1.6 Drive R-Design

Enjoyable but not the Eco car as promised.

First the bad.
I bought the Drive on the basis of excellent fuel economy, to try and reduce my running costs on my 50mile commute. It dissapointed in this respect. Over the 3 years I had it, 52mpg was the average, a far cry from the 70+ promised at the dealership. Add to this my partners car, an Alfa Mito 1.6 with DNA returning the same mpg over the same roads and period, but in a much sportier manner I was left a little deflated to say the least.
Pulling away at junctions/roundabouts became a little frustrating as the power just was not there. Often the car would feel as if it had lost power and I would have to blip the clutch to get the engine revs up.
Service costs are high and the replacement of the DPF at £1000+ was the deciding factor in trading the car in.
EGR was replaced under warrenty. Helped with the lack of power when pulling away, but soon went back to the way it was.
Low rolling resistance tyres were r****** in the wet. Replaced them with "normal" tyres and the MPG went from 51-52 mpg!
Nose is very low and easy to sc***e on drives/curbs.

And now the good.
It was a very quiet car and extremely comfortable. It is a very good looking car and extremely solid. My daughter was not embaressed on being dropped off at school! As a daily commuting car it was extremely good, not being too big but giving a good drive and spacious cabin.

It sounds like I did not like the car, but I really loved it, so I have bought another one, but a petrol this time.

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