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[Andy B]

...
The other thing people forget is how much money this forum saves you. Other car clubs seriously will not save you the same.
 .....

Indeed. The standard answer for most requests for help on the Merc forum is ...... ''get your car on Star (MB's Tech II) and get the codes read.''

[jonny2112]

Everyone at sometime thinks of getting rid of their Omega to replace it with something else, perhaps more economical. .
My questions have been though..
How much am I going to be paying out for this new car?
Will I have the space I have now?
Comfort level & safety?

In my view by spending out £1000 on my own car (which I will be doing rather soon) I have a car that ticks all my boxes. What better car can you get for that money?
The other thing people forget is how much money this forum saves you. Other car clubs seriously will not save you the same.
As for LPG I think it's essential.

Yes, can't argue with any of that. My sentiments exactly.

[Kevin Wood]

Yep. Fuel costs might be high on an Omega, but the hidden costs of maintaining the car are pretty minimal in comparison to other cars that might look more attractive on the fuel front.

We have some excellent parts suppliers here on OOF, so parts costs are about as low as they're going to be for any car.
Omegas are pretty solid on the whole, so little need for them anyway.
Dealer level diagnostics is available cheap and, as a bonus, we know how to interpret it!
The level of help and advice available here is second to none.
You don't have to tie up your life savings in a fast-depreciating car to drive something decent. (look what it'd cost to by a decent modern diesel with Omega comfort and performance and tell me that's worth saving a few MPG).

If you're just looking at the numbers on the petrol pump you're not looking at the whole picture.

.. and as for LPG, There are always nay-sayers. I remember when I converted my car I kept getting told that there was no point and that the bubble was about to burst, etc. 70k miles later, who's the mug paying £1.30+/L? Not me.  The payback is so quick that it doesn't really matter what the long term outlook is for LPG.

[robson]

One thing that hasnt been mentioned is availability. I dont know anywhere around here that has LPG but perthaps I havnt been looking .Is it readily available especially in country areas?

[Entwood]

One thing that hasnt been mentioned is availability. I dont know anywhere around here that has LPG but perthaps I havnt been looking .Is it readily available especially in country areas?

In 4 1/2 years of LPG ownership, I've had no problems at all .. all it takes is a little research before going somewhere new .. and I've been to France every year on LPG as well ...

The worst place I've found is Northern Scotland, around Elgin .. and even there I found some within 10 miles .. OK .. more expensive than I usually pay, the savings only worked out at 7p a mile against the petrol cost .. but it was still a saving ..

Nearest to you on a very quick check, Lympne, Canterbury, Maidstone, Faversham, Sheerness, quite a few more as well...

http://www.getlpg.org.uk/stations/kent

[Darth Loo-knee]

I don't know around you, but we have a place that sells calor gas which sell LPG. ... also an air conditioning place. .. so worth having a look

[robson]

Thanks Entwood the Lympne garage  has closed down and therefore the nearest is approx 20 miles away

[Radar]

The adsa in high wycom ::)be was selling lpg at 69.7p today. Oh how i wish i'd converted mine, it would have paid for itself even with the conservative mileage i do. We need an oof lpg meet!

[BridgeyBoy]

Interesting few points raised about cost of ownership and savings to be made on buying another smaller, cheaper to run car. Made me reconsider the ‘true’ cost of ownership in terms wider than just fuel consumption.

When I wrote my original post, I was thinking – buy a cheap runabout diesel, half our weekly fuel bill and bobs your uncle, this time next year I’ll be a millionaire. Anyway, I’m in work today with no intention of actually doing anything  so I’ve just been calculating the figures on a spreadsheet for;

Option 1 : Keep the Omega and keep filling her up!
Option 2 : Sell the Omega, buy a cheap diesel and retire early with the money I save!
Option 3 : Sell or trade the Omega and buy a newer, super-efficient diesel on finance

And the winner is…… Option 1!

Even when you look at just the financial side, it doesn’t really make sense to sell the Omega. By the time I have put in a good few hundred quid to change (even to a cheap, old diesel) and got my wife through her manual test (auto only at the minute) I can save money …..the problem is, the saving is a about a paltry £6 to £7 per week….!!! Ok, I get about £30 a month in my pocket but I lose my full leather heated seats and about 100 BHP!!

So, the Omega gets a reprieve for another year I think!

Now just need to tax it next month and buy 4 new tyres…. Merry Christmas!