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bruster
04-08-2007, 08:03 PM
Hi guys,

i have been mainly browsing the forum for awhile and keep up the good work.
great feedback and lots of info...just wish there was more pictures.

anyways my situation has changed in the last year, we now have a little 7 month old who keeps me awake through the night...

we currently have a small mazda 323 and travel to canberra on a regular basis to see the family. We are finding the 323 a bit small considering we have to carry baby seat, pram, bags among other things.

I have found the 380 is becoming a bit of bargain, there are some good prices for SX and VRX.
but im concerned with the fuel consumption during ownership.
im really confused because petrol is really up and down these days and i never know waht to expect... and being on a single income now every dollar counts.

what do you guys think, is it worth it opting for a 380 or for a larger 4 cylinder car?
Considering re-selling a V6 in a future may prove difficult.
i know its a mitsubishi forum and some responses may go for the 380 but hoping pros may outweigh the cons for the 380.


cheers
Bru

yann89
04-08-2007, 10:56 PM
i don't know about the 380's that much. But I can say that it's possible that a bigger 4cyl in a bigger car might just use the same amount of fuel as a small to mid-sized V6.

EG: My 4cyl uses 11.5/100 (Urban) and 7.6/100 (highway) versus a 3.8ltr VR Commodore of the same year which uses 12.0/100 (urban) and 7.6/100 (highway)[redbook figures]. Taking into account that my style of engine is alot older than the holden engine. It's possible.

you'd need to check fuel consumption of the six versus the four to be able to really make an informed decision:)

Derek
05-08-2007, 12:01 AM
I dont own a 380 but I had one as a hire car for 5 days. All I can say is I thrashed it at everyset of lights and still got 500kms out of it. I was very impressed! So impressed I'm now looking buy one....

Highway kms help as well....and it really is a nice cruiser car on the freeway doing 110 - 4 cyclinders just dont cut it generally.

Spackbace
05-08-2007, 03:04 AM
also depends on whether ur after manual or auto, as it seems auto gets better economy (mitsu states it anyway) by about .5L/100k's.
also consider an lpg conversion, as its a damn big boot (tho guess u may need the room for the pram right now), and even if u only have to pay another $500 or so on top, i'm sure this sounds like a car u'd own for 5-10yrs, so would make ur money on it

some food for thought :)

Knotched
05-08-2007, 05:13 AM
anyways my situation has changed in the last year, we now have a little 7 month old who keeps me awake through the night...

we currently have a small mazda 323 and travel to canberra on a regular basis to see the family. We are finding the 323 a bit small considering we have to carry baby seat, pram, bags among other things.



Haha...:badgrin:

I was in the same boat except coming from a large six wanting to go smaller.

I think if fuel economy is very important to you, you should investigate a 4 cyc very thoroughly and I'd recommend the Camry which has tons of room and a reasonable donk.

The 380 has a small boot in that it's under 400 litres so if you look at this make sure your pram and other gear will fit. On the up side, the interior is very roomy so when you go to put a car seat/baby capsule in there is plenty of room.

The V6 is really good on fuel (maybe not as good as the Aurion) particularly if you drive it carefully and do a lot of highway driving. I got 9.6l/100km at one point and that was with some city driving as well. I'd expect better on a completely highway trip.

But, at the end of the day, the 4 cyc will be better on fuel. How much better depends on what car and how you'll drive it.

bruster
05-08-2007, 07:50 AM
thanks guys,

these are my options at the moment:

380 because its cheap, powerfull and big
lancer wagon good carrying capacity, and reasonable power
Astra wagon good quality, good looks and good carrying capacity
mazda6 hatch roomy inside and boot, although premium fuel might hurt
magna last option, looking a bit dated but very cheap

I was speaking with one of the guys at work and told me to hire a 380 for a test drive for a couple of days... i thought what a great idea...and may do that in next couple of weeks.

