Help! Aygo Commuters...80 Miles Per Day...

[rocknroll]

Hi all, I'm looking for some advice...

I drive a Honda Civic Sport 54-plate. Love the car, but I'm having to travel around 80 miles five days per week, mostly on dual-carriageway, for work.

It is costing me a lot of cash - as I'm sure everyone understands - on fuel, so I've considered downsizing big time. Looked at a Toyota Aygo, as they are mean to be one of this most economical...it isn't a great looking car, but due to finances I couldn't care less...

However, I have since been told dropping to a one-litre but travelling on the motorway each day will not necessarily save me money in fuel.

My question is, for the car-experts, would my civic be doing better MPG in these circumstances, or would I get more out of the one litre Aygo?

I've also heard there are a lot of teething problems, water leakages and stuff with the Aygo - what is everyone's opinion?

I'm looking at Aygo Blue 2009 1 litre, 3dr

Clueless, cheers.

[Jan van de Wouw]

Before anything else: what mileage do you get from you Honda?

[rocknroll]

I'm really crap at this...sorry..

I get just under 300 miles to every tank. Honda Civic Sport 1.6.

Not sure how to work out the gallons..

[kevin65]

I'm really crap at this...sorry..

I get just under 300 miles to every tank. Honda Civic Sport 1.6.

Not sure how to work out the gallons..

If you know how much it costs to fill the tank and the cost petrol at the time you fill it, you can work it out. Or check the owners manual for the tank capacity.

[MartyB]

For 300 Miles I pay £30 so if your costing more to fill up than £30 then you'll save money :-)

[Jan&tone]

Welcome to TOC

First of all, easy to work out your mileage, tank contains 10 gallons? Divide by mileage 200 per half tank = 40 mpg, 150 per half tank = 30 mpg

I invariably use our Aygo to work twice a week 20 miles each way on country lanes 3rd/4th gear all the way and I get 48 to 50mpg.

We have used it on the M25 and m20 and m3, but the Aygo, although capable, is a city/country lane sort of car, not a long legged motorway greyhound.

Having said that, it is cheap and cheerful, 20 quid a year rfl, group 1 insurance and 50 mpg. Keep to 60mph on a motorway (if you can get that fast in the rush hour) and you will get the economy, 60mpg should be obtainable if you are gentle.

Leaks? Apparently some do, but there are many more that don't (mine hasn't yet )

Have a look at one, have a test drive. The mmt version is as economical as the manual and has the same emissions unlike other automatic cars and i like the mmt box - i use it as a manual, the wife uses the auto bit....

Hope this helped a bit....

[rocknroll]

Thanks all very much, it has been a great help.

I do drive the Civic too fast...but I suppose, if I drive both around 60mph then the Aygo is still going to save me money.

To tell you the truth, I have an Aygo Blue 2009, which has done 11,000 miles set to test drive tomorrow, but once I mentioned it to a friend, they said it might not be a great idea.

But it sounds like it is going to save me a few pounds.

Cheers

[Jan&tone]

Read the 'new member - need some Aygo info' tthread, lots of info on there....

[kav]

Thanks all very much, it has been a great help.

I do drive the Civic too fast...but I suppose, if I drive both around 60mph then the Aygo is still going to save me money.

To tell you the truth, I have an Aygo Blue 2009, which has done 11,000 miles set to test drive tomorrow, but once I mentioned it to a friend, they said it might not be a great idea.

But it sounds like it is going to save me a few pounds.

Cheers

it's going to save you a lot of pounds.

take the test + check Aygo's service/warranty book.

welcome !

[Unklian]

Hi Rocknroll

After years of large cars, I bought an Aygo.

It WILL save you money.

Dual carriageways are the best places for an Aygo.

Get it in top gear and adjust to driving a little slower,

you should average mid to high 50s mpg.

If you insist on 70 - 80 mph, the Aygo is past it's ideal

and mpg will suffer.

Add in the insurance savings and £20.00 road tax, you should be much better off.

Yes, there are a few Aygos with problems but not huge numbers.

Remember, most people come to Forums when they are having problems.

Not many arrive just to say "My Aygo is great".

Main criticisms that appear......

Water pump, check to see if it has been replaced or is leaking.

Water Pump

Door seals. Does it smell damp?

Clutch. Does it have any difficulty engaging 1st & 2nd gear?

Other than those 3 items, you should be fine.

Ian.

[dwilson]

Hi

I drove an Aygo Blue yesterday as a loan car whilst my cars were serviced.

I was very impressed, pleasantly surprised (thought with 3 cylinders it would be unpleasant and noisy) and looking at the running costs, with retirement on a few years, I think I will buy one in the future as a second car that will cost little to run. My wife was also impressed and is talking of selling her Auris to our daughter and having the Aygo. I would prefer something larger for motorway driving but the Aygo seems great for everything else.

Not sure what to replace my Prius with in the future though.

