Julian Edgar, 50, has been writing about car modification and automotive technology for nearly 25 years. He has owned cars with two, three, four, five, six and eight cylinders; single turbo, twin turbo, supercharged, diesel and hybrid electric drivelines. He lists his transport interests as turbocharging, aerodynamics, suspension design and human-powered vehicles.
What an absolutely crap car
Look, I’ve tried to like it. I’ve admired its quite brilliant fuel economy, and its generally excellent ride/handling compromise. I mean, I was even very positive in the new car test I did on the car when it was first released back in 2003.
And when this family bought one with our own money, it was with the (stated) intention of making it an AutoSpeed project car, in much the same way that we did with the Peugeot 405 SRDT.
But I need to be honest. I just simply hate the Peugeot 307 HDi – I think it’s a car that in many ways is just rubbish.
Now normally to support such a statement you’d have an extensive list of shortcomings in its driving performance. But in fact, the Peugeot largely drives very well.
One clear negative is its dreadful low rpm management mapping and/or turbo sizing: this is one of the deadest off-boost turbo electronic direct injected diesels you can drive, especially in hot weather.
(I just checked the date of my original new car test – published November so probably tested about September. Just on the edges of the Australian summer – but not into it.)
But otherwise, the steering is largely OK (well, it kicks back when driving really hard); the ride is good; the handling is adequate and the brakes fine.
The internal packaging is also pretty good.
So what don’t I like about it?
In short, I reckon this is the worse built car I have owned since having a Holden Camira.
(And don’t get me wrong: I think the Camira was a very good car, in both the JB and JE forms in which I owned the model. But build quality was abysmal. And a further note. Right now, all the Peugeot discussion group writers will be chortling at their keyboards. “Who would take with any seriousness someone who says that they liked Camiras?” Don’t type; simply look up any contemporary road tests to see how the Camiras rated against their then opposition.)
The Peugeot 307 is clearly – absolutely clearly – a car built down to a very meagre budget. And designed to be assembled on that same meagre budget.
The design is full of shortcomings that make this the most ‘disposable’ car I’ve ever owned.
The turbo can’t be accessed without taking off the exhaust – and really, the engine needs to come out of the car to do it properly. There’s no intercooler; there’s no electronic boost control and there’s not even a variable geometry turbo. The engine, when you get down to it, is actually of very basic mechanical spec.
But none of that would make me actively hate the car. What does is all the crappy cost-cutting that went into the component supply.
Since we have owned the car:
- The back seat retaining lock has broken – that’s the one that stops the backrest folding forward.
- The fold-down driver’s seat armrest has broken off
- The central locking has gone mad and prevented us entering the car (and this system includes such stupid aspects as not allowing entry to the hatch when the engine is running)
- The internal release for the passenger door has broken
- (And talking about the locking, the cost-cutting is so extreme there’s not even a passenger side door lock for a key – and of the two keys provided, only one operates the remote central locking)
- A headlight bulb has broken (no big deal, but when’s the last time you were in a car that has only 120,000km on it and a broken headlight bulb?)
- One of the backlight bulbs for the central LCD has broken (that’s the LCD you cannot read without taking off polarising sunglasses – oh yes, a great Euro design feature, that one)
- The oil level display alarm has gone mad, frequently showing the engine is out of oil when it’s in fact full
- The driver control for the left-front passenger window makes the window only go down, irrespective of what you do with the control
- Bits fall down under the dash, catching on the driver’s feet
I am happy to agree that none of these points are major: the gearbox hasn’t fallen out of the car and the diesel hasn’t died.
But to be honest, they simply take away your faith in the car.
So I wonder if the noise that I can sometimes hear from the rear suspension is the suspension member cracking in half – just like the crap way in which the door lining clips broke off when I removed the door lining to fix the broken internal handle release. Incidentally, a handle release that failed because (1) the central locking went mad and (2) the way the mechanism is held together is the worse of any car I have ever seen, clearly made that way for ultra quick assembly.
Or take the crap way in which the oil level alert false alarms makes having an oil level alert worse than having none at all.
Or how the electronics that connects the different bits of the car made the locking go mad, and puts in a dumb delay every time you turn the knob to start the rear wiper. (The latter is so bad that if you don’t know the car, you’d assume the knob is broken. You can turn it on and then off without the rear wiper doing anything at all. You have to learn to turn it on, wait for something to happen, and only then turn it off again. I am sure Pug 307 owners are saying ‘What?”, all having happily trained themselves to operate the knob slowly so something actually happens.)
