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Sun 8 Jul 2012 11:06

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - 75_RJH

Hello all.

I’m a long time lurker at this site and now the latest in a long line of people looking for a bit of advice!

My wife has a 2004 Peugeot 307 1.4 HDI which we have owned from 3 months old that has now covered 54k. Knowing now of the reputation of French cars I’m not sure that we would make the same purchase today but, despite being a bit dull to drive, this car has been faultless in the 8 years that we have owned it and other than regular servicing, tyres, brakes and recently an exhaust there have been no unexpected costs.

My dilemma is this. In the last month the car has developed a couple of electrical faults. The water temperature sensor and one of the ABS sensors have started playing up and I have started to consider whether to spend money on this car or look for a replacement.

I’m not sure what I’d be looking at in terms of cost to fix these issues. The car still drives fine and I could live with the water temp one but the ABS fault causes the car to revert to regular servo assisted breaking so needs sorting. I would also look to get the timing belt and probably water pump replaced while the system was drained. In addition, I’m aware that this car has a DPF which relies on chemicals to regenerate which will need attention at some point.

I have around £10k for a replacement and would consider a convertible as the kids are now old enough to climb in and out of a 2 door car but then I keep thinking, the 307 is paid for, costs £30 per year VED, £250 to insure and returns 55 mpg (brim to brim).

I have looked at Audi A4 cabriolets but my £10k will get me a 5 year old car with similar mileage (1.8T). I would go for petrol as the car will only do about 4k miles per year.

Any other suggestions or advice welcome? (also, apologies for the length of the post!).

Cheers,

Rob

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Sun 8 Jul 2012 14:24

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - Armitage Shanks {p}

I'd take your Peugeot to an independent electrical workshop and get an opinion/quote. I have an 8 year old 90K miles 307 and it has been trouble free except for one failure to start (Fixed by AA and did not recur). Stick with what you know if it has been trouble free up to now, is my input FWIW!

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Sun 8 Jul 2012 14:31

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - gordonbennet

First of all welcome Rob.

Could be wrong but i don't think the 1.4HDi's had a DPF at this year, if they ever did on 307.

From the sounds of it a good Pug indy could sort these issues out at a reasonable cost, and it would make sense to get the cambelt/water pump changed at the same time...if you are intending to keep it.

The car does have a lot going for it, you know its history and its real mileage, thats something you can only guess at and hope for the best with another used car of similar mileage.

The way things are these days i'd be very tempted to wallop that £10k off the mortgage, though pardon me for sticking me oar in where its probably not wanted.

On the other hand your car might well sell quite well, that £30 VED and 50+ mpg will attract buyers, especially given its low mileage.

First thing i'd do is get a good Pug indy to diagnose the present faults, and then go from there.

2 door cars are a PITA with more than 2 people regularly using them, well IMO they are.

i've waffled on a bit too long again, so its goodbye from him..:-)

edit, clashed with Armitage.

Edited by gordonbennet on 08/07/2012 at 14:32

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Sun 8 Jul 2012 15:40

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - unthrottled

Another vote for "stick".

Although. as Avant often points out, the decision to buy a car is often based on the heart rather than the head.

Obviously, cars do eventually need to be replaced, but like moving house, it's best to only do it when there is a compelling reason to do so.

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Sun 8 Jul 2012 16:08

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - tony g

Hi rob,
Given that the car has been largely trouble free and is low mileage ,it's probably worth keeping for another two or three years ,the Peugeot is worth relatively little , so in terms of depreciation you could enjoy two or three years of cheap motoring .
Regards

Tony g

Edited by tony g on 08/07/2012 at 16:09

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Sun 8 Jul 2012 16:38

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - hallington

I'd look on auto trader for prices to help make your decision? Right now you might get £2000 maybe, but one a couple of years older might only be worth a few hundred?I wish I had traded my citroen xsara whilst it still had some value and hadn't developed a fault which meant I was without a car, looking for another?

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Sun 8 Jul 2012 20:22

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - Avant

Rob - picking up Unthrottled's point, this one is going to depend on whether your wife shares your logical view or has decided she wants a new car (I speak as married to one who has just ordered her fifth Mini)!

There is a case for keeping this one: French cars go wrong when they're not looked after, and you have treated yours well, it seems. If you can find an independent who will estimate for the repairs it needs now and perhaps give you his view of its general condition, you can decide on the basis of this. But if SWMBO has decided that she wants to change her ugly Frog (and 307s ARE ugly, nothing like the rather pretty 306) for a beautiful cabriolet, you will have trouble stopping her.

