Peugeot 206 (1998 - 2009) 1.4 S 5d (AC) (2003/53) Owner Review

What does this car say about you?

It says I'm a bit of a boy racer whilst trying to avoid looking like a chav. It isn't the kind of car you would expect to see in supermarket car parks in the early hours of the morning doing burnouts and handbrake turns. Tinted windows and front fog lights make it look slightly unique compared to every other 206 on the road, without going to town with a chavtastic bodykit.

What do your friends / family / neighbours think of the car?

Friends moan about the lack of rear space but think it looks good, sounds good and goes well. Family see it as a safe and sensible small car which isn't going to rob me of all my money, and my neighbours see it as an unoffensive cheap car which won't wake them up at 3am with the music blaring or the tin can exhaust pipe causing a small earthquake.

Would you buy this car again and why?

Purely because of the way it drove, I would. But as my car had one fault after the other, I would definitely go for a much more modern one with at least half the miles. Mine was on just under 120,000 miles when I sold it a couple of weeks ago, which is just too much on a small car like this which doesn't have the best reliability or build quality in the world!!

What are you likely to buy next?

I have just bought a 2004 Vauxhall Corsa 1.2. I would like something newer and quicker but unfortunately being a 19 year old student I am very limited on what I can buy. Hopefully next year I will be able to upgrade to something a bit nicer like a Volkswagen Golf but for now the Corsa fixes the one complaint everyone had with my car, rear legroom!

Type of dealer you bought from?

Didn't buy from a dealer

Did you buy this car new?

No

What price did you pay?

£1,800

When did you buy the car?

January 2013

Did you get a good deal and why?

I got a good deal because not only was the price reasonable but because I'm friends with the previous owner. I knew that the car had been very well looked after.

Is there any special reason why you bought this car?

It belonged to a friend of mine and he was selling it for a very good price.

What was the dealer like?

What's it like to drive?

Despite the list of problems I have mentioned, I couldn't help love this car due to the way it drove. Compared to my old Fiesta, which many regard as the best handling supermini of that time, the 206 wasn't far off. The Fiesta had slightly more grip when going around long sweeping bends but other than that I preferred the way the Peugeot drove. You can feel every single imperfection in the road surface giving total confidence, and you always know which direction the wheels were pointing. I preferred the lack of grip, as although in many bends the Peugeot had to be driven slower, it felt more like you really were driving it on the limit, which I never really felt in the Fiesta. If I have one small moan it's that the body leans a little bit in bends, but it isn't excessively bad.

What's it like to park?

Not many cars are easier to park than this. You cannot see any of the bonnet from the driver's seat, even sitting right up, because it slopes downwards steeply but because it's so short after about 2 weeks of driving I knew exactly where the front end was and had no problems in getting it inches away from obstacles in tight spaces. The back window is large making reversing easy, and being so small it could be fitted into the narrowest of bays and tightest of parallel parking spaces with no problem at all.

Have you had any problems with the car?

It had a frequent fault where the engine would misfire and sound like it's running on 2 cylinders (sounded exactly like a VW campervan). Also had a problem when the engine was cold where it would lose all power and cut out. It also sometimes cut out as soon as you took your foot off the clutch, no matter how much gas you applied. The indicator and windscreen wiper stalk unit also had an electrical fault (apparently quite common) where the wipers would sometimes come on by themselves or not at all. This would be the same for the lights although not as often. Also every time I indicated right the stalk would start indicating left when self-cancelled, although I fixed this by shoving a piece of sponge inside the hole on the steering column.

What's most practical about your car?

Having 5 doors. After owning a 2002 Ford Fiesta 3 door for a year I would never go back. As someone who is forever carrying rear passengers 5 doors is a must as it just saves the hassle of people having to climb through to the back. Despite the 5 doors, rear legroom is very poor, and can only really seat 3 in comfort, with the passenger seat pulled right the way forward for whoever is sitting in the back. Only very petite girls were happy in either the middle seat or behind me, and I'm only 5ft 9. I tried sitting behind the seat in my position and my knees are pushed against the driver's seat. This also means that if someone tall is behind me that person's legs would be digging into my back, making longer journeys uncomfortable for both of us.

Favourite gadget, option or accessory?

The car doesn't really have many gadgets, but having a digital oil gauge helped as you don't have to get your hands dirty with a dipstick, and also seemed to be clever enough to give the same readings even if parked on a steep hill. Air conditioning is a must but that and the heater take a while to really kick into life. The steering column mounted audio controls are also a great idea and I probably wouldn't buy a car without them now. Mine had front and rear tinted windows too which looked great and made it a bit different from every other 206 on the road. If there's one thing it needed to be better it's alloy wheels, however I kept the dinner plate plastic covers as I was still new to driving and if I kerbed them (which I did, a lot) I didn't care.