David

[Jan&tone]

Not sure what to replace my Prius with in the future though.

David

David, I'm gonna be in the same boat in 2 or 3 years time....

Do I keep the Prius and dump the wife's Aygo, do I keep the Aygo and dump the Prius ....

decisions, decisions....

Having said that, if Mr T is going to put removable Satnavs in all of his cars then time may come when Mr T and I part company.... too risky imo to have removable satnavs, the scroats will break in just in case you've left them under the seat or in the glovebox!

[MartyB]

I dont know why people leep calling the Aygo a small car. Its just cars ghese days have got bigger. Parked next to an old Fiesta the Aygo is the same size.

If your going to be heavy footed then I wouldn't bother with the Aygo as no doubt it will burn fuel if you drive it like that as you would hammer it keeping up with traffic. Let us know what u think of the test drive :-)

I tend to drive down country lanes and dual carriage ways at the legal limit although I do accelerate gently and get 55mpg, its improving all the time.

[benwiddowson]

I sold a fabia tsi since my commute has now increased to 50 miles a day. The aygo is great for me. It's not just cheap to run but three years servicing saves a bucket load of cash as well. I've gone from 30mpg to well over 60 its easy to park as well

[gordonh]

Not sure what to replace my Prius with in the future though.

David

David, I'm gonna be in the same boat in 2 or 3 years time....

Do I keep the Prius and dump the wife's Aygo, do I keep the Aygo and dump the Prius ....

decisions, decisions....

I've been having a similar conversation with my parents (one retired the other retires next year), currently they have a Mitsubishi Colt and a Mitsubishi ASX. They keep thinking of going down to one car but they like to drive to France on holidays so need a bigger car, but big cars can be expensive for everyday use. Best idea is to keep the larger car and then pick up a second hand Aygo/C1/107 as a general runabout as they are so cheap to run and keep.

Although I think 'retirement cars' are going to get massive competition from the new Vauxhalls in the future with their 100k miles warranty. If you just use a car for shooping etc it could take a very long time to do those miles (with my current car usage it would last 33 years for me).

[harrypotter:)]

Hi ist of all i will say this you will notice a differance in noise and think to yourself did i do the right thing in changing? well the answer is yes i got rid of my avensis which cost me just in juice £210 per month aygo = £152 avensis tax £200+ aygo £20 insurance avensis £380 aygo £190 serviceing costs slashed by half so theres your answer if you dont mind down gradeing slightly you will have more in your wallet in the long run and with the prices of everything now all i look in a car is getting me a-b dont care about looks, body kits, gizmo,s just more wages at the end of thr month in my bank and with the problems being brought up with with the aygo well nothing on mine yet (2008)

[dwilson]

Thanks all very much, it has been a great help.

I do drive the Civic too fast...but I suppose, if I drive both around 60mph then the Aygo is still going to save me money.

To tell you the truth, I have an Aygo Blue 2009, which has done 11,000 miles set to test drive tomorrow, but once I mentioned it to a friend, they said it might not be a great idea.

But it sounds like it is going to save me a few pounds.

Cheers

Hi - have you had your test drive? What did you think?

It will save you money that's for sure

The boot is small - would that be a problem?

David

[dwilson]

David, I'm gonna be in the same boat in 2 or 3 years time....

Do I keep the Prius and dump the wife's Aygo, do I keep the Aygo and dump the Prius ....

decisions, decisions....

Having said that, if Mr T is going to put removable Satnavs in all of his cars then time may come when Mr T and I part company.... too risky imo to have removable satnavs, the scroats will break in just in case you've left them under the seat or in the glovebox!

Yes, I will probably retire in 3 years time and it would be cheapest to go to one car then but I do like cars (but they need to be reliable) and what suits me would not necessarily suit my wife. Having driven the Aygo and looked at the low cost of ownership I will definitely buy one in the near future (especially if my daughter decide she wants the Auris)and my wife likes the Aygo too.

In the meantime the Auris and Prius have just had a full service and will be fine for now!

BTW - I agree about these portable sat navs, not a secure idea.

David

[MartyB]

Have you read the small print of the Vauxhall deal?????? Complete con.....

[AYGOgummy]

I do 60 miles on the motorway per day (sometimes 90) and it's absolutely fine. Mega cheap to run and great fun too :)

[Cyker]

I might be a bit late to this party, but have you considered a diesel Yaris?

On long distance journeys, they have the highest mpg of any car here; When I was doing loads of airport runs (Ah the curse of being the 'friend with the driving license'!), I'd gotten over 700 miles out of the tank which even the Prius would have trouble matching.

At the moment, doing mostly urban driving with the occasional shot of motorway runs, I'm getting between 550-600miles out of it per tank (On average I'm sticking in 35-38 litres of fuel each time).

They're also more comfy and have a lot more pull than an Aygo, 'tho I must admit not as fun to chuck round corners

(If only Toyota had put their 1.4 D4D into the diesel Aygo instead of the stupid Peugeot one!)

