Friday 21st March 2014

Shed of the Week: Peugeot 106 GTI

With the RCZ R rekindling interest in hot Peugeots, Shed seeks out a hero from the back catalogue

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Mrs Shed can be quite a demanding woman, expecting conjugal relations on an impossibly frequent basis, sometimes more than once a year. As the dutiful husband, Shed is determined to fulfil his marital obligations every February 29th without fail, come hell or high water. As far as he is concerned, anything else is a bonus. For her.

He is equally firm when the time comes round for Mrs Shed's ten-yearly car change. He always makes sure to choose the best possible vehicle for his needs. Sorry, that should of course have read 'her' needs.

A completely standard 106 GTI. Really

This week's offering strikes Shed as the perfect runaround for him. Or Mrs Shed.

Something has gone slightly wrong in the last few years, but back in the 1980s you were still allowed to have some fun on the roads. Peugeot's 1991 launch of the 106 opened up many of the roads to joy. Sprite-like and largely unencumbered by big metal bars designed to protect you in an accident, even the titchiest-engined models could bring tears of joy to committed drivers. 106s were slightly heavier than the earlier 205, but that wasn't much of an issue if you were behind the wheel of a 120hp 1.6-litre Peugeot 106 GTI, one of the last joyful hurrahs of that happier time.

Clarkson called the 106 GTI the second best handling car of all time. Evo described it as so focused, it was almost on fire. On the road, there wasn't much to choose between the Peugeot and the equivalent Saxo, the identically-engined 120hp VTS. The 15kg lighter Cit had a small 0-60mph advantage, but that was counterbalanced by a general view that the Peugeot had tidier handling. Even at 950kg it was hardly lardy. It was cheaper to insure and somehow classier than the Saxo, but both were an absolute hoot to drive, with pin-sharp steering, terrier-like front-end grip and a lovely suspension compromise between compliance and discipline - an increasingly elusive mix these days.

Foibles fixed and ready to enjoy!

Now, this may come as a surprise to some, but cars like the 106 GTI tend to be driven quite hard. This need not be a bad thing, but you should pay at least passing heed to the state of the cambelt (it's a right mess when they snap) and the catalytic converter: regular exploration of the rev limiter zone will fatigue it. Poor running will often be a crumbly cat.

Driveshafts, clutches, gearboxes and linkages all take a pounding, and play in the suspension is common. Trailing arm bearings are known for failing. If that's happened, fitting uprated torsion bars isn't a bad shout while you're re-beaming and polybushing the back end, and you might as well braid up the brake lines while you're under there: the standard braking set-up depends on you keeping on top of it if you want it to be on a par with the performance. Upgrading to 306 XSI or 206 GTi calipers is a good move.

GTIs can chomp through airflow or crankshaft sensors. You will experience weird electrical foibles, some of them from the alarm system, some from chafed wiring. Power steering pumps might go missing, but might also re-awaken with a smart tap from a hammer. The sunshine roof might dampen your syrup every now and then.

Many a 'faster' car will see this (maybe)

Our Shed has had just about every weak point addressed and fixed in the last two years. The mileage might seem on the high side, but these are tough little cars. Petrol 106s will easily go for two years without major servicing. Unmolested GTIs come up about as regularly as a politician's kept promise, so this one is worthy of further investigation.

The spine-twistingly offset driving position and small footwell won't please everyone, least of all Mrs Shed who possesses feet with all the delicacy and grace of an estuarial dredger. Never mind though, she can always get the bus.

Here's the ad.

Peugeot 106 GTI
First Registered in April 2003
Moonstone Blue paint colour
Mileage: 125,000 approx.
MOT till Feb 2015
Tax till Dec 2014
Number of Previous owners: 3

GOOD POINTS:
Standard, with no modifications.
Every MOT certificate from July 2009.
Rear Beam rebuilt in March 2011.
New NSF & OSR ABS sensors Feb 2012
New Rear Dampers June 2012
New D/S Driveshaft July 2012
New N/S Driveshaft April 2013
New Lower Arms April 2013
Refurbished power steering pump April 2013
20,000 Service carried out in July 2013, which included: Resealing of the cam carriers, new cam belt, new front pads and discs and oil + filter change.
New alternator August 2013
New drop link, shock absorber top mountings, new front coil springs, new mid rear exhaust sections and underbody wax oiled. November 2013.
I have the receipts for all of the above.
Sunroof resealed and drains pipes cleared, Jan 2014.
Car starts every time and has not let me down. Engine pulls in every gear, does not smoke and barely use oil or water

 

BAD POINTS
Remote central locking no longer works. Have to use the key to lock and unlock the car. After being broken into in November 2011 the door locks were changed due to damage, thus a different key is used to enter the car than to start it.
The rear boot locked seized and was replaced, again another key is needed to lock / unlock the boot. Leather around top of gearstick has come away due to stitching breaking. The fuel gauge does not read properly until the last third of a tank is remaining.

Reason for sale: Bought another 106 GTI (my third) that had done 37,000 miles.
Car is located in Sutton Coldfield, B73.
Viewings welcome: Please call 0797159837 to arrange.
£1000 o.n.o

[fin racer]

an epic shed this week, return to form?

