I'm leaning towards a 180 206gti as i'm fed up with my S40 turbo - the 206s i'm looking at are 2003/2004 models with low mileage.

I've read about problems on the 206s (cutting out, etc) but was hoping there would be owners or previous owners on here who could give an honest opinion on the cars (reliability, running costs, etc)

Thanks

 

you would be better with a 172/182 to be honest buddy... or maybe even the last of the 106 gti's...

The 206 seems very underpowered, and the handling very ropy...

just my 2p's worth.

 

I had a 172 a couple of years ago (51 plate), thought about another or a 182 but would it would be going backwards.
Thought about a CTR but for the same money the car would be a couple of years older (or 3) and have a lot more miles

Had VWs, Seats, (1.8Ts), scoobs, Fabia VRS (chipped), mini cooper, ST170, 325ci (nice - should have kept it) so looking for a hot hatch - the 206 looks ideal - smallish (only me using it), newish (still got some manuf warranty left), decent spec as standard, nippyish (not blistering but ok)

 

Robby, in all honesty then buddy, i would stick with a 182, you can pick a 2 year old one, for literally pennies at the moment cos they aint selling..

They are very, very underestimated.. go for a full fat one tho

 

at the end of the day they are still a pug! cheap little french car! Go on The Peugeot 206 Info Exchange they have a decent forum there,

they are nice cars but i wouldnt buy one if your looking for reliability!

 

The 206 has always been the lame duck of the Peugeot family, the other hot Pugs that went before them were superb, but somehow they never got it quite right this time...

 

206 GTi 180 is crap compared to most of its rivals, I'd seriously not bother with one..........

That and it looks like a birds car

 

had a 172 cup and use to kill the 206 gtis and 180s all day long get the clio goes round bends a lot better as well

 

Hi Robby,

We still have a 206 GTI 180 in our family, 3 years now and still going strong however it has had a few problems mainly with the ECU at the start of its life.

- Power steering unit needed replacing
- Wheels take a few knocks due to the low profile tyres
- Alarm, horn would go off for no reason
- ECU would set itself to 'safe mode'.

All probs have been sorted under warranty, and to be honest electric probs etc seem common on todays pugs not just the 206 model.

The car has a harsh ride on our bumpy pot hole roads, but when the road is smooth (rare) the car really does perform well. As for the engine, you have to work it to get results but its not that slow its actually rather quick, one magazine hit 0-60 in 6.9 secs I recall, and on the gtech it's hit (6.6, to compare my scoob did 5.8). The gear change is ok, still nothing to get excited about, and 1st gear is extremely tall.

The driving position has improved from the old 206 gti, but i'm 6'1" and still have issues with the pedal positions, but you adapt quickly. The seats are a lot better than the old gti.

I think the car looks good, not that girly, drives well, and is pretty quick.

I would go test drive one for yourself, opinions are great but some people will give an opinion having never driven one, and you never know it could be the car for you!

M.

 

Nail......head!

 

I've just bourght a 206 to use as a track day/weekend car..

Mine has the 138 engine but has some different bits and pieces on/in the engine so it goes pretty well

Some more info here..

Four Butterflies

I used to own the car when it was full of leather, etc and it was a great drive. The throttle bodies sound fantastic if nothing else

As someone said above, go and take one for a run. There are alot worse cars to own than a peugeot, there are also better ones for 180 money. I didn't pay a great deal for my 206 which is one of the many reasons i wanted it back!

 

I've had the pleasure of being out in my mate's 206 Gti (non-180), and to be honest, yeh, it was OK. My fault for comparing it to (a) my Scoobs, (b) my current car, and (c) wifey's GTi6........

The GTi6 is a much more rewarding car (IMHO) - getting a bit long in the tooth now, but again, IMHO Peugeot haven't made a decent hot hatch since......

It might be the car for you though - best of luck.

Dan

 

Cheers - i've put a deposit down on 1 today and will be collecting it on saturday
it's registered 04/04 so i'll still have 5 months pug warranty to get any faults sorted

hope i've done the right thing............................

 

Hi mate i dont think you will be dissapointed with your choice.

Over the past few years i also had a 280bhp scoob, 2x CTRs, Clio 182 cupped, and a Fabia VRS.

When buying the 206 GTI 180 i was also worrying about reliability issues, but i can tell you from here, its bloody better put together than the clio 182 and thats a fact, my 182 was never out of reno(hence why i got rid).

The interior in the pug is none to bad, all the toys, comfy hugging seats and better finished IMO than the clio.

Performance wise i thought initially that it was down on the 182, but a panel filter later and getting used to the machine, i can honestly put it up there with the other hot hatch contenders. Straight line, yeh it may well fall short of the CTR above the ton, but on handling i can honestly say it will hold its own with the rest of them, the handling is precise, excellent steering feel and feedback. There is also a nice throatty induction roar.

