different engines

[ariegejohn]

Bonjour folks,
I am yet to be a Berlingo owner, but as we are about to go to live in France we thought it would be good to have a French car.... We cannot afford anything too pricey so are looking at a 2003/2004/2005 Multispace - preferably with the 2 litre engine. (1997cc?) Now is the TD engine different from the 2 litre or are they really the same? Also are the 1.6HDi any better/worse/more reliable than the standard block? Any info gratefully received as different sellers use different descriptions and make it very confusing.. thanks in advance. AriegeJohn

[Opensauce]

The 2 litre turbo diesel is modern hdi as are the later 1.6 diesels. The 1.9 non turbo is old technology so repairs would be cheaper if needed but it is very slow by modern standards. I found my previous 1.9 struggled to cruise at 70 & slowed down on hills so not a good motorway drive.

If you want a 'nippy' car stick with 2.0 or 1.6hdi turbos, but 1.9 will be cheaper to buy although fuel consumption will be higher. UK road tax is higher for 1.9. £190 with £125 for 1.6. I think if I was looking for an older Berl I would go for 1.9 diesel & live with lack of performance for sake of cheaper major repairs which I would hope would not be needed.

If you are moving to the depths of rural France your local garage will be most familiar with the 1.9 diesel & if you are putting the car on French plates you don't pay road tax anyway.