Viewed dispassionately, my complaints are trivial.
Viewed from the perspective of an owner – and furthermore an owner who expected to enjoy the car so much he was going to modify it – then they’re sufficiently real that I can’t wait for the car to be gone.
I mean, a car for which a wiring diagram cannot be bought? (It is genuinely impossible to buy a comprehensive wiring diagram of the 307.) A car that needs something like four hours of labour to get a wastegate hose on it? A hatchback that has its engine effectively positioned at least 50 per cent under the dashboard?
One reason we bought the 307 was for its demonstrated crash-test safety and six airbags. Crikey, now I am doubtful that in a crash the airbags would even work.
And the old 405 diesel that we had before the 307? I love that car so much that every time mention comes up of its sale (that was supposed to occur within a month of acquiring the 307), I hide the car away.
I love the seats, I love the steering, I love the power and response of the (modified) diesel, I love its ride and I love its handling (the latter two both completely standard and with over 220,000km on them).
The 405 diesel is a brilliant car.
The 307 shows the beginnings of Peugeot completely losing their way, something that can be seen in spades in the 407 HDi (that I tested as a new car and said exactly that of it).
Want to buy a Peugeot 307 HDi? Yep: excellent fuel economy, poor hot-weather around-town performance and a good ride.
And make sure you’ve got a trained Peugeot mechanic handy to fix the bits that will break, oh, at least once a month.
Footnote: It’s been a few weeks since I wrote what apears above, so time for something else to break. And – yes! – today one of the clips that holds a head restraint in place broke off and fell to the floor…
on November 13th, 2008 at 12:28 am
Old Peugeots are notorious for having disposable rear suspension subframes, the shafts that the trailing arms are attached to run in a crosstube supported by needle roller bearings. After a few years the seals go and if its not caught in time the shafts wear through the bearings then into the crosstube itself rendering it scrap. I’m not sure if this design is still used on 307s but it certainly is on 106s, 205s, 206s, 306s, 309s and 405s.
I disagree with your comment about bulbs entirely, I remember seeing a survey of cars on the road with failed bulbs and the vast majority were newer cars as the owners don’t bother checking the lights as they just assume they will be OK whereas owners of old cars check them as they know they will have failures.
The trick with Peugeots IMO is to buy cheap old fun models like 205 GTIs then rip out the cheap interior crap so it can be used for trackdays.
on November 13th, 2008 at 2:31 am
>The oil level display alarm has gone mad, frequently showing the engine is out of oil when it’s in fact full
Are you sure your oil pump / pressure relief valve isn’t in disarray? You don’t want to be out your money AND an engine. That aside, for a 2003 or later car… that’s absolutely ridiculous.
>The turbo can’t be accessed without taking off the exhaust – and really, the engine needs to come out of the car to do it properly.
That reminds me of my ’96 Sebring convertible. To change or check the spark plugs OR check the timing of the engine, you have to remove the intake manifold. But to do that, you need to remove the power steering pump AND power steering pump bracket, and all the belts. Which are all buried deep against the firewall and unibody. Along with the 100% unreachable catalytic converter. Contrast with an ’90 Eagle Talon (4G63), spark plugs are direct to access, and the head timing requires removing 4 openly accessible bolts. Heck, I’ve changed broken belts on the side of the road without jacking it up before.
Sometimes I wonder whether car companies care at all about the cars they make anymore. Durability and ease-of-maintenance have gone out the window. It’s like a new form of planned obsolescence.
on November 13th, 2008 at 5:59 am
Julian,
Once you own a car, you can tend to ‘accept’ small issues, fix them and move on, or work around them and move on, either way, you have already spent your $$ and it’s not often worth selling up for these (otherwise) minor issues. However, these sorts of problems (when all listed together from an owner like you have done here), however minor they may be, are enough to make people think twice about buying the car in the first place.
I recently helped a friend buy a vehicle similar to mine, and from a ‘buyers’ perspective, the problems and issues that plagued this vehicle, (very minor), were exactly the same as mine and I was happy to live with them, were reason enough for my friend to walk away and look elsewhere, even though he has known my car and these ‘features’ for the past 5 years and also just ‘accepted’ them.
In my current employment I get to see a lot of warranty claims and the subsequent repairs costs from all makes and models and the same problems exist in other models. Whilst, like you Julian, I have no “Brand Loyalty”, looking at the frequency and type of consistant warranty work from some manufacturers has put me off buying quite a few brands..
on November 13th, 2008 at 8:01 am
Sounds like a fun car, I’ve not been impressed with pugs since leasing a 407 diesel in Europe for several weeks.
