... It generates 193Nm of torque at 5500 rpm and revs all the way to 7300rpm!! Most importantly, the Gti-6 was the first mass produced car to utilise a 6-speed gearbox!
The Rallye:
Peugeot actually produced two cars that used the 167BHP engine and 6-speed gearbox. The GTi-6, was introduced ... Read review
Advantages: Great looks, performance and fun factor Disadvantages: Reliability
...
The Rallye:
Peugeot actually produced two cars that used the 167BHP engine and 6-speed gearbox. The GTi-6, was introduced in 1996 and replaced the 155BHP 5-speed S-16. The 306 Rallye, introduced in 1998, is actually a lightweight, stripped out Gti-6, using the same mechanical underpinnings but losing luxuries such as electric windows, sun roof, leather seats, air conditioning and fog lights to name a few. This makes the Rallye 52Kg ... ...Gti-6s lifetime (1997 - 2002) Peugeot have made several revamps. The Phase 1 Gti-6 (01/02/1996 - 01/02/1998) was introduced with, ABS, air con, part leather seats, drivers airbag, 15" Peugeot Cyclone alloys, side skirts and spoiler. The phase 2 (01/02/1998 - 01/06/1999) has the addition of passenger and side airbags, leather/alcantara sports seats and a CD autochanger as well as receiving the facelighted 306 headlights, grille, front bumper, ... more
I have owned my Gti-6 now for little over 1 year and I can say that it is most involving drive I have ever experienced. I have therefore been compelled to write this review and buyers guide in the hope that it can be of help to potential buyers and to dismiss a lot of the myths and rumours out there in other guides and on the internet.
The Engine: The Gti-6 has a 2.0l normally aspirated 16valve 4 cylinder engine that puts out 167BHP at 6500rpm. It generates 193Nm of torque at 5500 rpm and revs all the way to 7300rpm!! Most importantly, the Gti-6 was the first mass produced car to utilise a 6-speed gearbox!
The Rallye: Peugeot actually produced two cars that used the 167BHP engine and 6-speed gearbox. The GTi-6, was introduced in 1996 and replaced the 155BHP 5-speed S-16. The 306 Rallye, introduced in 1998, is actually a lightweight, stripped out Gti-6, using the same mechanical underpinnings but losing luxuries such as electric windows, sun roof, leather seats, air conditioning and fog lights to name a few. This makes the Rallye 52Kg lighter than the 6, giving it a slightly faster 0-60 time.
History: During the Gti-6s lifetime (1997 - 2002) Peugeot have made several revamps. The Phase 1 Gti-6 (01/02/1996 - 01/02/1998) was introduced with, ABS, air con, part leather seats, drivers airbag, 15" Peugeot Cyclone alloys, side skirts and spoiler. The phase 2 (01/02/1998 - 01/06/1999) has the addition of passenger and side airbags, leather/alcantara sports seats and a CD autochanger as well as receiving the facelighted 306 headlights, grille, front bumper, rear bumper, boot hatch and rear lights. The Phase 3 (the latest revision) includes crystal clear headlights and fogs, colour coded side strips and side skirts and various small interior updates. It is important to note however, that Peugeot did not rigidly stick to these dates and there are quite a few 6s out there that have a mix of phase1/phase2 parts and similarly phase2/phase3 parts.
Performance: The 2litre na engine pumps out 167BHP. This can propel the car to 60 in around 7.4 seconds and on to a top speed of 140MPH. The Rallye fairs slightly better with its lower weight and can get to 60 in 6.9. The reason these figures appear to differ in a lot of reviews of the car is entirely Peugeot's fault. Peugeot's stated 0-60 time for the Gti-6 is 8.5 seconds, however, the small print in the Peugeot literature states that this 0-60 time is for a full laden car with passengers and luggage. I've been told that Peugeot deliberately gave these figures as an attempt to the reduce the cars insurance rating down to group16. With a 0-60 time of around 7 and a half seconds the 6 is quick but no dragster. Both 1st and 2nd gears are long, infact you can almost get to 70MPH in 2nd before hitting the limiter. 3rd gear is where exciting things start to happen. Take this car out onto country lanes and I promise the superb handling and speed will bring a smile to your face.
