Hi Nicola,

A recent trend in the motoring industry has been ‘downsizing’ – offering smaller capacity, turbocharged petrol and diesel engines, that offer similar or greater power than engines that would typically have been larger but not fitted with turbos. So when family cars used to need a 2.0-litre petrol to deliver good power characteristics, now a 1.6-litre turbo often does the same (or a better) job.

Thus, modern 1.6-litre diesel engines (which cover 152-plate models) are capable powerplants. However, if you’re comparing a 152-plate 1.6 diesel with a larger capacity 152-plate diesel (1.8, 2.0 or bigger), then the 1.6 will not have as much power or torque as the bigger units. Yet it will probably offer cheaper running costs and better economy, if performance is not your chief concern.