I lived with a petrol and hybrid Nissan Juke to see which is the CHEAPEST to own – there’s a clear winner

WHEN buying a new car, everyone says they want something sensible. Good fuel consumption, that sort of thing.

Rubbish. They want one that makes them look good. But these aren’t usual times. The price of petrol, like just about everything else, is going through the roof.

3

3

Suddenly people really do want a car that drinks less.

So it’s a good time for Nissan to launch a hybrid version of the Juke. But it’s more complicated than the usual petrol one, of course, so it costs more.

Is it worth spending extra buying the car to spend less on fuelling it? We did a real-world test. We drove the Hybrid on a mixed route of city, dual carriageways, rural roads and villages. It did 43.2mpg.

Not as good as the official number . . . but I wasn’t hanging about. Straight after, I took a normal petrol Juke and drove the same route in the same way in similar traffic. It got 36.9mpg.

Read More on The Sun

JUKE'S ON THE MONEY

Nissan Juke appears on banknotes - and there's a good reason why

ACCESS ALL ARIYAS

Nissan are late to the party with the expensive new Ariya electric SUV

So, let’s crunch the numbers. Say you do 600 miles a month, which is 7,200 a year. The Hybrid at 43.2mpg would use 13.9 gallons for 600 miles. That’s 63.1 litres, which at £1.85 a litre (gulp) is £117 a month.

Do the same sums for the 36.9mpg non-hybrid and you get £127 a month. Here’s where it gets interesting.

Most read in Motors

FINE & DANDY

Major parking change for ALL drivers in England kicks in

TRAVEL MAY-HEM

Bank holiday warning over 'double dose of delays' as 17.9m to hit the roads

ROAD TO NOWHERE

Bizarre road markings leave drivers baffled - do YOU know what they mean?

SHUT UP SHOP

Popular car dealership closing with 60 jobs at risk if new site not secured

Both these Jukes come on a three-year finance deal with a £1,500 deposit. In the popular N-Connecta trim, the Hybrid is £404 a month. The pure-petrol auto is £392 a month.

So the Hybrid is £12 a month dearer to buy but £20 a month cheaper for fuel. Saving you £8. A small advantage, but an advantage nevertheless. And there’s more to it that that.

The Hybrid is much quieter. Much of the time, especially in town, it operates on electric power alone.

When you slow down, or descend hills, or the engine starts but not all its power is needed for the wheels, the battery gets charged. You don’t need to plug in.

The hybrid is also usefully more powerful. It does 0-62mph nearly two seconds quicker than the plain petrol. The Juke is a perky little character. For a small crossover, the steering is sharp and the cornering terrier-like.

That firm suspension does mean it’s a bit bumpy at town speed, mind. The Juke remains a car a lot of people love the look of. Not just the outside but inside too.

Read More on The Sun

HAIR-RISING

You’re washing your hair ALL wrong - and it’s bad news if you love shampoo

ROOM FOR DEBATE

Woman splits opinion after hotel cleaner enters room while she was naked

In most small crossovers, you find a borrowed supermini dash and seats. But the Juke has extra sass and plushness. It is designed, engineered and made in Britain – and over two generations, it has sold more than a third of a million in this country.

The Hybrid has the same style but better consumption and performance. Hard to see how it’ll lose.

3

Read More on The Sun

BENEFIT BOOST

Universal Credit households can get 10 free days out this half term

LEFT OUT

Harry & William’s uncle leaves behind eye-watering sum in will after death aged 82