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Sun 8 Jul 2012 20:39

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - gordonbennet

Remember to tune in this time next week for another thrilling instalment of 'Avant's wife training for the hopeful'

Hopefully the bruises will be camouflaged with a little foundation creme by then....-:)

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Sun 8 Jul 2012 20:58

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - Bobbin Threadbare

But if SWMBO has decided that she wants to change her ugly Frog (and 307s ARE ugly, nothing like the rather pretty 306) for a beautiful cabriolet, you will have trouble stopping her.

Yes, yes you will. It is woman's prerogative to buy cars using heart rather than mind......she says as she looks out of the window at a ridiculous 2 seater to replace a motorway cruiser for commuting..............

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Mon 9 Jul 2012 09:32

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - 75_RJH

Thanks for your thoughts.

The heart vs head situation is spot on. For 10 years I was a company car driver until they changed the scheme to a cash alternative. I loved getting a new car every couple of years but the last one i had was 6 years ago. The company held on to these while the decision to change was made. I subsequently purchased mine (Toyota Avensis) and had it converted to run on LPG, a decision I will never regret but one that pretty much ties me to keep it forever!

So a couple of years down the line and I've been tucking the cash away each month, the first sign of a bit of trouble with the 307 and we've started the search for a replacement.

I think I'll get the work done in any case so I could look a potential buyer in the eye and tell them it's a straight car, but I think once it's done, it'll have another couple of years with us.

We did look at Minis on a PCP deal but rear leg room and boot were just too tight. Very well made cars though...

Rob.

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Mon 9 Jul 2012 11:25

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - unthrottled

she says as she looks out of the window at a ridiculous 2 seater to replace a motorway cruiser for commuting

I'd have thought that the MX5 would be a very good commuting car-apart from winter, but you don't get winter in Cumbria so it's not an issue!

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Mon 9 Jul 2012 11:57

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - SteveLee

My ex managed to stick her MX5 in a ditch the first sign of greasy conditions (and then moaned at me for not talking her out of buying it!) I put all-seaon tyres on it and then it was fine - even in the snow.

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Mon 9 Jul 2012 14:18

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - Bobbin Threadbare

I have never put a car into a ditch! The tyres on mine are Uniroyal Rainsport ones and they're pretty good (and quite new). Shouldn't have any problems in winter; I'll be on the motorway anyway.

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Mon 9 Jul 2012 15:19

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - bear807

If I were you, I would get rid of the car. As soon as minor problem appears, the big ones will be coming soon. For now you could still at least get 2k for it, you will be better off for this money an get a car. Otherwise it will worth very little in few years time. Get a i10 for something, basic transport good value 5 years warrenty. Lots of people seems to happy with the i10

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Mon 9 Jul 2012 16:55

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - unthrottled

As soon as minor problem appears, the big ones will be coming soon.

Based upon what? Using this logic, you would change a car every time the back box rusted or the brake pads wore down.

The worst part of the logic is the "better sell it whilst there's still some value in it". Since depreciation follows an exponential decay curve, the more value in the car, the bigger the losses.

There seems to a national belief that buying stuff saves you money. Usually buying stuff makes you poorer, not richer.

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Mon 9 Jul 2012 19:04

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - bear807

Of course i dont mean rusting or tiny faults, maybe electical fault?Is a matter of luck actually. Although I don't have proof for what I say. Throughout the life of your ownership, you may have been lucky. Everybody knows French car reliability, is has been proven with hard facts such as reliability index, customer satisfaction etc, hence there value. For example let's say your car worth 2000 and a major fault needs 500-1000 to repair+ labour, is it an economical repair? New cars might have a steep depreciation curve, but is only limit to very first few years and then slower for few years, till it reaches 6-7 years above it drops again. It is a psychological thinking getting rid whist there still value in it, but somehow people like me choose to do so, at least in your mind you feel better. Is really weird you know?

Edited by bear807 on 09/07/2012 at 19:14

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Mon 9 Jul 2012 19:59

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - unthrottled

Everybody knows French car reliability, is has been proven with hard facts such as reliability index, customer satisfaction etc, hence there value.

A lot of people have clocked up big miles on French cars. It is fair to say that PSA and Renault have lower reliability ratings than German, Japanese offerings. The kicker is that German and Japanese are more expensive-new or second hand.

But you have to be careful how you interpret statistics. If you compare murder rates for men and woman, you'll see that the per capita rates of homicide are much higher for men than woman. But for over 99% of the population, the murder rate is the same for men and women:zero.

I'd apply the same analogy to French cars.

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Mon 9 Jul 2012 23:50

Peugeot 307 - Twist or stick? - barney100

You will be better off moneywise hanging on to your Peugeot. Is there a local specialist you could go to for advice? Timing belt and water pump and a brake servo, that ain't going to cast anything like the 10 k you have to fund a new car......bottom line is changing your car starts the whole thing off again...a few months warranty that covers everything except what goes wrong and you are fixing the new car rather than the old one.

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