Handling: As mentioned, the Gti-6 really excels on cornering. The rear of the car features passive rear steering which means it can handle corners a lot better than other FWD cars. Infact, on the twisties the 6 can put many higher powered and more expensive cars to shame. It really takes a 4WD car with turbos or superchargers to beat this little hot hatch. Fans of the legendary 205 Gti will testify to Peugeots great hot hatch status and the 306 Gti-6 and Rallye pick up where the 205 Gti left off. Unfortunately Peugeot don't seem to have bothered making another great hot hatch as both the 206 and 307 are rather disappointing. Lets hope the 207 and 308 make up for this!!! ONE WORD OF WARNING. The passive rear steer on the 306 Gti-6 and rallye can catch out less experienced drivers. The passive setup can make the car behave more like a RWD car and induces lift off oversteer when cornering hard. My advice = Don't lift off the accelerator when corning hard. The back will slide out and you will end up in a hedge. To correct a slide, turn the wheel to the direction you want to travel and hit the accelerator (make sure you are in the correct gear and your revs are high). The car will straighten up and you'll be able to continue on with only slightly damp pants and a big smirk.
Disadvantages: 1. Reliability - This is a French car, not German. Face the facts people! It is going to break at some point. Some owners have relatively hassle free ownership (myself included) others seem to have an endless list of things they need to do (however in experience these people are sports car enthusiasts, hence why they bought the 6, and are always seeking perfection). When things do go wrong, they aren't too expensive to repair compared to some other makes and there are plenty of cheap parts to be found from motorfactors, such as GSF. Excellent advice is on hand from Peugeot enthusiasts when things do go wrong and there is even a dedicated 306 Gti-6 and Rallye Owners Forum. Generally, if something goes wrong they will know about it and how to fix. 2. Cambelt failure - Unfortunately these cars do suffer from cambelt failures and when it happens, it usually ruins the whole engine (rockers and valves break and all 16 need replacing or else tapping occurs, the head warps when removed due to the extreme pressures and then wont go back on properly.) Ideally the cambelt should be replaced every 40k miles instead of the Peugeot recommended 70k. Stick to this and you will be fine. 3. No Haynes manual - Not for the 2.0l 16v engine, other parts shared with the rest of the 306 range are covered in the standard 306 Haynes Manual. 4. Fuel consumption - Not really a disadvantage, drive the car like a race driver and it will drink fuel in minutes. Drive it sensibly and it isn't too bad. Come on people. Face the facts! This is a performance car, if you want good fuel consumption buy a diesel! 5. Peugeot - Dealership employees are a bunch of muppets usually and don't know anything. This is usually the case for other makes too.
Buyer's Guide: 1. Check cambelt has been regularly changed. Check for tapping noise from the engine. if this continues then the car has probably suffered cambelt failure at some stage. 2. The clutch is naturally rather heavy so don't let this put you off. 3. Check the door hinges. As the doors are rather large the hinges can get quite worm under the strain. Check the plastic ducting between door and body. This can break and the wires inside can snap. This will stop your electrics such as alarm, central locking, mirrors and windows from working as the circuits are broken. 4. Brakes. This is a fast car so check for wear on the fronts. Easy and cheap to replace from motorfactors. 5. Air Conditioning. Check this is cold as it can need re-gassing and the pipes can corrode. The pipes are extremely hard to find if you need new ones.
Conclusion. A great little hot hatch that's quite rare. Only a handle full of Rallyes made it to the UK so if you find one in good condition, but it at once. Doesn't seem to have fallen into the hands of boy racers so is therefore a quite respectable car to own. Owns previous accolade of "Best Hot Hatch of the Year". Top Gear's Jeremy Clarkson raved about the 306 Gti-6 on its launch, quote: "...and now there's the incredible Peugeot 306 Gti-6." These cars are relatively inexpensive to buy now so go out and find one and I guarantee it will put a smile on your face!!!
...and Exchange-and-Mart websites were encouraging. Peugeot 306s, Volkswagon Golfs, Renault Meganes and cars of a similar class all appeared to be readily available and, more importantly, within my price range. I narrowed my list down to a Peugeot 306 XSi, Golf GTi, Megane Coupe or a Fiat Bravo HGT and set off to the parts of town that bristle with used-car dealerships to see what was available locally. At the first garage I visited, there was a red ... ...registered car and a full Peugeot dealer history, all I managed to get was a palrty £3,500.
So not including the £700 a year insurance, £180/year road tax, 23Mpg fuel consumption and 4 new tyres. It cost me a whacking £9,500 to own for 3 years.
Now if I sound bitter, it may be because I am. Just a little. But that's the commercial stuff out of the way. Suffice to say that, in my experience, the total cost of ownership cannot be over-estimated.
...
