Is a diesel MINI suitable for short journeys?

What is life like with your car? Let us know and win £500 in John Lewis vouchers | No thanks

Is a diesel MINI suitable for short journeys?

The first car I owned was an early Mini (about a year after they were first introduced), which I loved. Now, at the age of 82, I want to return to a Mini and fancy the MINI Cooper D because of its low CO2 emissions. My son-in-law and grandson, who know about these things, reckons its not the model for me because most of my motoring is on short journeys (5/7 miles up to 30 miles) when the engine will hardly have warmed up properly. What would you advise?

Asked on 14 July 2012 by BF, Long Melford

Answered by Honest John

They are correct. A diesel would be the wrong choice. You could go for a Volkswagen Up! as they are good fun to drive or, a bit bigger but huge fun, a Mazda 2 1.3TS2. Or a FIAT 500 TwinAir, a Suzuki Swift or, indeed, a petrol-engined MINI.

Tags: short journeys petrol or diesel?

Similar questions

I don't drive long distances but I do a lot of miles. Should I avoid diesel?

I currently have a 2015 Dacia Sandero Stepway 1.5 diesel. I'm looking to change it this year. I don't drive long enough distances to warrant the diesel, but I do cover a lot of miles each year. The salesperson...

Can you recommend a good diesel car for motorway journeys?

I’m considering changing our 2009 Ford Focus 1.8, which is still running well with 70,000 miles on the clock. It’s used as the second family car mainly for local journeys of 15 to 20 miles but we also...

We only do trips of 10 miles at a time - should we avoid buying a diesel car?

Our 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee is tired and we fancy a Mercedes-Benz ML-Class 3.0. We're wary of diesels because we only do trips of about 10 miles. Should we be wary? If so, what's a good petrol alternative?

Related models