps - logical arguments, especially the tax bracket. I had guessed with your city driving that you would be one of the most best placed to answer this thread. Most appreciated.

Al,

If money where no object, then you would be bang on the money with the spec being a primary factor in any purchase. With a limited budget, (that may fall well below where we need it to be), a clean, loved, FSH model will suffice. Any extra toys can always lead to expensive repair bills too.

Thanks guys.

Darren
 
It looks like we may well be setting out sooner than we thought - this Friday actually.

I have been trying to think of A2 specific issues to look out for when viewing and have come up with the following list so far:-

1. Alu fatigue - though with an approved repair offered by Audi, not a reason in itself to turn down a perfectly good purchase.
2. Central convenience unit - check that both key fobs correctly lock and unlock the car.
3. Check the boot area for any signs of water ingress.
4. 1.6 FSI - coil packs - listen out for and experience rough running.
5. 1.6 FSI - catalytic converters seem prone to life expire - do they rattle when they are on their way out?

I am sure that there may be more, but I am suffering brain ache or old age.

Any other tips would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,

Darren
 
Darren C said:
It looks like we may well be setting out sooner than we thought - this Friday actually.

I have been trying to think of A2 specific issues to look out for when viewing and have come up with the following list so far:-

1. Alu fatigue - though with an approved repair offered by Audi, not a reason in itself to turn down a perfectly good purchase.
2. Central convenience unit - check that both key fobs correctly lock and unlock the car.
3. Check the boot area for any signs of water ingress.
4. 1.6 FSI - coil packs - listen out for and experience rough running.
5. 1.6 FSI - catalytic converters seem prone to life expire - do they rattle when they are on their way out?

I am sure that there may be more, but I am suffering brain ache or old age.

Any other tips would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,

Darren
Click to expand...

*Bump*

Any takers...
 
hi darren my secocond in line cat developed a rattle that is why i changed it. i think it may have been damaged going through a ford in the road. i think the shock of being very hot to being submerged probably cracked the internals. the other thing to check is an HPI check. my mate daren(a2bluesport) had 2 viewings of a tdi and went back with hard cash to do the deal. he pulled onto the drive way, rang the details into hpi and ....... cat d right off!!!! owner was a doctor with no knowledge of it. he was very shocked and said that explains why the low mileage in the last year and missing service history. so he turned arround and came home. good luck in your search all the best mike
 
a2sumo said:
hi darren my secocond in line cat developed a rattle that is why i changed it. i think it may have been damaged going through a ford in the road. i think the shock of being very hot to being submerged probably cracked the internals. the other thing to check is an HPI check. my mate daren(a2bluesport) had 2 viewings of a tdi and went back with hard cash to do the deal. he pulled onto the drive way, rang the details into hpi and ....... cat d right off!!!! owner was a doctor with no knowledge of it. he was very shocked and said that explains why the low mileage in the last year and missing service history. so he turned arround and came home. good luck in your search all the best mike
Click to expand...

Thanks Mike.

We are looking to go the dealer route with having the px and I will insist upon a HPI check as a matter of course.

Very much considering the FSI, (one in particular actually), so thanks for the cat info.

Reply appreciated.

Thanks.

Darren
 
Hey Chris,

Thanks for the links buddy.

Really not sure of the px value as yet - the guides vary so much - Glass/Parkers etc... Ultimately, trade in will play the biggest part. Trouble is if we find the right car, it will be difficult to walk away for the sake of a few hundred quid.

I have no intention of tempting fate, but we have our sights firmly set on a particular car. (Not wishing to tempt fate, in case it proves to be a dog, enough said).

Cheers for your input - most appreciated.

Darren
 
Congragulations Mrs C definatly made the right choice dont they look good together .....
You no it makes sense LOL !!!!
 
remember diesel is more expensive than petrol . our 1.4 does 47mpg at 90 -95 mph. i have never known a car like it. my mrs father has a newish tdi a2 but it sounded a bit too noisy for me around town but was great on long runs. petrol is better around town i would say. depends what your using it for....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top