Toyota Corolla or Ford Focus?

Hi, I am trying to decide between a 2006 Toyota Corolla Hatchback 1.4 diesel or a 2007 Ford Focus 1.6 diesel. I do approx 250 miles per week; would there be much difference in the running costs?

Kieran Madigan

Jan 2015 Filed under: running costs

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Expert answer

Hi Kieran,

Not massive. There's a tiny 1mpg gap between them in terms of fuel economy (the Toyota gets 59mpg, the Ford 60mpg), but in everyday driving , they'll probably work out pretty much the same.

Overall, the Toyota will probably be slightly more reliable, and the Ford slightly cheaper to service and repair if anything does go wrong. The Toyota will probably be a little cheaper to insure too, and its road tax will be slightly lower.

On balance then, the Toyota is likely to be fractionally cheaper to run, but there's precious little in it.

Neil Briscoe - Complete Car Adviser
@neilmbriscoe