[GregorFuk]

I loved mine though I did throw it backwards into the weeds. Once it was all fixed I loved it again.

Great cars and surprisingly quick in their day. I remember to repeatedly losing no more than half a car length to a Impreza turbos at the local drag strip.

[Triumph Man]

Tempted to buy a small nippy car to supplement the beemer... Re the fuel gauge, surely the last third is exactly when you want it to read correctly! Rather that than it suddenly stops working when it hits a third of a tank!

[BFleming]

£280/year to tax this... or 28% on top of the purchase price... Ouch! It is currently taxed until December though, which I assume comes with the car. Group 25 insurance too... double ouch.
High running costs for what it is, but I'm sure some 'man maths' reduction factor could be applied ;-)

[dukebox9reg]

So much cooler than the Chav-tastic Saxo VTS with the default bean can exhaust and torsion bar wound to the floor.

Surprised you dont see more of these go the same way though. Don't see many GTI's anymore. Still see the odd Quicksilver though.

[k-ink]

I had a brand new one back in the day. The difference between a mint car and the typical shed you see today is night and day. A poor example will drive like a bag of crap. The only way you'll know how great these are is to get into a perfect one. If one even exists now.

[dukebox9reg]

Lol 3 keys to use the car fully.

[Krikkit]

k-ink said:

I had a brand new one back in the day. The difference between a mint car and the typical shed you see today is night and day. A poor example will drive like a bag of crap. The only way you'll know how great these are is to get into a perfect one. If one even exists now.

There are a few out there, but a full suspension refresh (new springs, bushes and dampers) is a £300 job if you're handy with spanners, and the difference is night and day!

Cracking shed, a truly brilliant car.

[J4CKO]

k-ink said:

I had a brand new one back in the day. The difference between a mint car and the typical shed you see today is night and day. A poor example will drive like a bag of crap. The only way you'll know how great these are is to get into a perfect one. If one even exists now.

This one looks straight enough in the body which is the difficult bit to sort out, as long as the engine and box are ok all the bits that make it drive like crap are easy to change.

I used to end up buying Mk1 and Mk2 Golf GTI's and for a relatively small outlay, a weekend spent and some skinned knuckles you coudl turn a saggy old shed into something approximating what it was meant to be, refurb the gear linkage, some cheap new shocks from Euro Car Parts, free the rear calipers off, adjust the bell crank on the Mk1 and it made a hell of a difference, cant imagine these are much different ?

Suprised there are any of these at shed money, given the glowing praise it got then, and now, I remember one having a go when I had an 850 T5, it was all over me despite another 100 odd bhp, quick little cars.

[Krikkit]

J4CKO said:

Suprised there are any of these at shed money, given the glowing praise it got then, and now, I remember one having a go when I had an 850 T5, it was all over me despite another 100 odd bhp, quick little cars.

The ones that are neglected quickly fall down here - rust can often be an issue, combined with tatty visible bodywork and a myriad of mechanical niggles mean they get scrapped/sold for sub-bag, but they're often too far gone.

[James1972]

I think the ad should read 'I love 106GTI's so much I've gone and found a decent one and now I need to sell my money pit shed'.
Definitely one to test drive and find out if the sum of all the repairs is a good little runner

[sandman77]

GregorFuk said:

I remember to repeatedly losing no more than half a car length to a Impreza turbos at the local drag strip.

0-60 in over 8 seconds in the GTI and front wheel drive. I imagine you lost to a 4WD impreza turbo by more than 1/2 a car length.

[J4CKO]

Love the way the engine "Pulls in every gear", as opposed to what, it having a deep mistrust of second and a difficult relationship with fourth ?

[Liquid Tuna]

J4CKO said:

Love the way the engine "Pulls in every gear", as opposed to what, it having a deep mistrust of second and a difficult relationship with fourth ?

They just mean it doesn't run out of puff further up the gears.

A great shed. My friend bought one new when they came out. Was a great car to drive. One of the last good hot Peugeot hatches.

[geeks]

sandman77 said:

0-60 in over 8 seconds in the GTI and front wheel drive. I imagine you lost to a 4WD impreza turbo by more than 1/2 a car length.

7 dead for most of them, however that is still more than a car length on an Impreza race, but in non-turbo form the Impreza would lose, by a lot.

[graham22]

Looked & test drove one a few years ago when looking for a cheap car due to financial issues imposed by the ex.

It had many of the above faults plus an outside mirror falling off, felt brisk but by the end of the test drive the rattles & general flimsiness out weighed the fun factor.

Bought an Ibiza Cupra 20VT for just a little more, was a lot nicer drive.

[ambuletz]

If the 106 GTi came second, what did clarkson say was the best handling car of the 90s?

[dbdb]

Hot hatches are not my thing, but these little Peugeots drive exceedingly well. It is a good Shed of the week. There have been some good choices lately.

[vtecyo]

ambuletz said:

If the 106 GTi came second, what did clarkson say was the best handling car of the 90s?

Ferrari 550.

[Limpet]

We had an XSi phase 1 in the late 90s. Brilliant little car and despite feeling alarmingly flimsy, was clockwork reliable and drove brilliantly, even when sold with 80k on it. Always hankered after a GTI.

Best shed in weeks.