One in five UK motorists, who has bought a diesel car to reduce their fuel consumption and cut emissions of global-warming carbon dioxide, has seen the difference between the price of petrol and diesel grow to a new record this month, says The AA Motoring Trust.
The AA Trusts Fuel Price Report for October shows that a litre of diesel costs 92.1 pence per litre compared to 86.6 pence per litre for petrol, a difference of 5.5 pence per litre. The previous highest margin was in January 2005, when the difference reached 5.2 pence per litre. Throughout last year, the petrol-diesel price difference averaged 4.1 pence per litre.
Motorists who spent around 1000 more buying diesel cars as opposed to the petrol versions now have to travel more than 2,000 miles extra, costing them an additional 225 in fuel, before they recoup the difference in the new car price1.
With a 5.5-pence-per-litre fuel price difference, these diesel car owners now have to drive nearly 38,000 miles before they break even on the extra start-up cost and begin to enjoy the savings of better fuel economy.
The AA Trust has watched with increasing concern as the gap between the price of petrol and diesel has kept growing, now exceeding the level only seen in mid-winter when the demand for heating oils in the US pushes up the price, says Ruth Bridger, petrol analyst for The AA Motoring Trust.
Last month, glimpses of wholesale costs for diesel and petrol showed a price difference that was one to two pence below what was being charged on UK forecourts. As car fuel wholesale prices are hidden from the UK consumer, unlike in the US, Australia and South East Asia, there is no way of knowing whether diesel drivers are being charged a fair price that matches wholesale market trends.
Government, environmentalists, companies and lobby groups trying to peddle their green credentials tell motorists to cut their fuel consumption. Yet, when car owners invest extra money in more efficient diesel engines, their reward is to see the point at which they break even get further and further away.
The AA Motoring Trust welcomes Sainsburys decision to lower the price of diesel in all their petrol stations to 88.9 pence per litre. Non-supermarket car fuel retailers have begun to catch up with the petrol price cuts brought about supermarket competition, closing the gap between the UK average price and the supermarket average price from 2.4 pence per litre in September to 2.0 pence this month. The gap for diesel has also shrunk, but only from 2.1 pence per litre in September to 1.9 pence this month.
NOTES TO EDITORS: 1 According to the National Travel Survey, the average petrol car has a fuel consumption of 30 miles per gallon compared to 40 for the average diesel car. At 86.6 pence per litre, the cost per mile for petrol cars is 13.12 pence and, at 92.1 pence per litre, the cost per mile for diesel cars is 10.47 pence.
Every mile, a diesel car saves 2.65 pence per mile compared to petrol. To recoup the 1000 extra cost of buying a diesel car, a driver needs to drive 37,736 miles.
If the petrol-diesel price difference was 4.1 pence per litre, the average last year, diesel would cost 90.7 pence per litre. This would drop the cost per mile to 10.31 pence, saving 2.81 pence pence per mile compared to a petrol car. A driver would therefore only need to travel 35,587 miles to recoup the start-up cost, a difference of 2,149 miles. At the current 92.1 pence per litre price, diesel car owners spend an additional 224.94.
The AA Motoring Trusts Fuel Price Report for October and previous months is available online at: www.aatrust.com/fuelwatch
