Anything that will save us some money is a good thing right now isn’t it?
And driving a Hummer ain’t one of them!
Whatever type of car you need, choosing the right make and model could save you loads of money in tax and fuel costs.
So whether you need a little car for rushing around town number or a whacking great 4×4, here are the top 10 most fuel-efficient cars:
1. Small Runaround
Volkswagen Polo 1.4 TDI (80PS) with DPF BLUEMOTION
Price: £12,965
Verdict: Polos have a classy image, and because it is exempt from vehicle excise duty (VED) it is one of the cheapest cars to run. But be warned, What Car? says: “The ancient engines are noisy and gutless, prices are high and the drive is uninspiring.”
Co2 emissions: 99 g/km
Tax band/cost: A/ £0
Average petrol costs: £830 per 12,000 miles (the average distance travelled each year)
2. Small family
Ford Focus 1.6 Duratorq TDCi
Price: £16,345
Verdict: The Ford Focus is one of Britain’s most popular cars; smart, spacious and good value for money.
Co2 emissions: 114 g/km
Tax band/cost: B/ £35
Average petrol costs: £772 per 12,000 miles
3. Family hatchback
Renault New Laguna Hatch dCi 110 with 16 inch wheels
Price: £17,400
Verdict: The Laguna is one of the safest family cars around and, according to the AA, “feels remarkably lively and feisty for something so small.” There’s not a lot of room in the back though.
Co2 emissions: 130 g/km
Tax band/cost: C/ £120
Average petrol costs: £1,065 per 12,000 miles
4. Estate
Skoda New Fabia Estate 1.4 TDI PD 80PS Green-Line with DPF
Price: £12,145
Verdict: Gone are the days of laughing at Skodas (‘What do you call a convertible Skoda? A skip’ etc). According to What Car? “The Fabia Estate is neat and tidy to drive with a surprising amount of luggage space.” And with no VED to pay, it is one of the greenest and cheapest estate cars to run .
Co2 emissions: 99g/km
Tax band/cost: A/ £0
Average petrol costs: £1,004 per 12,000 miles
5. Coupe
BMW 1 Series E81/E82/E87/E88 120d Coupé – with particle filter
Price: £21,000
Verdict: If you can afford to spend this much on a car, road tax and petrol costs may not be high on your list of priorities; but if you want something sporty and (relatively) environmentally friendly, this is a good choice.
Co2 emissions: 128 g/km
Tax band/cost: C/ £120
Average petrol costs: £1,047 per 12,000 miles
6. Open-top
Vauxhall Tigra MY2008 2 Door Convertible 1.3CDTi 16v
Price: £14,000
Verdict: A great city car with an easy to use roof – although critics say it is not as swift as the 1.4 version.
Co2 emissions: 124 g/km
Tax band/cost: C/ £120
Average petrol costs: £1,004 per 12,000 miles
7. Compact 4×4
Suzuki SX4 1.6 GLX Hatchback
Price: £10,999
Verdict: A cheap and economical four wheel drive, but has a small boot.
Co2 emissions: 139 g/km
Tax band/cost: C/ £120
Average petrol costs: £1,157 per 12,000 miles
8. Large 4X4
Hyundai Santa Fe 2.2l CRTD
Price: £21,995
Verdict: “Large 4×4” and “cheap” are not often spoken in the same sentence, but the Hyundai Santa Fe is the cheapest of its kind to run. With the Government determined to crack down on 4×4 drivers, drivers currently pay £210 in VED; and this will only get higher.
Co2 emissions: 191 g/km
Tax band/cost: F/ £210
Average petrol costs: £1,573 per 12,000 miles
9. Hybrid
Toyota Prius 1.5 VVT-i Hybrid
Price: £20,832
Verdict: Expensive for a hatchback, but according to What Car? the hybrid car is “A super-clean alternative to mainstream family hatches that demands few compromises to own. Spacious, fine-riding and cheap to run.”
