Total Cost of Vehicle Ownership: Diesel vs. Gas

Buying a car is more than just choosing a vehicle that will take you from point A to point B, wouldn’t you agree? But how do you decide on the perfect car for you? Do you go for the prestigious make and model, do you want a specific color or all the interior and exterior bells and whistles? Well, for some people, this kind of information is what their checklist includes. However, if you have owned a car before and have at least SOME notion of what to look for (and what you want from a car), then it gets much more complicated.

According to MoneySavingExpert.com, these are the questions you need to ask yourself (and things to look for in a car) before buying it:

1)  What are my essential requirements? Fuel efficiency or enough room for all the family?

2)  Do I need the car to do anything specific? This could include towing a trailer or fitting into a small space.

3)  Is it for short city drives or longer highway journeys? Does it need to be able to cruise at highway speeds without straining?

4)  Do I need a massive trunk? Consider whether you need room for things such as sports equipment or a pushchair.

5)  What’s better, diesel or gas? The fuel you want to use can make a big difference in the model you might choose.

6)  Do I want to consider an eco-friendly car? If so, a hybrid or electric car could be an option. (But first, read more about what maintenance electric vehicles need.)

You have to agree that when all of these questions start to plague your mind, the choice becomes less than easy. But, one of them seems to stand out for an increasing number of car buyers – how much the car will cost in the long run depending on whether it runs on gas or diesel seeing as one of the long-standing costs for any car certainly is in terms of fuel.

Vehicles running on diesel have a significant km/L advantage over the gas-powered ones, but have in mind that diesel fuel is nearly the same price or cheaper than regular unleaded – the average price of a liter of regular in Toronto in April 2017 was $1.16 compared to a $1.07 for diesel.

Moreover, the maintenance for diesel engines tends to bring higher costs than for gas-powered ones despite their rigid construction. Diesel engines also have a longer lifespan, but that may not account for anything in your book if you are one of those people who doesn’t like to wait for their car to be rendered unusable before replacing it with a newer model.

Diesel ones are known for their considerable torque – and better pulling power – even though gas engines lead in the horsepower department, so it’s up to you to pick what it is you are looking for. However, you have to do the math and see whether fuel savings or high resale value will make up for the premium paid for the vehicle with a diesel engine. Since the price of both diesel fuel and gasoline tend to fluctuate, it sure would be handy to have all the specifics to consider AT THE MOMENT OF BUYING A CAR:

According to Vincentric, “the diesel vehicle had a higher market price than its gasoline alternative, which causes several cost factors to increase. However, only nearly 40% of diesel vehicles showed cost-effectiveness due to better fuel economy”.

In their study, Vincentric used 8 factors to measure costs:

1)  Depreciation

2)  Fees and taxes

3)  Fuel

4)  Insurance

5)  Vehicle maintenance

6)  Opportunity costs

7)  Repair costs,

8)  Assumed ownership of 5 years and 25.000 annual kilometers.

They categorized the vehicles by type into:

1)  Passenger cars (4 diesels)

2)  Pickups (220 diesels)

3)  SUVs, crossovers and vans (56 diesels).

The results were as follows:

1) All 4 of the diesel passenger cars that were analyzed offered lower costs of ownership than their closest gas-powered versions

2) 33% of the analyzed diesel pickup trucks proved to be more cost effective – 72 vehicles

3) 62% of diesel SUV/crossover/van vehicles offered lower total cost of ownership – 35 vehicles.

“It appears that in the near term diesels are going to occupy a smaller share of the market and remain a feature that is more accepted on vans and trucks,” said David Wurster, Vincentric President.

So, you could regain the diesel vehicle premium within a few years (depending on the economy), but that hardly means that diesel cars you should choose your next car on this criterion alone. Remember, there are others you should consider, such as whether you will be making regular, long-term journeys where you will achieve the best km/L ratio or you just need a car to drive around town.

Ultimately, the choice between a diesel and a gas car is yours to make depending on your needs and preferences, but generally speaking diesel vehicles have a lower total cost of ownership than gas-powered ones.

In any case, you are always welcome to visit our Cambridge, ON dealership to see what used luxury vehicles we have to offer, as well as let us maintain your vehicle at our Hamilton locations. Schedule an appointment or just drop by – we are expecting you!

We are located only 4 min walking South West of Tim Hortons Field and 4 min walk West of Bernie Morelli Recreation Centre.