Bongo Fury

We've got a Mercedes A Class with a Blue Efficiency 2 litre diesel engine and I love watching the electronic dashboard which shows the MPG. The highest I've got from her is 58.6 MPG. Yes .....you read that right, it's so bloody efficient. When we bought the Bongo we considered getting a smaller car, a Smart car crossed out mind, but with MPG like that in the Merc what's the point of looking for something else?
However, I adore driving the Bongo. We had a family day out it her the other day, 8 of us in once vehicle. OK the MPG for two vehicles might have been a bit less, but emissions and tyre wear and tolls are better in one vehicle than 2 and just being together is lovely.
Also, having a Bongo means we never have to worry about booking expensive B&B/hotel accommodation so what you lose on the roundabout you gain on the swings.

We love the Scottish Islands but can't rely on tenting weather for the few weeks that you've booked off work so we've always organised accommodation which is the most expensive part of the holiday. At the beginning of the month we went to Arran & Islay and it cost us a maximum of £20 a night. We even had free nights in a layby alongside a loch. I think it was one of the nicest holidays I've had. Certainly the most memorable so I'm not going to get hung up on MPG in the Bongo. If I'd wanted total fuel efficiency I'd use a bike!

Beautifully put Grannie, as usual. I share your view completely. I love the independence from planning that the Bongo offers

Hi
Mike...
You've owned and enjoyed some nice vehicles over the years...I bet the memorable ones have not done as many MPG as the Bongo...I reckon anything that even approaches 30 MPG on an average is pretty good considering the usefulness...Over the years, I've also had some enjoyment, and my favourite vehicle was a 6 cylinder Landie 2.5 side-valve LWB Safari...and the 15+ MPG was just something I had to accept...I enjoyed it so much, I'd even go a mile down the road just to sit in it.
You have to have some enjoyment, and we lashed out on another car a couple of times since being here...truth to tell, we bought an Opel Astra...nasty things, Opels, and it just sat on the yard for 2 years without moving. Recently, we've been looking at a serious 4x4, and Landies, Mitsis (Both Delicas and Pajeros), Toyota Landcruisers, Nissan Patrol, Ladas, and we NEARLY bought a Hummer H2...but had to weigh in the spares availability, otherwise it was a prime choice...and they don't use fuel, but CONSUME it....in the end, we settled down to a Jeep (with advice from Tony Mountaingoat, who even sent us a spare glovebox manual)...now as regards fuel, I expect it is going to notch up similar MPG to the Bongo, but as I've only had one car that did over 30MPG in 46 years of driving, and probably as many cars, I'm not too put out by the fuel....and whilst fuel prices are less here, (they're catching up)... the cost of running anything here is the astronomical cost of spare parts, and factoring in what I have spent this year on spares , fuel, and a small ( ) amount of customising, I doubt I've had the equivalent of 5 MPG!!!!!! and as I don't drive out so much, what I've spent brings down the miles per pound to probably the quoted figure of 5 MPG.
Anyway, it's the Jeep's turn for some TLC, now, and Tony loves it...they even do a snow plough (sorry, Plow, as they say ) for the front...yummy...but importing that little beggar will cost too much . This coming winter, I might even drive out to see how the Jeep copes with the snice and the snow, and I expect some decent fun....after all, it's one of life's little pleasures.
I have been "minded" to get a horse'n'cart, so I can get to the village in style, and a lot of the locals still use donkey and cart, but I find bending difficult, and I can't ride a Gee with my injuries, and a cart's a bit rattley so it's sadly nothing but cars....and I intend to ENJOY....AW...blow it...I know I should have bought that selfish Hummer
Cheers
Helen

Yea, I'd rather do something I love for half of the time than something I don't love all of the time. On that score, the Bongo is, of all the cats I've ever known, easily the best combination of fun and incredible usefulness. So I can love with 30mpg esp. as its been so cheap on servicing and repairs

Hi
Whilst the fuel is cheaper, and the parts...weeell...I have to import everything...but...and it's a BIG BUT (no rude comments )...labour's cheap...exhaust..labour a tenner...shockers (both front)...15 quid...and so on.....so the overall cost is similar to the UK
GOODEE!!!!!!
Cheers
Helen

mikeonb4c wrote:Yea, I'd rather do something I love for half of the time than something I don't love all of the time. On that score, the Bongo is, of all the cats I've ever known, easily the best combination of fun and incredible usefulness. So I can love with 30mpg esp. as its been so cheap on servicing and repairs

Predictive text is such a pain: cats and love doh!

I have a 2.0 ltr petrol which i have checked at every fill up, going from full tank to full tank and driving like miss daisy the best i got (longish run) was 28mpg the worst i got was 23, when i posted this earlier someone said they only get 18mpg froma 2.0ltr petrol and i started to doubt my calculations even though they were checked by two other people, so i filled up and drove with a heavy right foot all local runs, got down to nearly empty and filled up again, now its still only 20mpg. so i'll drive halfway sensible from now on and just enjoy the bongo feeling.