I’d like to ask about your headlight bulb comment though:
“A headlight bulb has broken (no big deal, but when’s the last time you were in a car that has only 120,000km on it and a broken headlight bulb?)”
I drive a Golf MKV with just under 100,000kms and have gone through at least 4 headlight bulbs, the 2nd in the pair normally fails within a week or two of the first.
Mind you I used to drive with the lights on all the time.
I thought this was fairly normal, my wife’s previous car blew both bulbs with alarming regularity, to the point where I replaced the bulb holders and whatever components I could.
Didn’t work.
Once on a trip home from FNQLD (to NSW) they both failed, but we didn’t know until dusk…. not fun having to drive to the nearest servo with the high beams on!
So, in a roundabout way, my question is how long do you expect headlight bulbs to last?
on November 13th, 2008 at 8:07 am
Marty, in most cars that I have owned I have not had to replace headlight bulbs even once.
on November 13th, 2008 at 11:18 am
My E46 3-Series did a bulb at 90,000kms.
on November 13th, 2008 at 12:32 pm
My 2002 BMW 530 did a headlight bulb at 101 000 km, and another at 103 000, and then all three brake lights, one after another over about a month, and then started in on the replacements…
Eventually it turned out the alternator was going insane, and every so often sending through up to 18 volts!
And of course, the alternator is a special one hand-made by naked Rhinemaidens and sells for $3000 from the dealer. After getting it fixed (NOT by the dealer), I vowed never to buy non-Japanese again.
on November 13th, 2008 at 12:50 pm
I had a similar discussion with some colleagues here at work regarding some Euro cars and their build quality. That’s not to say this sort of issue doesn’t happen with domestic cars. With domestic cars however you can get them fixed (and find parts) just about anywhere.
I used to own a VW Polo and it had remarkably similar dramas to your Pug. It blew 2 headlight bulbs but only the LH ones where you have to remove the battery for access. When indicating a left turn you had to hold the stalk down with your hand to get it to stay on, I was quoted $400 to replace the unit due to having to remove the Airbag assembly etc to get at it. However, after about 2 wks of holding the stalk down it fixed itself of it’s own accord and never happened again. The CD player chewed up discs and wouldn’t give back the remains (fixed under wty). The LH window regulator stopped working 5 times during the wty period and the dealer ‘fixed’ it each time. 2 weeks after the wty ran out however it failed again and this time the dealer said it needed to be replaced at a cost of $525! After my response to that quote they did it for free… Then there was the idle unit (electronic?) which made the engine cutout when idling with the A/C on but only when in neutral. If it was an auto I would understand but I had a manual. Quote from the dealer was $1200 to fix but ended up costing $180 through another VW trained mechanic. Then there was the numerous clips, latches, central locking, rear vision mirrors, wipers and handbrake niggles that cost an absolute bomb to fix. All this on a car that had only done 39,000k’s when I sold it. I still can’t believe how much I sold it for, just because it was a Euro car???
Why do people like Euro cars so much? They’re overpriced to buy, run and service yet people think they are wonderful. I can understand if it’s a diesel (maybe) but if it’s petrol you HAVE to run premium RON fuel that carries the premium price associated with it. They talk about French cars having that certain ‘je-ne-sais-quoi’ that is the deciding factor in their purchase. Well I’m here to tell you, the certain something is $$$$$$.
on November 13th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Actually, now that I think about it, I have a Peugeot story too.
Dad had a 505 sti. And ever since he bought it, he complained about it.
Little, annoying things, light bulbs, fuel filters, fuel pumps, a fuel pickup line that didn’t pick up fuel, but only when Mum drove the car (Dad never let the fuel get below half full, Mum did, there was a hole in the line at the 1/4 full point. When Mum drove, she would let the level get low, then go around a corner and have the engine stumble from no fuel…) And dodgey EFI systems that were far, far beyond the understanding of a Cairns mechanic.
So Dad complained about it, for 15 years. Then he had a major crash. T-boned at an intersection. Shockingly, the insurance company decided it was worth paying some panel beater to completely rebuild the car.
Dad was stunned, the rebuilt car was fantastic, seemingly better than it had ever been, with better handling and performance. And it never had another problem.
on November 13th, 2008 at 6:02 pm
Old news Julian.
http://dogandlemon.com/site/2007/12/10/warning-over-european-cars-australia/
“Australian motorists think they are buying an upmarket vehicle when they buy a European brand. However, European vehicles are often poorly built, unreliable and expensive to fix.”
