Peugeot 206 1.4 > Reviews (71)

If you're expecting a review contianing a long list of technical specifications and motoring jargon that sounds like it's written by an engineering expert then you're in the wrong place... This is my review on the Peugeot 206 (1.4 GLX model) and as such is hopefully written in a way that will make sense to everyone, from the car expert to the novice.

I took the plunge in August 2002 and ordered a brand new GLX... Approximately eight weeks later it arrived, and it was love at first sight...

LOOKS
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The 206 is a fairly small car - slightly larger than a Fiesta, not so big as an Astra. Looks-wise, it is quite a curvy car, with a stream-lined shape. One of the most recognisable things about the 206 are the lights at the front, which look slighly evil in the way that they slope backwards, almost feline like. Another immediately recognisable feature of the 206 is the two air vents on the right hand side of the bonnet.

Unlike the majority of other models of the 206, the GLX comes with alloy wheels which add to the overall 'sleekness' of the car. Other than the addition of the alloys, the GLX looks almost the same as any other model of 206 from the outside...

INSIDE
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So - what made me decide on the GLX if it looks the same as all the other models? The features on the inside, that's what!

After experiencing the weather of the last few months in my previous car, ranging from those glorious (too hot) summer days to the rainy miserable cold ones I was determined that my new car would have to make driving more comfortable - no more waiting forever for the heaters to warm up, and no more having to drive with the windows wound right down to get cool... The GLX boasts digital air conditioning with climate control. Basically that means there is a little display screen in the centre of the car where in most lower spec cars you would find the dials for hot and cold air. In this display screen is an outline picture of the car - in the centre is the temperature - you can adjust this up and down to your liking using simple 'up and down' buttons - once you've chosen the temperature you require the car does the rest, and within seconds the temperature is as you wanted it.

Another gadget that influenced my purchase... electric windows! Electric windows are fairly common in many vehicles these days, but are something I've never had in any of the vehicles I own. In addition, the door mirrors are electrically heated and operated.

And the best gadgets of all... the automatic headlights and windscreen wipers! A small sensor behind the mirror on the windscreen detects when it's starting to get dark, and, once it realises the light's not what it should be it automatically switches on your headlights! Similarly, if it senses that there is water on the windscreen it switches on the wipers to a suitable speed to cope with the amount of water it senses. Both these gadgets can be deactivated and over-ridden if necessary, but they don't half make you feel like you're driving a posh car!

There are two choices of trim for the interior of the GLX - either blue or green makran velour. These trim is treated with Scotchguard and makes the seats extremely soft and comfortable to sit in.

OTHER FEATURES
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The GLX comes complete with a 6 CD Multi-changer along with the radio-cassette player. The radio / cassette / CD player can all be operated through the stereo itself or through the stalk by the steering wheel. The stereo itself is good quality and cannot be faulted for the way in which it works, however in comparison to the rest of the car it lacks features, such as the ability to shuffle the order in which CD's are played / play random tracks, both features which are common with many other car stereo CD-changers.

The GLX comes with remote central locking and an alarm / immobilisor which are activated on locking the vehicle.

There are both driver and passenger airbags within the car, and the passenger airbag can be easily de-activated should it need to be, for example if you have a particular type of child seat in the front of the car.

Storage-wise the boot has ample space for shopping / suitcases considering the size of the car. The rear seats can be put down if extra space is required in the rear of the car, and just part of the rear seat can be put down if required. For long objects, the front passenger seat can also be folded down almost flat so the car can take a long item stretching from the front seat to the rear of the boot. The compartments in the doors are roomy enough to fit essentials in (like sweets and sunglasses!), and the glove box is also fairly roomy for a car of its size (there is enough room to easily store the handbook without taking up all the space). In addition there is a 'secret' storage compartment underneath the front passenger seat which can be used to temporarily store valuables out of sight.

COLOURS
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It had always been my dream to own a black car ever since even before I could drive, so when I opted to buy a brand new car I went for the colour I wanted. Luckily black is one of the options that the GLX is available in, however, be warned that if you are purchasing a brand new vehicle you often have to pay extra for certain colours - in the case of Peugeot's, black is one of the colours that costs extra (£200). There are a number of colours that don't cost any extra...

DRIVING
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It's a cliche, but this car does drive like a dream. Steering is light, and changing gear is easy and very smooth. The pedals seemed slightly close together at first, though I soon got used to this. The mirrors are easy to adjust for best vision, and the seat can be raised or lowered in addition to the usual features of moving backward and forward. The steering wheel height can also be adjusted to better suit the driver. The car handles very well and is very responsive (thanks to power steering!).

I have sat in the car as a passenger (well Dad's do insist they must test-drive any new vehicles in the family) and also found it to be a comfortable experience.

Plenty of leg-room and a comfortable seat! Being a fairly small car, passengers in the back don't perhaps get quite as much leg room as they'd get in a larger car, however it is certainly not cramped even with adults as back seat passengers.

PRICES
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It's very hard to comment on prices as these can be affected by dealer's offers, your choice of options / colour, and a multitude of other factors, however as a rough guide the total on the road price of my car was £11,295 (including registration / tax etc). When buying a new car there are always plenty of different financing options available and it wouldn't really be suitable for me to list those that were available to me here as no doubt they have changed in the couple of months since I ordered my car.

TO CONCLUDE
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I'm sure that you can probably tell that I'm extremely happy with my car and would certainly recommend it to any potential new car buyer. There's bound to be some features I haven't mentioned within this review, however I have tried to include as many of the features that I think make this car better than others I have driven. If you want more technical details about the vehicle they can be easily found on Peugeot's website or from a dealer. Thanks for reading, and I hope I didn't do too bad a job of my first car review!

Angeelu :o)