As for build quality long term, i dont know, thats why i bought one with over a years warranty, and to be honest i dont actually know if i would keep it past warranty, ie due to reputation of build quality/expensive parts and labour. But for what i paid for the car, it was an absoloute steal, and i am pretty sure come next christmas i will be making my money back on it.

This car IMO recieved very bad press journo, something that i feel was unduly called for.


Paul

 

Cheers Paul - will get a panel filter (getting too old for induction kits) and possibly a remap which is supposed to put it up to 195bhp

 

Yeh seemingly the induction kits tested on the 180 did not recieve very good praise or gains, same as exhaust systems custom made, poor figures on dyno, heard good reports about the scorpion, seems like the one to have. Its the same old story with the panel filter, dont know how much of a difference it really makes in terms of road performance, but even if it is psychological,lol it works for me. Does as ususal improve throttle response and low end grunt, that i would say.

Try this website if you aint already found it, there is a dedicated section to the 180

Peugeot Sport Official Owners Club


Cheers

Paul

 

I was going to buy one of these back in 2003 before I got my spec c
Dont be put off by "its crap, not as good as a 182 etc" but it didnt rock my boat, and ive owned a few peugeot hot hatches (last 3 have been 306's of which 2 were GTI's and 1 S16).

Its slow..... errrrrrm no its not slow, its actually quite nippy, quicker than you think but you dont feel it from a small car like this.
It handles badly...... nope not that either, it sticks to the road, I was quite impressed.
It has a long first gear..... and second gear also, THAT seemed an age just changing to 3rd gear, probably THE biggest problem with this car.
Seats are comfy.... yup they do hug you BUT the pedals suck, you are off set in where your feet are, hated that.

Overall, its a good little hot hatch, better in many ways over the renault yet also not as good, its not as rewarding but you wont be taking it back into the dealer every 2 weeks when something else has broken off the renault, and its still a fun car to drive.
As stated, test drive it, if you can live with its ups and downs then buy one, they are pretty good vfm now and the 2ltr is sweet though its a shame they didnt put a 6 speed box in it, that would have made a difference.

Tony

 

Yeh, he'd end up with a cr@p turning circle, like us GTi6 boys!!

Dan

 

The 206 GTI is rubbish... sorry, but it's just bad. Just about all the alternatives are better. I recommend a Clio.

 

We are talking about the GTi 180, not the standard GTi, which I have to agree with you, 138bhp and sucks, the 180 on the other hand is much better but still didnt hit the right notes for me

Tony

 

I had a tangle with one in a fiat coupe 20v turbo at the time, the 180 more or less matched me up until triple figures, we it would have lost, spoke to the fella, who said he had a rallye engine in it, not sure what bhp that would be but it matched my standard 220bhp coupe, at the time.

 

well went to pick it up today and found the o/s/r wing was a different shade of blue - not impressed so decided to leave it (it would have put me off the car knowing it'd had damage in the past), ended up travelling another 100miles (round trip) and spending an extra £500 to get another 1 which is mint

picking this 1 up later this week.....................

 

Dont you just love the one liners, "Its rubbish because i said, so there".

Well explain how its so bad, thats assuming your talking about the GTI 180 and not the original GTI. Have you actaully owned one then, and a test drive of 30mins does not equate to an overall pointed opinion. If you have owned one then, fair do's, each to there own.

So enlighten us



Paul

 

Good choice Robby, i would not have touched it either. Well spotted


Paul

 

It was because i was waiting a while for the salesguy as he was with another customer that i kept going around the car. The sun was shing and it was from a certain angle (front corner) that i first noticed it. It was a perfect paintjob, just the wrong shade

glad i was kept waiting or i'd have driven it home and not realised until it was in the garage under the lights

This was the 2nd i looked at - the first has a dent approx 15" long down the drivers side windscreen pillar - that was described as mint as well ?

 

Its amazing what some dealerships class as mint.lol

Paul

 

Im glad that you found one you liked Robby they are a good car, just that it wasnt one for me but then again ive big feet
Cars are personal choice, its got enough grunt and grip to keep you happy which is what you want and they dont look that bad either, plus the interior and the standard equipment is very good just go and enjoy it

Tony

 

well picking the new 1 up thursday night after work - 40mile drive home should see what it's like

 

nice cars, really not much in it between the clios, esp straight line

 

I wasn't thinking of which car is the quickest (172, 182, ST, etc) as it'll be driven to + from work 99% of the time (8 miles each way) - i was looking for a car which is nippy, good looking (206 still looks modern for a 8 year old car), cheapish to run.
The 136 GTI was what i was looking at the other week but as i'd get bored and want to start adding 180 bits i thought it'd be better to get the 180 to start with.
I'll be fitting a green filter (element)+ remap so that should make it fun without being OTT