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Why Your New Car Is Nearly Impossible to Fix (And It’s Getting Worse)
(www.carsandhorsepower.com)
this post was submitted on 13 Jun 2026
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It's unfortunate but this gets you more car per kilogram/millimeter.
That 2017 Civic probably uses more fuel than a significantly more spacious and comfier Euro wagon with a diesel engine,. My 2003 E-class could do just above 5 l/100km on the highway and had TONS of space. Like who needs a van if you have one of those. Newer ones with tighter engine bays get more space in relation to car length and also less weight for same amount of car AND get better fuel economy.
Really it's the third or fourth owner's problem when shit starts breaking at 300-400k km and you're constantly fixing it
5L = 1.32gal
100Km = 62 miles
So for US folks out there, that equates to roughly 47MPG
Diesel is great and all, but currently in the Midwest, specifically the Chicago area, GasBuddy shows "regular" 87 octane hovering around $4-4.10gal and diesel at ~$5.50/gal.
That 2017 Honda Civic achieved roughly 30mpg city/40hwy (depending on trim, engine, trans, etc) call it 35mpg averaged.
So if 35mpg costs you $4, and 47mpg costs you $5.5, then gas costs $0.114/mile and diesel costs $0.117/mile.
Now, technically speaking, diesel emits more CO2 than gasoline per gallon burned, however, because gasoline isn't as efficient per mile, diesel had a very slight advantage of being about 5% lower CO2 emissions per mile; however, it emits more NOx per mile.
https://theicct.org/sites/default/files/publications/Gas_v_Diesel_CO2_emissions_FV_20190503_1.pdf
All in all, they're pretty tied, IMO.
Yes, but don't forget, I was talking about a 2003 there. Before piezo injectors and actually efficient automatic transmissions. Newer cars, even with all the nasty emissions equipment ruining them, get better mileage.
Diesel and gasoline are priced the same where I come from, with diesel often being cheaper.
That Honda Civic would cost a bit more to run on a daily basis than a larger and heavier diesel wagon that can carry tons of cargo. Maybe about equivalent to a SUV like a 2018+ BMW X5 or similar in terms of fuel economy. Obviously much cheaper to maintain, but that was my point: For the first few owners, the overly complicated hunks of plastic are a much better balance of power, economy and refinement. 300-400k km is where they usually start breaking down bad if maintained to manufacturer spec (i.e oil changes rarely, transmission fluid change never)