Buyers may be wasting money on diesel cars

Hundreds of thousands of drivers choosing diesel new cars could be wasting money instead of saving it, according to research by Parkers.

Increases in the cost of diesel at the pump and price rises for new diesel cars are now preventing drivers from saving money by choosing diesel.

Many popular models need high six figure mileage to recoup the extra expense and some diesels always cost more than the petrol alternative at current forecourt prices.

Several years ago, the price of diesel on the forecourt was within a penny or two of unleaded. But recently the price of diesel has been significantly higher than petrol making it more difficult to save money choosing a new diesel car.

Parker's has cut through the confusion with a new calculator that shows whether diesel will save you money.

Go to www.parkers.co.uk/cars/petrol-vs-diesel/ and choose the new car you are interested in. Depending on what you have chosen, the calculator will choose a similar priced petrol or diesel alternative from the same range.

It will then tell you much of a saving the diesel is likely to make per 1000 miles, and how far the car will have to travel to recoup any premium if the diesel version is more expensive.

In a few cases the diesel will be both cheaper to buy and to run, and occasionally no diesel can be found that's cheaper to run than the petrol car selected.

On cars where there is parity between the new prices for petrol and diesel models - such as the Jaguar XF - your first tank of fuel will take you further in the diesel model so you start saving money

straight away.

 * Break even points change daily, as fuel prices fluctuate. For the latest information click here.