LegendaryMrDude 13.09.2004
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: very helpful Review of Peugeot 306 2.0
...car with 6 gears? The Peugeot 306 GTI6 is the ultimate hatchback since the launch of the Peugeot 205 GTI. This beauty of a car first arrived in Great Britain back 1997 and there are only around 2,000 in this country. I am fortunate to be one of those 2,000 – The reason why there are so few 306GTI6 is because they are a limited edition. Apart from its real good looks (which I will go into in a sec) the 306 stands out from other sport hatchbacks because ... ...the power and handling. The Peugeot 306GTI6 is all power reaching speeds of 140mph – a 2.0 litre engine that handles the road superbly even at speeds of 140mph. No shaking of the steering wheel like many of your has been sports cars (Ford fiesta XR2,Ford Escort,Renault Turbo).
If you want class,style,power and looks then the Peugeot 306GTI6 will not fail any of those. Equipped with all the modern accessories this car has it all. The interior is ...
Rincon 18.09.2001 (23.10.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: very helpful Review of Peugeot 306 2.0
Advantages: EVERYTHING, except... Disadvantages: ... heavy on pads, heavy on fuel, heavy on insurance, heavy on life expectancy.
Although this is for the 306 GTI-6, I am a very proud owner of a Rallye, and it is without doubt my pride and joy.
The day I bought it, I will never forget the feeling of joy and terror. I had just upgraded from a '96 Polo 1.6 GLX (the most loaded and "sporty" one) and I could not believe the performance in comparison. This one actuall stopped!
Like the rest of the people here, it was bought on a whim. I was originally going to buy a Bora 1.9 TDi, ... ...Oh sure, there were a few GTi-6's on Autotrader, but I would never have bought one. I just didn't see myself being "GTi Boy". And besides, have you ever seen a Rallye?
Having gotten the rarest (and most resaleable) black paint job, still intact with the Rallye livery, I set about having it fully checked out. Turned out that it was in impeccable condition for 67K miles. And a '98 plate too. How stung I was about to be.
A catastrophic engine failure ...
Jimmy_Luxury 23.02.2008 (22.02.2008)
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: very helpful Review of Peugeot 306 2.0
Advantages: Great to drive, lovely to look at Disadvantages: Older models can suffer from high maintenance costs
Peugeot's 306 GTI-6 is undoubtedly a fun car to drive. Back in 1997 when they were first released they cost around £18,000, which may seem expensive. But given that for the money you got leather and alcantara seats, a 6 CD changer and fairly decent stereo, air conditioning, and a car that was better to drive than anything else on offer in its class at the time, the price seems entirely fair to me.
The car I own is a 1997 (Mark 1) GTI-6. I have owned ... ...miles on the clock, which I must admit is becoming a considerable issue. Until recently the car has been virtually trouble free, but now the problems have started rolling in. In fact my last trip to the garage resulted in a quote for repairs and servicing of £850 (new speed sensor, map sensor, radiator and cooling fan sensor), and this on top of the repairs I have just had on the power steering and suspension. None of the problems I have come accross ...
uselesstom 24.10.2007
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: very helpful Review of Peugeot 306 2.0
Advantages: excellent car Disadvantages: insurance
The Peugeot 306 xsi is an excellent car. It looks good drives well and with that sporty look is a perfect car for everyday life. A 2.0 litre engine that has power, acceleration and is affordable. It may cost a bit insurance wise but who cares.......it's car that once you've bought you instantly fall in love with. The inside interiors poor, and can easily bubble, but the dash board is stunning and with all the standard gimmicks plus a 6 CD changer, ... ...drives well and even on humps you barely feel it, it does tight corners perfectly, and the slightest of acceleration is needed for over -taking.
On the motorway it's a dream to drive, fast but safe. It has child safety locks for added protection so it's more than suitable for families. The blue and cherry colours both look good, but the cherry red is a perfect colour for the summer months. For £5995 for a P reg. I wouldn't say it's bad at all. If ...
india1 17.02.2001
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: helpful Review of Peugeot 306 2.0
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Model: 306 Hdi Dturbo
Manufactured: 1999 'V'
Purchased: Oct 2002
Mileage when bought: 36000
Current mileage: 50000
Performance
0 to 60mph & top speed are pretty irrelevant in these times of congestion & camera catchers, all the talk should be torque. This 90 bhp HDi engine has 167 lbft of torque which is more than a lot of ?hot hatches?, & has different gear ratios in this model to the LX.
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Handling
The DTurbo version of the 306 has running gear (with some mods ...