“Virtually all satisfaction and reliability surveys are consistent: European brands may look cool, but they’re the pits to own.”
on November 13th, 2008 at 6:19 pm
Have a look at how closely this owners experience matches your own. Lots of systemic problems in PSA vehicles?
http://dogandlemon.com/site/2007/12/10/citroen-c5-a-readers-experience/
(My sympathies too, I own a recent Astra which drives beautifully, but requires many times the maintainence (and $) than previous Japanese vehicles)
I have learnt that It is worth checking owner feedback on carsurvey.org before buying a vehicle.
on November 13th, 2008 at 6:27 pm
Paying more for a European car doesn’t necessarily help either.
http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/wild-ass-rumor-of-the-day-porsche-boxster-engine-failures/
on November 13th, 2008 at 6:52 pm
Earlier this year Consumer Reports magazine published a facinating graph using quantative data from their American surveys.
X axis was reliability
Y axis was functionality.
European makes clumped together in the top left corner – very high functionality, very poor reliability.
American makes were generally poor functionallity poor reliability.
Asian makes generally high functionality, high reliability.
Some of the data is available online at: http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/cars/reliability/index.htm
on November 13th, 2008 at 7:36 pm
I have worked as a mechanic for Audi, Mercedes and Porsche and everything I have read here doesn’t surprise me. What does surprise me is everyone else is surprised!!!
Durability of globes can depend on such things as hot/cold weather, rough/smooth roads, day/night driving, how often/hard the boot or bonnet is closed etc.
on November 13th, 2008 at 8:27 pm
The globe life problems seem too consistant within a vehicle make for the environment to be the root cause. Perhaps looking at the quality of the voltage regulation and the quality of the factory globes would be a place to start?
on November 13th, 2008 at 10:31 pm
Any one for a nice late model Australian Car?
Remmember that the local cars are generally more strongly built than most and being larger, they generally allow better access for service work when it is needed; ie less $$$ labour time.
Remember cheaper parts prices and a good range of Dealer and independent repairers to choose from.
Remember them being pretty darn good drives as well, capable of stepping up to tasks few European or Asian cars perform well.
Remember that many Australians had jobs in vehicle building and related industies that have to pay Australian wages and conditions.
Recent trips way out west among the Road Trains and real workhorse 4WDs reminded me of the benefits of our locally engineered and built cars.
Remember what we had with the Commodore and Falcon before they are gone….lost to brand snobbery and a lemming – like persuit of fuel savings.
Bob Jay (Reformed European Car Snob)
on November 14th, 2008 at 12:27 pm
lol Julian. I was a mechanic from a previous life for 22 years and saw a few French cars (pugs included) in my time but mostly british & Japanese. I still believe you just cannot beat the japanese for a reliable engineering approach. Regarding the French cars though, it never ceases to amaze me that since the dawn of time, if the French could do something with a plastic clip, cardboard, wire, nothing at all or even 3 wheel nuts where most use 4 or 5 (nuts that is) then they would. I must say they are sensationally frugal with design their approach and manufacturing processes.
I think surprisingly, a lot of Pug owners keep the faith for life with a few still lamenting the demise of the 504.
Most of the French cars I lost my hair over though were Renaults.
on November 14th, 2008 at 6:06 pm
yesss if you’re a true believer theeze leetle things will never bother you. Think of it as character building 🙂
on November 17th, 2008 at 5:05 am
>Think of it as character building
But try and go to work and school while having to work on your car two or more days out of the week. Almost every week. For four years. And at the same time somehow not losing your sanity…
I’m a step away from an auto technicians degree by virtue of strife alone!
on November 17th, 2008 at 12:01 pm
I agree with Bob Jay that Aussie cars are built tougher than French ones, but if you really need a car to last forever (as in, Mad Max apocalypse and no more cars will ever be manufactured) then you’ve got to go for something old. I’ve got a 1970 VW 1500 beetle, and it just keeps going. The main bearing clearances are about twice the factory wear limit now but it still starts first time every time and goes wherever I need to go. The only failed part I’ve had to replace since I bought it a few years ago was the left outside doorhandle, succumbed to metal fatigue after more than 35 years.
on November 17th, 2008 at 12:37 pm
Meanwhile, over the weekend, the 2002 BMW decided it was no longer going to read the wheel speed. This both killed off the speedo, AND cut out ABS.