[mbellinger]

The biggest problem with the diesel Yaris is the ludicrous price difference compared to the petrol version, meaning that you have to cover about 25,000 miles a year to ever get back the extra cost in reduced fuel bills. Other than that, it is a fine little car.

Remember the Aygo was designed primarily as an urban runabout. It excels at this, and yes, whilst it is perfectly capable of going on the motorway and doing longer journeys, it was not designed with that in mind. Thus on a motorway it can be quite wearing with lots of engine, and especially road noise. The Aygo is also very badly affected by lorry draughts - a consequence of its very light weight. You will also find that taking the cruising speed above 70mph has a drastic negative effect on fuel economy. If you choose to cruise at 80, which the car is perfectly comfortable doing, then you may as well get a bigger more comfortable car as the Aygo's fuel consumption will then struggle to make 40mpg.

On the other hand, if you commute is mainly traffic queues and a bit of fast A and B road work, the Aygo will be in its element, and you will see an easy 50-55mpg, possibly more dependent on your driving style.

Although I have not been on this board for that long, it is already evident to me that there are a great many folk on here who look at their Aygo's with very heavily rose tinted spectacles on. I do not - I am a realist. It is a great little car, and huge fun to drive - at what it was designed to do.

If you want to do other things or if your driving requires a lot of motorway work, there are other cars out there that will be much better suited, and will still achieve a significant reduction in your running costs.

[Unklian]

Although I have not been on this board for that long, it is already evident to me that there are a great many folk on here who look at their Aygo's with very heavily rose tinted spectacles on. I do not - I am a realist. It is a great little car, and huge fun to drive - at what it was designed to do.

If you want to do other things or if your driving requires a lot of motorway work, there are other cars out there that will be much better suited, and will still achieve a significant reduction in your running costs.

I agree with that.

My brother in law has a Passat 2 litre Diesel.

If we were both to drive 300 miles on the motorway at a constant 70mph,

I'm sure his would be as economical as my Aygo.

Commuting in rush hour traffic, mine beats his hands down.

Horses for courses!

My Aygo is a great little commuting car.

Long trips on the motorway are fine if you remember WHY you bought it in the first place.

Driving from Brittany to Bruges last year, 485 miles,

by sitting at a boring 65mph, we managed over 60mpg.

Round town, driven normally, about 53mpg is what I expect.

Ian.

[AYGOgummy]

The biggest problem with the diesel Yaris is the ludicrous price difference compared to the petrol version, meaning that you have to cover about 25,000 miles a year to ever get back the extra cost in reduced fuel bills. Other than that, it is a fine little car.

Remember the Aygo was designed primarily as an urban runabout. It excels at this, and yes, whilst it is perfectly capable of going on the motorway and doing longer journeys, it was not designed with that in mind. Thus on a motorway it can be quite wearing with lots of engine, and especially road noise. The Aygo is also very badly affected by lorry draughts - a consequence of its very light weight. You will also find that taking the cruising speed above 70mph has a drastic negative effect on fuel economy. If you choose to cruise at 80, which the car is perfectly comfortable doing, then you may as well get a bigger more comfortable car as the Aygo's fuel consumption will then struggle to make 40mpg.

On the other hand, if you commute is mainly traffic queues and a bit of fast A and B road work, the Aygo will be in its element, and you will see an easy 50-55mpg, possibly more dependent on your driving style.

Although I have not been on this board for that long, it is already evident to me that there are a great many folk on here who look at their Aygo's with very heavily rose tinted spectacles on. I do not - I am a realist. It is a great little car, and huge fun to drive - at what it was designed to do.

If you want to do other things or if your driving requires a lot of motorway work, there are other cars out there that will be much better suited, and will still achieve a significant reduction in your running costs.

My Aygo copes admirably on the motorway every day for my commute to uni, and absolutely doesn't get tiring in any way whatsoever. It's equally as much fun on the motorway as it is driving around town. Some people (as you find with any car) aren't what you'd call "happy" with the car, but really, there are more positives to the Aygo than negatives. We're NOT looking at the Aygo with rose-tinted specs, we just happen to be very happy with our cars. Also, you'll have negative effects on fuel consumption above 70mph in ANY car - this isn't exclusive to the Aygo.

[Cyker]

It's a pity you can't get the 1.3L Aygo any more; That would have a nicer time on the motorway vs. the 1.0 I reckon.

With the Yaris, the 1.0 version can go on the motorway okay but the extra pull of the 1.3 and diesel versions makes it a lot more pleasant. They got the setup dead-on on the diesel one; It kisses 2000rpm at 60mph which is the D4D's most efficient speed, and the turbo is just gently spinning at that speed too so if I want to overtake I can just floor it and suddenly I'm at 70 :D

If they'd used the D4D in my Yaris instead of that PoS Peugeot diesel in the short-lived diesel Aygo I reckon you could get 90mpg on motorway runs out of that car easily! :D