Co2 emissions: 104 g/km
Tax band/cost: B/ £15
Average petrol costs: £880 per 12,000 miles
10. Electric
G Whiz
Price: Approx: £9,000
Verdict: Even Jeremy Clarkson was not impressed saying “Even if I were a committed environmentalist I would not buy this car. It is too small, too dangerous and I’m sorry but it runs on juice from a power station, hardly a flower in the big green scheme of things.” G Whiz review in full
Co2 emissions: Equivalent of 63g/km if charged from fossil-fuel source
Tax band/cost: A/ £0
Average petrol costs: N/A. Range of up to 40 miles
Any other money saving cars we might have missed?
Why not let us know in the comments below?
Buy Your Car can help you get a new or used car.
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August 18th, 2008 at 3:14 pm
Don’t laugh but my KA is great. OK it’s only a 1.3 but the tank can be filled for just under £30 and that gets me 250 miles worth of motoring. the boot is roomy and the back seats can take 2 passengers with ease. The lumbar support is good so for long journeys you don’t think your legs have been cut off. It’s cheap to insure too. People who have laughed at this car soon change their minds once they have been a passenger in one or driven one themselves. Oh yeah, my model is really basic, I’ve windy-down windows and no central locking but hey with only 2 doors I think I can remember to lock each side when I get out. Less gadgetry = less stuff to go wrong. The ‘air con’ is good too – you just open a window or put on the fan!
August 18th, 2008 at 4:09 pm
I am not promoting BMW, even though I do own one.. in fact a 520D which is why I am aware of this article…so before you are all blinded by the theory that a Prius is really economical… if you do any driving out of town at all, then read more…
http://www.autobloggreen.com/2008/03/17/toyota-prius-is-a-gas-guzzler-compared-to-the-bmw-520d/
BMW 520d with a 2.0L, 177 hp four cylinder diesel
> zero to 60 mph in 8.3 seconds
> 41.9 mpg real world driving conditions
Toyota Prius
> zero to 60 mph in 11 seconds
> 40 mpg in real world driving conditions
August 18th, 2008 at 5:43 pm
You missed out 3 very cheap forms of transport.
Cheap: The smart car: only seats 2 but only cost £35 per year to tax and possible 50-70 mpg.
Cheaper: Reliant robin: Seats 2-4, costs £0-35 per year to tax depending on the age of the Trike!
Cheapest: Scooter, how many of you use our car just to get one person to work? Scooters cost £5-£10 per week to fill, £15-£35 per year to tax. And £100-£300 per year to insure depending on what size engine you ride.
August 18th, 2008 at 7:08 pm
I’m going to make the case for my car – Citroen C4 VTR+ – 1.6 16V turbo diesel with 6-speed flappy paddle gearbox, 110bhp, 58 to the gallon (yes!!!) and only £35 a year road tax. And as for performance – 0-60 in 10.6 secs and top speed of 121mph. Beat that Toyota Pious!!
August 18th, 2008 at 7:16 pm
never mind cars – what about bicycles and horse-drawn vehicles? And Shanks’ pony? All we need are some bike racks and hitching poles outside the shops and offices, and plenty of time.
August 18th, 2008 at 7:38 pm
Sue, do you have any idea of the carbon footprint of keeping a horse! If we all kept horses the planet would burn up much quicker.
August 18th, 2008 at 8:38 pm
My car is in the list, but feel compelled to defend it as alot of press and public shoot it down, yes the Prius!!. People say they only get 40mpg maybe they do. We have owned ours for two and a half years. It is the best car we have owned. Its size is equivalant to a Primera, Mondeo or Vectra. We very rarely get less than 55mpg. 60mpg is the norm. Holiday in France last year full of luggage and it was returning 70mpg on the motorways. My wife is the main driver and does 50 miles a day to work and back. £15 per year road tax, bargain, servicing is the same price as any other car we have had. We are both in our 30′s not fuddy duddy’s. Drive it like its designed to be driven and it rewards you hannsomely, Oh, and depriciation market value is only £2000 less than when we purchased it. You wont get that with your BMW or VTR!!!!. Do the right thing. They are thye car in front
August 19th, 2008 at 8:09 am
Why not buy yourself an old classic car, think about it, you won’t be damaging the environment in the same way as scrapping one car to buy a new one.