Turning the car off and turning it back on again will usually fix it, then after about 15 minutes driving, it drops out again. It does this during braking, with the ABS kicking in (not required) because it sees the wheels not rotating at the right speeds, and assumes a slide. Then it figures out the sensors are wrong, and turns ABS off.
No, I haven’t worked out why yet.
on November 17th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
more broken plastics then my 20 year old vl, haha.
that says something in itself…
on November 18th, 2008 at 9:43 am
Getting a crap car when you are younger can be beneficial if you are prepared to learn how to fix it. I think I could almost work as a mechanic/auto elec/trimmer/welder after fixing nearly every part on my old 1987 Volvo 740 turbo. Everything broke on that thing (except for the turbo and motor internals). The worst part was not knowing what was going to break next.
on November 18th, 2008 at 1:11 pm
Julian, just to note, I don’t know if you can purchase a wiring diagram but it literally took me 10 seconds to find a free one on this site:
http://peugeot.mainspot.net/wiring307/index.shtml
Oh, and a friend has just recently sold his 306 GTi, due to the stress involved with it’s many recurring electrical faults. I drove that car and it wasn’t nice at all. Looked OK but horrid ergonomics, gearbox and build. After driving it I couldn’t believe they actually successfully rallied the GTi
on November 18th, 2008 at 1:29 pm
Rick, have a good look at the ‘diagrams’ on the site you have indicated. I don’t call those wiring diagrams. I found them when I was first looking.
on November 18th, 2008 at 1:39 pm
I initially thought the same, but if you scroll down and click on the ‘Elements’ another proper diagram will be loaded. ie:
http://peugeot.mainspot.net/wiring307/el6220s7s1.htm
LOCKING, UNLOCKING, DEADLOCKING OF DOORS
on November 18th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
Yeah, but no wiring colour codes, no complete systems shown, etc. Might be OK if you’re trying to fix one broken component, but not if you’re trying to trace systems or even see what components are actually there. For example, do the diesels use a MAP sensor? Dunno.
on November 18th, 2008 at 7:09 pm
I know your pain Julian, having worked on Citroens for the last few years. The ergonomics and build quality are terrible.
I have also worked on Saabs and they can be problematic also. But at least they have something good to make the ownership experience worthwhile (I do own one myself).
I spent some time with a Japanese car dealer awhile ago and left due to boredom – very little going wrong with them.
on November 18th, 2008 at 7:11 pm
And BTW Julian – you might find that the wires are actually coded, the stupid french don’t believe in colour coding these days. If it is like citroen it’ll have a 4-6 digit code.
on November 20th, 2008 at 11:14 pm
Julian,
Have you tried the “Revue Technique” series of technical publications? They go into a lot of technical details about the car in question and here at least (in France) are considered to be the reference. The only foreseeable problem is that it’s all in French.
http://www.auto-technique.fr/revue-technique/peugeot/307/185.html
Hope this helps,
Sami
on November 21st, 2008 at 10:54 am
When it comes to bulbs. Replacing a bulb is no big deal , replacing a bulb regularly is one though.
Perhaps the bulb that went wasn’t an original one , rather one that had been replaced after an accident.
When it comes to bulb failure , it pays to be very careful you don’t touch the glass when you replace a bulb otherwise it’ll fail earlier , that and use good quality bulbs.
on November 21st, 2008 at 1:25 pm
I’ve heard that about not touching bulbs before. Any idea how that happens?
on November 21st, 2008 at 8:55 pm
One of the main reasons why, when looking to buy a 4 cylinder turbo diesel hatch last year, I went for the Golf. I’ve heard far too much “chatter” about the general quality control of Frog cars to make me want to have laid down my hard earned on one. And for 42 year olds (going on 12 LOL!!!!!!) like myself, you can still get a few good modifying options. Standard 6 cylinder Falcons & Commodores are no faster in general driving conditions.
on November 26th, 2008 at 6:39 pm
Touching incandescent bulbs has no problems. Touching halogen bulbs and not cleaning the glass can leave dead skin, dirt and natural oils on the glass and cause overheating. This can be another cause of repeat failures.
“When it comes to bulbs. Replacing a bulb is no big deal”
Some car require the battery and housing/air intake ducting/air filter to be removed.
Some cars require the bumper/inner guard to be removed.
Some cars require the whole head light or tail light assembly to be removed.
Some cars owners manuals don’t give instuctions on how to remove the light assembly and recommend the vehicle be taken to a workshop.
