Petrol price hike: What your road trip will cost this Christmas

The December petrol price increase that came into effect today is not good news for year-end holidaymakers planning to hit the open road this festive season.

Even though there is some relief in the form of the diesel prices dropping from their record highs, the wholesale cost of a litre 50 ppm diesel of R24.23 is still over R6 more than it was a year ago and almost double compared to December 2020.

The new Inland price of 95 octane unleaded petrol of R23.46 per litre is R3.17 more than it was 12 months ago, while 93 octane at R23.16 a litre costs R3.07 more than it did in December 2021.

Petrol price blues

For those planning on going away over the holidays, The Citizen Motoring has done some maths to try and take the guesswork out of how the petrol price will affect you if you are going away. We have taken five popular new cars of all shapes, sizes and fuel types and worked out what a round trip to five holiday destinations will cost in fuel expenses.

We based all the distances on the shortest route on main roads between Johannesburg’s city centre and the corresponding destination’s city centre and doubled it.

From Johannesburg and back, a trip to Sun City will be 344 km, to Mbombela 683 km, 1 134 km to Durban, 2 090 km to Gqeberha and 2 798 km to Cape Town.

We have used the manufacturers’ claimed fuel consumption numbers which are likely to be higher in the real world, especially taken into account driving style and added weight.

The amounts are based on Inland fuel prices and does not include any toll fees.

What to budget for

Suzuki Swift 1.2 GA

Suzuki claims the hatchback will only sip 4.9 litres for every 100 km, making it a good choice to beat the petrol price blues.

Sun City – 16.86 L x R23.16 = R390
Mbombela – 33.48 L x R23.16 = R775
Durban – 55.58 L x R23.16 = R1 287
Gqeberha – 102.4 L x R23.16 = R2 372
Cape Town – 137.15 L x R23.16 = R3 176

Chery Tiggo 4 Pro 1.5 Urban manual

One of Mzansi’s best-selling SUVs over the last year, the Tiggo 4 Pro is said to consume seven litres for every 100 km.

Sun City – 24.22 L x R23.16 = R557
Mbombela – 47.75 L x R23.16 = R1 105
Durban – 79.41 L x R23.16 = R1 839
Gqeberha – 146.35 L x R23.16 = R3 398
Cape Town – 195.93 L x R23.16 = R4 537

BMW 320d

Sipping only a claimed five litres per 100 km, the 3 Series oil-burner is both a popular and frugal choice.

Sun City – 17.2 L x R24.23 = R416
Mbombela – 34.1 L x R24.23 = R826
Durban – 56.7 L x R24.23 = R1 373
Gqeberha – 104.5 L x R24.23 = R2 532
Cape Town – 139.9 L x R24.23 = R3 389

Nissan Navara 2.5 DDTi double cab SE auto

Nissan claims this double cab will sip 8.1 litres of diesel for every 100 km, a decent number in the bakkie world.

Sun City – 27.87 L x R24.23 = R675
Mbombela – 55.26 L x R24.23 = R1 338
Durban – 91.89 L x R24.23 = R2 226
Gqeberha – 169.36 L x R24.23 = R4 103
Cape Town – 226.74 L x R24.23 = R5 493

Toyota Land Cruiser 300 3.5T ZX

I you can afford the luxurious LC300’s almost two bar price tag, the fact that it guzzles 12.1 litres per 100 km probably won’t bother you too much.

Sun City – `41.64 L x R23.46 = R976
Mbombela – 82.56 L x R23.46 = R1 936
Durban – 137.28 L x R23.46 = R3 220
Gqeberha – 253.02 L x R23.46 = R5 935
Cape Town – 338.74 L x R23.46 = R7 946