As for the costs, lets say you buy a low mileage immaculate FSH Jaguar or Daimler XJ40 3.2 for a realistic £2000.
Servicing over 3 yrs by a specialist say £300 per year.
Road Tax £210 per year
Insurance £260 fully comp
As the XJ40 has now bottomed out with regards to values we can ignore depreciation so apart from petrol the car has cost us say £2500 for 3yrs motoring.
Of course someone will say what about the fuel consumption well you can see 27-32mpg from a 3.2, spend £2k on a LPG kit and this effectively doubles the mpg.
Parts are readily available, these cars were built to last not thrown away after 5 yrs.
Makes sense, Ive bought one, a 1994 4.0S which is in superb condition and even at 22-27mpg the savings far outweigh the losses on my 57 plate Dodge Caliber that has lost £9k in depreciation over the last 9months.
August 19th, 2008 at 10:40 am
I think all cars need a minumum of 6 gears especially if you are driving the motorways at any time.When you are driving with a 5 speed you are using a lot more fuel especially when you are doing above 60 mile / hr.So for the companies and government I think you should for the carbon footprint get rid of all cars that have 5 speed and offer 6 speeds and very good ratio gear box ,that way not only the co2 level will drop because of not sitting on as much rpm .It will also mean that the fossil fuels stay in the ground a little bit longer but it will save the consumer a lot of money on fuel
August 19th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
why would any1 need 6 gears on a motorway – be lucky if you could get into 4th before ya brake again because of trafic in front .
best way is for highways NOT to let lorries come out of first lane on any motorway or dual carrage way . this leaving other 2 lanes for cars + bikes + vans . it works on A42
OR better still -
vote in a new goverment – a goverment that will look after us real brit’s .stop charging what ever price they like and give the people what we want for a change .
BP – this is our petrol – we pay stupid prices for it- yet sell it over seas for pennies – where is the sence in that .
August 19th, 2008 at 9:35 pm
I drive a Porsche Boxster 2.7 she does 30 to the gallon, servicing is only £200 per year and £500 every 25,00 miles. Its smooth to drive and no one can mess you around for long! She is bright red,ladies love it and the wife loves to pose next to me until I go over 30 MPH!
Leather seats and electric hood, never breaks down. There is only one fault and thats parking, you just cant park her next to another vehicle, you know Jealouy!
OOOOH! but I like you!
August 20th, 2008 at 8:16 am
cant beat the subaru impreza
August 20th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
This list is a bit of a nonsense, as other posters have pointed out running a car is not simply about the petrol costs but rather the total cost of ownership.
Buying an older car that does not have quite as good fuel economy, but costs less, and is less likely to depreciate is a much more cost effective route to cheap motoring.
In fact, if I was writing a list of ‘The 10 cheapest cars you can run’ I would suggest that I would not be recommending a single brand new car on it. Driving a car off the forecourt is one of the least economic things you can do.
August 20th, 2008 at 4:17 pm
Johnny – Your wife loves your car because its A GIRLS CAR! I was impressed when you said Porsche but then ‘boxster’ and my estimations dropped sharply. I agree with Condra – I would have a Suby over a boxster anyday. Anyway, I digress…. neither of these cars can nearly be called ‘economical’ which is the subject here….
August 20th, 2008 at 7:18 pm
I concure with Paul G, the Citroen HDI diesel engine is the most economical, I have the 1400cc in a C3, its a 92BHP turbo charged 16 valve engine, returning a respectable 65 MP (thats better than the Honda Hybrid), only £35 road tax for the year, and if te new car tax laws come in its ZERO road tax, oh and it will do 120mph no problem
August 20th, 2008 at 9:30 pm
I’ve 2 LPG CARS with ZERO EMISSIONS when on LPG (which is ALWAYS since LPG costs 44.5p / litre).But my niggle is that I pay over the odds on vehicle tax because the cars are older than 2003 -so I get penalised for going ‘green’!