Has any one taken their car to a workshop/dealershit to replace a light globe?
on November 27th, 2008 at 6:02 pm
How many cars are like that Jay? I’m betting not many. It’s the first I’ve heard of not being able to replace the bulb easily (although I’m sure there is the odd car out there which has been designed by an engineer on LSD).
on November 28th, 2008 at 7:53 am
Ze
If you’ve seen 5th Gear this year, they compared how long it takes to replace a headlight bulb in a Renault Megane, vs a VW Golf V.
The Megane took an hour or more and required removing a wheel and all sorts of malarky.
The Golf can be done one handed and in no time. While drinking tea, as demonstrated on the show.
on November 28th, 2008 at 10:35 am
One of my mates, who is an apprentice mechanic, spent over an hour swearing at his BA Falcon XR6 headlights trying to get new globes in. Although he may have just not read the manual…
on November 29th, 2008 at 6:10 pm
Changing a bulb in a Golf with one hand and in no time?
They must have changed the design then? When changing globes in the Polo (16V) I got rid of, you have to at a minimum undo the battery hold down clip and hold the battery out of the way to gain access to the LH light assembly. Our car and my mother-in-laws 16V Polo both blow globes on the LH side only, never yet on the RH side. I buy genuine globes from the dealer and don’t touch the glass yet they blow every 12mths or so. It definitely takes both hands and the cuppa goes cold b4 I’m done. I also have to agree about the Falcon saga, it’s not a good design but at least the globes last longer.
on November 30th, 2008 at 6:45 pm
Here are some examples from memory. The previous Golf/Audi A3/TT platform left front light assembly was the first to come to my mind. (I don’t know the current models, I’m not a mechanic any more)
The A3 TFSI requires the bumper bar to be removed for the left front indicator.
Some A4’s require the CAI ducting before the air filter to be removed. Porsche Cayenne and 996 front headlight assembly has to be removed. My presumption is a lot of modern cars are as difficult.
on December 1st, 2008 at 3:16 pm
doctorpat : Re the ABS/Wheel speed sensors. You might need to clean them.
If that doesn’t work something out there to try is the power side of the electrical system. My old man had hassles with the ABS light coming on in his 86 300E . We tried all the usual fixes (cleaning sensors , replacing relay). It ended up being that the alternator was on it’s way out and wasn’t put enough voltage out.
Darren : I’d suggest you try other bulbs then , I generally go for Hella’s.
on December 2nd, 2008 at 7:51 am
Tried that…
Unfortunatly for some reason (it’s a Euro car not designed for Australian conditions) if you buy aftermarket globes the lens assembly starts to craze and you need to replace the whole assembly…And yes I made sure I got UV protected globes.
The best fix was getting a new owner 🙂 Happy Days.
One other thing, when you hop into a Euro car converted to RH drive, turn on the A/C to max and you’ll find that the majority of the air coming out of the vents is directed at the passenger, not the driver. Because that’s where the driver used to sit.
on December 26th, 2008 at 4:04 pm
I always thought European cars were better, and after having a Renault Scenic for 3 1/2 years, am not convinced they are all crap. 90,000 klm and apart from a battery, only fault was a small electronic sender in the auto failed at about 9 months. The car was fantastic, even though I never liked the auto. It had trouble working out what gear it should be in, but not all the time. When it came to sell or trade in, the resale value was absolute crap, and this was before the current downturn. The first offer I had was $3000. Had no hope selling privately, but managed to get $7000 as a trade, finally. Brother traded his 3 year old Subaru in and got 45% of initial purchase price as a trade. Mine was 19% at best.
on January 27th, 2009 at 5:49 pm
Well I’d just like to point out how fantastically designed these Peugeots are. I have a 206 that’s just come up to 200,000 k’s. Not many problems to date but I must have just hit its designed lifetime. In the last couple of months – apart from a major service interval – the following has worn out or broken and then replaced: new clutch (pressure+friction plate, throwout bearing), lower front control arm bushes and knuckle, front disc rotors, diff side seals, rear drums-shoes-slave cylinder-spring kit, rear wheel bearings, new exhaust, both mufflers, exhaust mounts, new tappet cover gasket, headlights.
Broken, still unfixed: thermostat, dipstick handle, drivers door switch, gearknob(!), odometer numerals extinguished, air con (probably compressor), and various interior clips etc. that I don’t care about.
But, the parts are pretty cheap and it’s not too hard to fix… Harden up eh?!
on January 27th, 2009 at 7:32 pm
Y’know, over the last couple of months, nothing has broken on the 307 HDi. I really like the car when nothing breaks…
on January 29th, 2009 at 8:37 am
You’re tempting fate now….