Prices probably depend more on mileage, condition and availability than on whether diesel or petrol is 'better'.

The diesel would probably use less fuel and generate less CO2, so it would be cheaper to run. An average petrol hatchback might return about 40mpg, a diesel probably over 50mpg. If you drive an average number of miles the diesel should save you about £300 a year in fuel, plus £50 or so from lower road tax (assuming you're looking at a 2001-on model).

Against that, diesels can cost more to maintain and can be expensive to fix if they go wrong (particularly turbodiesels). For £2500 you're probably looking at a car 8-10 years old with 60,000+ miles, which makes repair costs a more important consideration.

For that kind of money I don't think there's much in it one way or the other - buy the car in the best condition, that does best what you need it to do, and don't worry about what fuel it uses.

If you have a question about cars, send it to me and I'll do my best to answer it.

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