We have a government seemingly incapable of understanding that everyone who helps them reduce carbon emissions should be treated the same and any vehicle with zero emmissions should be rewarded with zero tax regardless of age of vehicle
August 23rd, 2008 at 8:25 pm
I have been running a 3.5 ton van 28 mpg as a company vehicle, we tried adding a small van to the fleet a vauxhall doing 56 mpg for the times when the larger capacity is not needed. however the road fund licence, insurance and servicing costs have meant that we have had to scrap the idea as these costs mean that it is more expensive to run a cheap runabout. If VED was abolished altogether we would be able to choose to use a small vehicle when only one or two people and no luggage or a family size car when we had the family. May I add that the most economical car that we have owned was a Mondeo estate giving 65 mpg, My daughter had a Renault 21 at the same time that was better on fuel
October 24th, 2008 at 7:18 am
I drive a Nissan Qashqai 1.5dci which returns 55mpg around town and 65-70 when on a clear run doing 70mph (ish). Recently the guys in the tech centre at Nissan took one of these cars and drove from Lands End to John O’Groats on a single tank of Fuel. (see link)
http://articles.directorym.net/Nissan_QASHQAI_Travels_Length_of_UK_on_a_Tank_of_Fuel-a877734.html
the claim that one type of engine is better than another is a little misleading to say the least!
The engine is always tweaked specifically for each car by changing the setup from the engine management system to the ratios in the gear box.
There are also many tricks that the manufacturers use to reduce the figure for Co2 so don’t think that the 1.4 VW unit is as “clean” as you think!
The cheapness of a car to run should never be quoted against the cost of fuel as insurance, servicing, repairs and future value are always patr of the complex equation.
January 12th, 2009 at 1:45 pm
Iv got a MINI Cooper D that does 72mpg officially and i genuinlly get in excess of 65mpg real world driving. 1.6 engine also has 110bhp, looks cool, and is fun to drive and £35 road tax. VW Polo Bluemotion is very slow, dull to drive and looks rubbish. The MINI shows that you can have a low emmision car that delivers ALL THE BENEFITS of the standard petrol models – there is no compromise.
January 12th, 2009 at 3:43 pm
What am I missing here?
A VW Polo emits only 99gm/Km of CO2 and fuel for 12000 miles costs £830
A Ford Focus emits 114gm/Km of CO2 but fuel for 12000 miles costs £772
Similarly
A Skoda Fabia emits 99gm/Km of CO2 and fuel for 12000 miles costs £1004
A Vauxhall Tigra emits 124gm/Km of CO2 and fuel for 12000 miles costs£1004
As they are all Diesels the cost of fuel should be the same so the differance in fuel cost should equate to fuel consumption.
1.So if a Polo emits 13% less CO2 than a Focus from 7% more fuel what happens to the rest of the carbon in the fuel? Does it come out in other more harmful emissions, such as soot or unburnt fuel?
2. Similarly if a Fabia emits 20% less CO2 than a Tigra why does it burn exactly the same fuel
3. Also if the Polo and Fabia have the same engine (as it seems from the figures) but the Fabia uses £174 more fuel why does it emit exactly the same CO2.
Maybe the CO2 test is static so the extra fuel doesn’t show up or maybe the VW/Skoda engineers are better at tuning the engine to get lower CO2 ratings in the tests.
First with all three correct answers should get a free Polo (mint that is, not car -emissions are only minty breath which won’t destroy the planet)
January 12th, 2009 at 4:15 pm
hmm hasn’t the ‘nice’ skoda got the same 14.TD lump as the ‘crap’ Polo (both made by VW). funny old thing reviews
, can see others have noticed this too.
I have an 8 yr old car, is 119kg , £35 a year and 60 mpg with normal (not pussy footed) driving. why aren’t cars evolving faster?
its an Astra 1.7DTI eco4
, yes 1.7! , I notice the new 1.3 Corsa has higher emmissions!!
ho hum
April 28th, 2010 at 12:14 pm
I still believe [b]Volkswagen[/b] is relyable and affordable. I’ve owned VW for more than 15 years by now.
cheers