Petrol or Diesel

[Scottbrook]

I currently have a petrol CX5 and am satisfied with the MPG that I achieve. However my mileage is going to increase to around 18,000 per year and so I am considering changing to a diesel. This would probably be the Mazda 3 but as it is the same diesel engine as in the CX5 I was wondering what members of the forum think of the engine.

I know there have been a lot of complaints about the fuel consumption but is it  the case for all drivers or are there some owners who are actually happy with the fuel consumption.

Reading some reports on the forum it seems that my petrol CX5 is nearly as economical (38 to 45MPG) as the diesel in some cases so is it worth paying the extra? I know it will take a while to recover the extra cost but there is also the fact that there is more torque from the diesel which I like.

Thanks for any advice.

[Willpower]

Why don't you have a look through the following from our sister forum and see how the members feel about the Diesel engine. Some good, some bad, but remember that a new car would have the latest engine variant.

http://www.mazda3forums.co.uk/index.php?board=81.0

[MikeTB]

Haven't seen any real comments about the basic fact that the Petrol is 2WD only, while most seem to go for the Diesel as AWD.
Official figures show a small difference in consumption, but it may be that the second diff makes more difference at higher speeds.
I also got the optional spare wheel which adds a significant amount of extra weight, but at least will get me home.
I don't do enough mileage, so am still only just past 5,000 miles, but my AWD 175 PS (manual) is struggling to stay above 36 mpg.
Despite the hype, fuel consumption is not the best reason to buy a CX5.

[Andya]

Hi all
I'm looking at buying a cx-5 sport nav. But I am undecided whether to go diesel or petrol .
My partner will use manly but during the week it will only do short trips around 3 miles each way .But do longer weekend trips and two week holiday to France .
I have been told the diesel will keep doing regens and will be troublesome .Any advice / does anyone do similar miles ?
Or should I go petrol route .
Cheers for any advice

[xtrailman]

Petrol.

[Caldean]

My wife does pretty much the same type of journeys . We decided on petrol and she loves it. No worries about DPFS and the mpg is reasonable.  We have done nearly 5000 miles in six months and are averaging 37mpg.. The petrol CX5 is cheaper so we could afford to upgrade to the Sport Nav for the same price as the basic diesel but with lots of toys and leather.

[Willpower]

I would suggest spending a little more time on the Forum and do some reading about the various issues that have been highlighted by others.  25 minutes isn't very long to get a good overall view.

You have had two replies so far, both suggesting the Petrol route.
So, have a look around and see what are the problems and solutions offered for both variants.   

Judging by your proposed mileage profile, I too would venture to say that you would be better off with Petrol.   

[ColinX-5]

I love diesel but for your situation it has to be petrol.

[Deeps]

I've owned diesel cars now for as long as I can remember - right from the early stinky and tractor sounding jobbies up to the super smooth BMW's and finally now the CX-5 in spite of many early reservations as to it's reliability which only time alone will prove one way or the other. In short then - I'm a diesel freak and probably won't change; in this life time anyway LOL.

That said, were it not for the fact that we tow a caravan and therefore need a car with a bit of grunt and plenty of stowage space I would perhaps have been more tempted to move in the direction of petrol as my annual mileage - excluding caravan towing trips - is quite low. In your shoes, unless there is another aspect to your posted usage I would definitely go for the petrol.

Just for informational purposes - since ownership my CX-5 is now a few kilometres short of 2,000 with, to the best of my knowledge, three DPF regenerations having taken place. Unfortunately I always seem to find myself in situations where the car is stationary at lights or in very slow or stop/go moving traffic such as was the case this past weekend following an incident on the motorway. At times like this, DFP regenerations have been very noticeable and were it not for the fact of being forewarned, the awful smell that is created would have had me immediately exiting the car and opening up the bonnet to see what the problem was.

PS If you do go for the diesel then opt for the 150PS motor as the 175PS is one hell of a lump.

[Willpower]

I see the Germans still haven't quite got the knack of miniaturisation. 
 

[mw524]

I've had a number of diesel BMWs however when my circumstances changed I elected to go for the petrol CX5 when I changed motors.  I too do mainly short journeys with occasional long runs.  At the moment I'm averaging 37 mpg, my journeys incorporate quite a bit of town driving/roundabouts so there's quite a bit of accelerate/brake in the journeys, given that I'm pretty pleased with the mpg.  The drive of the sport nav is excellent, you do have to work the gearbox if you want to get the best out of the car but the ride and drive is very good.  The petrol lacks some of the torque of the diesels but this isn't really an issue for me.  Can't say I regret changing back to petrol after nearly 10 years of diesel motors.

[Scottbrook]

Petrol !!

I have had two petrol CX5 and could achieve well over 40MPG on long runs.Sometimes nearly 50MPG on 60mph roads. As has been said it lacks the torque of the diesel but can be hustled along quickly when the gears are used.

I now have a Mazda 3 fastback with the 2.2 diesel which has plenty of go, but the fuel consumption isn't as good when expressed in percentage terms of that advertised.Motorway runs can see mid 50's MPG but the DPF tends to regenerate every 200 miles (and even less less in heavy traffic) knocking the average down.

I would say that my average is probably just over 50MPG for the diesel for the last year and whilst I enjoy the engine , realistically for my needs I would have been better sticking with petrol and will return to petrol next time.