RE: Peugeot 306 Rallye | Spotted

[TobyM5]

J4CKO said:

Yeah, I was about to go for an M3/M4 after an M135i but bailed on it as my son was sellign the FIesta. I just like it being light and quick, I did spend 5 grand having it tuned though. I struggle to decide what I would get next and the big M cars, though amazing are more car than I need and probably less fun with added peril to my license. I think a 911 would be a suitable replacement but wouldnt want to spend another 30 grand just yet.

On the 911 I would try and get a decent drive in one for the day, they are a very different experience to most cars, my Turbo S is of course 4WD but it does understeer way too much for my liking, totally opposite to the Rallye but its 'character'. I personally love the big M's and was lucky enough to enjoy the F10 M5 and later two M6 Gran Coupes from new, they were brilliant all rounders that I used for daily commutes and family holidays, I'd have another but not the latest from BMW, they just leave me cold.

[Limpet]

TobyM5 said:

Sounds terrible, I'm glad I used to do all the work on my 306 myself but I never suffered many issues, my wife also had a 1997 R reg D turbo sport which was pretty good, that had a clutch in it and a door window motor but otherwise pretty reliable, I reckon we had it 5 years and 60,000 miles.
Clutches were bad on these, they were a pull type release bearing integrated with the cover plate from memory and never felt brilliant even when changed, I think I need to look at the one on my car, on my old China blue one I supercharged it and changed the clutch to a conventional push type release bearing from the 405 MI16 I believe with a different clutch cable bracket.

My current Rallye came with a folder of receipts dating back to 2001, masses of work done, including heater matrix, last year it had radiator, oil cooler, pipes, cambelt, water pump, it's also had the idling sorted, runs a treat now but it wants one or two minor things doing, a little paint. I'm glad it hasn't all the stuff to go wrong a GTI-6 has.

The main issues I remember the 306 suffering from back in the day were wiring related. Even when they were relatively new, it wasn't uncommon to find wiring failures in the seatbelt pretensioner connectors under the front seats (causing a flashing airbag light), and weird issues with locking, electric windows and rear wash wipe caused by broken wires where the harness passed into the front doors and tailgate.

Mechanically they were pretty good, although the GTI-6 and Rallye cambelts were always known for failing prematurely, and shorter intervals were generally accepted to be a good idea.

They resist rust really well, which is why the rust repairs on this one in 2020 ring alarm bells.

[PhillipM]

Nah, they resist rust better than most that age but they still suffer - rear nearside inner arch behind the seat/false petrol cap goes - you'll never know unless you check or your seatbelt mount falls out - and they rust under the B-pillar on the sill from the inside out so you don't know until it's well gone.

[TobyM5]

Limpet said:

The main issues I remember the 306 suffering from back in the day were wiring related. Even when they were relatively new, it wasn't uncommon to find wiring failures in the seatbelt pretensioner connectors under the front seats (causing a flashing airbag light), and weird issues with locking, electric windows and rear wash wipe caused by broken wires where the harness passed into the front doors and tailgate.

Mechanically they were pretty good, although the GTI-6 and Rallye cambelts were always known for failing prematurely, and shorter intervals were generally accepted to be a good idea.

They resist rust really well, which is why the rust repairs on this one in 2020 ring alarm bells.

Ahhh yes I remember the wiring issue with seatbelt pretensioners and the airbag light, common as you say. The door looms are the one I remember, the problem was too many cables bundled together tightly over a short distance, basically every time the door was opened and closed it screwed the cables together like wringing out a cloth so they gradually started to break one by one and of course then everything from locking, alarm, speaker, electric mirrors, electric window, temp sensor issues.

Yup cambelts to be done more regularly than the original stated which could have been 48k? Mine was done end of last year so should be ok for a while.

Rust just eventually starts anywhere after 20 years of the shell flexing and the underside being subject to things hitting it and dheads jacking the car up badly in the wrong places and exposing the bare metal. Peugeots were generally good, I have an original 205 GTi brochure and there is a big thing about anti corrosion (back then cars rotted out in a few years!) and from experience 205's were great for a good 15-20 years as long as they hadn't been painted or crash damage repaired, same with the 306.

[MTK1919]

TheMilkyBarKid said:

Last MOT expired March 2010 but it passed the year before at 86K miles and the list of advisories wasn’t by any means terminal. Hopefully it’s holed up in a barn somewhere waiting to be brought back to life?

That’s not too long after I sold it (if I recall). I had a company car not too after.

[GTRene]

I almost forgot about the Peugeot 306 I liked from the outside, the 306 Maxi



they also sold kits like that, guess also Dimma

[Jex]

Reg Local rates these

[Miggers]

Owned a 306 Hdi D Turbo for nearly 10 years.

Only 90 brake under the lid(I know,I could've had it re-mapped)but the handling,braking and ride
were just superb.

[R400TVR]

9k rpm said:

Ah this really is from the halcyon days of hot hatches….. low weight, less than 200bhp and lift off oversteer. What’s not to like! I’d love to see a back to back test between this and say a 2022 Fiesta St. I’d imagine similar size but very very different.