BloodAsp
05-08-2007, 10:26 AM
I can tell you from experience i actually own a 380 platinum edition and i am in love i drive everywhere i can in it, and i still get round about 600k to a tank a little less if i push the car...which i tend to do too often.
I can't really say enough about them mine gets roughly 10l/100k on the highway and around town maybe 12 or so due to the stop start nature of the traffic in Melbourne.
It's a big car, i mean big, bit of a pain in the **** to park at first, as the turning circle on them isn't small...i usually have to take two attempts at getting into most parking spots (though that could be due to my inability to park properly) perfect for the family and makes a nice highway cruiser i drove mine from Canberra to Melbourne when i first got it and the drive was effortless, just hit cruise control and let the car do all the work.
really for the money you can't do much better and the sound the exhaust makes when you go above 3grand...ohh i accelerate hard all the time just to hear it :D

andrewd
05-08-2007, 10:37 AM
the way i see it, but a small car and save 2-3L/100km

then regret buying the 380 when you need the 175kw of power to overtake the 7 semis on the highway.... my magna 5spd auto was great on the highway, nail it and zoom past the traffic...

something the little cars dont have, yeah most go alright, but the higher the speed the slower they go..

then family holiday wife and ids all loaded up aircon on, stuck behing a caravan on the way to mallacoota cos your car aint got enough balls to quickly and safley pass...

all for the cost of a couple of litres if fuel a week..

and if you drive anything like me you will get the same economy in a larger car as a smaller car cos to go the same spped and get the same acceleration in a 380 you use 60% throttle where as in a corolla for example to match it you have to use 100%

Mrmacomouto
05-08-2007, 06:22 PM
Remember that the money you save from buying the 380 when compared to the other cars will off-set that extra fuel usage for a long time to come.

M4DDOG
05-08-2007, 06:58 PM
Remember that the money you save from buying the 380 when compared to the other cars will off-set that extra fuel usage for a long time to come.
Yup, and that's not even mentioning that the 380 has the best resale of the large cars, and was found to be the cheapest large car to own/run (apart from the prius, but was still pretty close).

TJ Sports
06-08-2007, 08:36 AM
It's a big car, i mean big, bit of a pain in the **** to park at first, as the turning circle on them isn't small...i usually have to take two attempts at getting into most parking spots (though that could be due to my inability to park properly)

i still reckon the 380 is a mid sized car its actually shorter overall than 3rd gens. the WL statesman is a big car.

XR6 Turbo
07-08-2007, 07:51 AM
i don't know about the 380's that much. But I can say that it's possible that a bigger 4cyl in a bigger car might just use the same amount of fuel as a small to mid-sized V6.

EG: My 4cyl uses 11.5/100 (Urban) and 7.6/100 (highway) versus a 3.8ltr VR Commodore of the same year which uses 12.0/100 (urban) and 7.6/100 (highway)[redbook figures]. Taking into account that my style of engine is alot older than the holden engine. It's possible.

you'd need to check fuel consumption of the six versus the four to be able to really make an informed decision:)

I can garentee you that the crappy old buick V6 in the Commodore is a much older design than yours!

They both weigh about the same and the Commodore has more bottom end torque and much taller gearing. That is why the fuel consumption is similar.

XR6 Turbo
07-08-2007, 07:57 AM
I'd just go for the 380. The difference in fuel consumption will only be about 10-15% more on a trip and about 30% more around town than what you have.

How about getting a second hand Magna and with the money you save, you wont even think about fuel for years.

Tom
13-08-2007, 07:06 PM
(apart from the prius, but was still pretty close).
I wonder if they included battery replacement in the running costs of the prius? I've heard its about $5000 every 6 years or so...

Anyway, have you thought about safety? If it was my choice I would want as much crumple zone around the child as I could afford.

Quick calcs: save 2L/100km for 20,000km/year $1.30/L = $520 per year saving. Is it really worth worrying about? Buy a car that's 1 or 2 years old and you'll cover that extra fuel cost for a long time.

Lugo
13-08-2007, 09:28 PM
How do you drive, ie. whats your driving style.

You could opt for a 2.4L Camry, but if you drive it hard its going to return no better figures than a 3.8L 380 being driven to the same speeds in similar acceleration times.

The thing about the 380 has to be the warranty, you could buy a VRX model today for about $22k and still have 2yrs or so new car warranty remaining, which means your not going to have too big a hit on your single income should something go wrong. Just a thought.

BTW I'm not a biased Mitsubishi fan, we have a 04 Camry (soon to be updated), a TR Magna and a AE82 Corolla atm, so if anything I'd be more Toyota biased, but I'm really totally impartial to either company.