Thread: Looking to Buy D3 V8

Originally Posted by astonm

If I decide to go down the V6SE track, will I be disappointed by an otherwise fantastic vehicle powered by a thirsty slug boat anchor.

It's not thirsty, but it's underpowered for hills or towing.
It's fine as flat road transport.

My first D3 was a V6SE. Fine vehicle, but highway merging was a bit labored. Seemed to struggle to get out of it's own way. Now, I'm in the V8SE. Plenty of oomph from the skinny pedal. Fuel economy difference? Who cares! They're 6000lb dishwashers on wheels that guzzle, not sip, the petrol. I've never towed with either, so I cannot contribute much to that discussion. Best of luck!

Why not the Diesel TDV6? Fuel is now finally cheaper, & uses half as much as V8 around town, heaps of grunt and probably a little cheaper to service.....and buyers have voted with their feet with dealers struggling to move V8's.

Originally Posted by rovers1952

.. heaps of grunt...

........ you mean when remapped ?

Im on my 3rd V8, I wouldnt drive anything else and when I was first looking at the difference between the V6 and V8 there was little to no difference in the fuel economy.

You wont regret it

G

Originally Posted by Garry

...between the V6 and V8 there was little to no difference in the fuel economy.

It's interesting that engines are like that , in the same model.
We've had 5.7 Statesman and V6 Commodore and they
used the same fuel. Modern petrol injection really is good
these days. There's no reason other than buying price , to
shy away from larger engines. Under inflated tyres are a good
place to waste petrol , but few folk think of pumping them up !

Originally Posted by rovers1952

Why not the Diesel TDV6? Fuel is now finally cheaper, & uses half as much as V8 around town, heaps of grunt and probably a little cheaper to service.....and buyers have voted with their feet with dealers struggling to move V8's.

I'm not opposed to the (remapped ) diesel, If I can find one with SE spec, 25K on the clock or less, MY07 or later and close to budget..... I will certainly be keen. From what I see tho, it will cost $10K more purchase price / or interest, + Lux car tax, + extra $1K in stamp duty for increased purchase value ...... I doubt that I would recover the difference in the 3 or 4 years I will own it.

Originally Posted by Garry

Im on my 3rd V8, I wouldnt drive anything else and when I was first looking at the difference between the V6 and V8 there was little to no difference in the fuel economy.

You wont regret it

G

Thats what I am thinking .... Just have to wait for one to come up

Originally Posted by Neil P

It's interesting that engines are like that , in the same model.
We've had 5.7 Statesman and V6 Commodore and they
used the same fuel. Modern petrol injection really is good
these days. There's no reason other than buying price , to
shy away from larger engines. Under inflated tyres are a good
place to waste petrol , but few folk think of pumping them up !

My experiences too - Bigger engine spends more time operating in its efficiency zone, smaller engines labouring guzzle

I find my earlier model V8 a delight to drive. Fuel use outside of the city is anywhere from 12.7 to 18l/100km depending on if a trailer, doing 100kmh vs 120 kmh, etc. In my case, the V8 was so much less expensive than the diesel it made the choice easy (okay, I'll need to drive about 800,000 kms to burn the difference). One thing to realise is that the V8 has bigger brakes, which means bigger wheels (18" minimum, but they come with 19" wheels). Tyres are anywhere from $550 each for Pirelli Zero (road biased) to $650 each for the wonderful Goodyear MTR.