Sadly, the Festa works probably won't most tests. The fact that the 306 has more steering feel than probably anything on sale now (bar specialist things, of course), more compliant suspension and that beautiful ride quality of 90's Peugeot cars, and a better sounding engine workout pops, crackles and bangs would be completely missed. The Fiesta has screens, connectivity, driving modes, better fuel economy, and other such crap.

[R400TVR]

TobyM5 said:

As I said earlier you are restricted by the laws of physics so a lightweight Peugeot 306 should be able to manage a bend like the bloated AMG, granted the suspension might be slightly better in the AMG and it will be able to get its far greater power down sooner with trick diffs all managed by computer but if and when things go beyond a point the speed you exit the road are likely to be so much higher.

It depends on how you look at it! The suspension in the 306 is set-up to give a good ride quality, and provide great response and handling. That's without having to go through 'modes' to get there. The A45 had a ride that's stiffer than steel at low speeds, and that only gets firmer as the modes are used. The 306 will also give you some body roll, so you can feel what the car is doing, something that modern cars will not.
That's what modern cars are lacking, the interaction and feel. In my opinion, of course.

[j-fnn0y]

I am the proud owner of a mint red 306 rallye that has been fully restored . Its my second car for weekends. Its epic to drive , and sounds fantastic. I can say for sure its slightly quicker than the 6, ive had some great cars in the past and this is way up there with them . I bought it as I wanted an affordable hot hatch from the 90's plus I love driving it!
Reg included S344 FBB, paid 5k for it in 2020 probably worth about 8' buy hey I didnt buy it to make money I bought it to enjoy
Cheers

Edited by j-fnn0y on Sunday 10th April 22:44

Edited by j-fnn0y on Sunday 10th April 22:45

[j-fnn0y]

cerb4.5lee said:

Nu57jez9639 said:

Never scene the appeal of Rallye models , can understand someone wanting a GTi -6 but not a car that's just really about the engine and saving weight , does look well for its age though .

I remember being a bit underwelmed about the Rallye model at the time as well. I've always wanted a GTi-6 though.

I’ve had both and still have the Rallye, it’s way more fun quicker then the 6

[j-fnn0y]

JAMSXR said:

86wasagoodyear said:

JAMSXR said:

Are people really buying these things as an investment though? I’m probably wrong but I thought it was more a case of kids from the 70s & 80s growing up, making money, and now competing for their piece of automotive nostalgia.

My mum carted me about in an early 205 gti for the first 5-years of my life, got to say I’ve been tempted to pay relative silly money for one - thankfully my mrs keeps me in check.

My Dad had boggo 205s when I was a kid. I loved them, and the 205 T16 that was cleaning up in Group B at the time. More recently I got tempted to pay relatively silly money (ignoring the wife) for a 205 GTI and it's completely brilliant. You know you want to.. and you should !

Did you go 1.9 or 1.6? I’m not sure the 1.9 is worth the extra cash.

I’ve got to say it’s far more appealing to me compared to any of the new hot hatches.

Edited by JAMSXR on Thursday 10th February 12:57

I bought mine to drive and that’s exactly what I’ve just done today Feb 2023

[j-fnn0y]

Mysstree said:

Young lad at work has just bought an old 206 Peugeot and it has the typical old French car electrical problems that i myself experienced with old French cars. Would not go anywhere near this no matter how well it may have been looked after.

I do wonder when this bubble of rising prices on old motors will burst. Some people are really going to be caught out.

The price is going one way only and that’s up, just took mine out of the garage today for a drive Feb 2023

[spreadsheet monkey]

Nu57jez9639 said:

Never scene the appeal of Rallye models , can understand someone wanting a GTi -6 but not a car that's just really about the engine and saving weight , does look well for its age though .

When new, they were significantly cheaper than the GTI-6. Apparently the Rallye was only sold in the UK, not the rest of Europe.

Richard Porter wrote a good column in Evo about the 306 Rallye, including the excellent paragraph: "Buying a Rallye was a way of saying, ‘I’m quite prepared to be sweaty and inconvenienced because I truly care about driving.’ In all mechanical ways, the Rallye was identical to its better-specced sister and if you claim you can feel the dynamic difference brought on by that slight reduction in mass I’m afraid you’re talking bks".

https://www.evo.co.uk/opinion/19561/cars-are-often...

I can appreciate that when looking at 20+ year old cars, the A/C will probably be broken, and the sunroof is just a potential source of water leaks, so the Rallye holds more appeal.

Edited by spreadsheet monkey on Monday 20th February 14:44

[Si_man306]

Limpet said:

The best handling FWD car I have ever driven, by a mile.

Ditto, had 3 306's, all steadfast reliable, tracked all of them. Have to say never saw a single electrical gremlin. The rallye took 4 of us to the 'ring, 25 laps and back again without missing a beat. After selling it with regret the chap lift off oversteered into a barrier within weeks....ugh.

[j-fnn0y]

My Rallye Jan 2025